por We explain what the information society is, its characteristics, advantages and disadvantages
What is the information society?
The society of Information It is a society in which the use, creation and distribution of information of various kinds is a common activity, whether in politics, economics or culture. Its main exponent is the development of communication and information technologies, mainly digital media.
The presence of these tools usually generates significant changes within these societies in the various areas that comprise them. This includes everything related to the economy, education, military decision-making and criticism of democracy. It is a phenomenon that occurred as a consequence of an overexposure to information.
Information societies are seen as the natural successors of industrial societies, whose decline began in the last century, when the influence of industry in society began to be offset by the powerful effect of information management.
Origin of the information society
The origin of the information society occurred with the emergence of the Information Age, which is considered to be the current state of development of the human race.
The Information Age is the period in human history in which the effects of the Industrial Revolution are left behind to emphasize the production of information technologies.
In turn, the origin of this era is accompanied by the largest human revolution after the Industrial Revolution, known as the Digital Revolution. This was the period in which mechanical and analog technology stopped being used to begin a digitalization process that is still valid today.
The information society is the direct consequence of today’s easy access to electronic devices such as personal computers or smartphones. The Information Age is constantly evolving with the introduction of new technologies every year.
Characteristics of the information society
Increased information
One of the main attributes that defines the information society is the constant growth that demonstrates the ability to obtain information.
This is reflected in the new digital technologies that allow greater data storage each year, which in turn gives much more information access to societies.
Association with new technologies
The increase in information is not only linked to the development of the Internet, but also to all kinds of digital technology that influences communication, such as the devices used by the mass media to transmit digital data around the world.
In addition, the joint development of communication technologies at the end of the 1990s defined the growth of the information society, as this gave rise to the development of new economic technologies that increased the performance of the various branches of societies.
Information as an economic resource
In this type of society, information itself has a very important economic value. Information not only has a much broader scope than at any other time in history, but is also a key factor in the performance of businesses and companies.
Consumer Importance
Consumers are fundamental elements within these societies. Citizens have become active consumers of information and, therefore, a constant production of it is required to satisfy their needs.
This information makes the consumer decide what technological product to buy, what restaurant to visit or even what type of clothing to buy.
economic infrastructure
The economy is specifically structured so that information itself is distributed and circulated. This is closely related to the influence that information has within the economic sphere of a society.
Advantages
Easy access to information
In the information society, almost all people have the ability to easily access any type of information they seek, investing little or no money to achieve it.
This is largely due to the technological growth of mankind. The wide availability of all kinds of technology means that, in one way or another, people can buy electronic devices that allow them to access the Internet, the largest source of information in the world.
improvements to the economy
The Information Age has allowed the economy to develop much more effectively than at any other point in human history.
Information technologies allow a much more efficient organization of the distribution of costs and expenses of a company, without requiring more than a transcription of invoices.
This facility to improve the economy has been the exponent of the growth of industries worldwide from the end of the 20th century to the present day.
Increase in “intangible” products
For the first time in the history of humanity, a large amount of information has begun to be generated, compared to that produced only a century ago.
This is not only due to the easy access that technology now has, but also to the new value obtained by information as an economic resource.
Disadvantages
Increased economic controls
Technology has led to the establishment of new regulations and the rise of global capitalism, which is under the control of powerful institutions that use cyberspace as a means of global communication.
This has created a competitive mentality that does not always turn out to be positive for society.
Emergence of a cumulative regime
According to the theories of neo-Marxists, the emergence of the information society has given rise to a cumulative economic system, where poverty and unemployment increase thanks to the decrease in salaries and the little need to hire labor. industrial.
Detachment from traditional society
The creation of a society dependent on technology creates a wrong notion about the current state of society.
While the use of technology is now commonplace, people are still just as capable as they were a century ago, only now knowledge is more easily accessible.
Examples of information societies
Any society in which the use of the following technologies and characteristics exists is, to a greater or lesser degree, an information society:
Internet. Big data. Email. Social networks. I work from the computer. Meetings from video calls. Use of data to make business or personal decisions. Use of data in personal health management. Digitization.
Although these technologies and ways of living exist in most countries, digitization and therefore the use of information have been especially implemented in some:
Denmark. Estonia. USA. Hong Kong. United Arab Emirates. Mauricio.