Communication Technology and Society - Term Paper Example

? Communication Technology and Society Science and technology has for long remained distant from the field of sociology as these two were considered to be of entirely different nature. Recently, several researchers have underpinned the relation of sociology with science and technological growth of a country. Contrary to the economic growth which the country has achieved over the years and a prominent rise in the export to import ratio, the standing on the technological segment has been on the weaker side. Furthermore, the export of the country comprises of only 22% of goods that can be regarded of technological sophistication, while the rest are labor oriented. Tough, overall technology of Indonesia remained sidelined, the communication technology has moved to 4G, with currently the highest rate of internet usage as per population among all South Asian countries. Communication Technology and Society Background Science and technology has for long remained distant from the field of sociology as these two were considered to be of entirely different nature. Recently, several researchers have underpinned the relation of sociology with science and technological growth of a country. Researches of Bijker (1995), Elzen (1986), and Pacey (2000) have provided the grounds of analyzing a country’s technological hold from the standpoint of social and environmental construction of that country. The communication technology in Indonesia has reached the fourth generation. Technological advancement in other sectors including industrial and commercial sectors has not achieved the same height in the country (Mukopadhaya, 2000). Contrary to the economic growth which the country has achieved over the years and a prominent rise in the export to import ratio, the standing on the technological segment has been on the lesser improved side. Furthermore, the export of the country comprises of only 22% of goods that can be regarded of technological sophistication, while the rest are labor oriented. On the other side, exports of technological goods of Malaysia which has a similar socio-political structure and is comparatively less financially strong than Indonesia makes up to more than 50% of the total exports of the country. This shows that overall Indonesia does not have an upper hand over technology, other than the communication, that is mobile and internet sectors of technology (Okamoto & Sjoholm, 2001). The paper will analyze the social construction of the country which has allowed it to gain great technological advancement in the communication sector, irrespective of the fact that the overall technology of the country has not been enhanced to the same level. Issues One concern that is been raised in the paper is that the government has taken the right approach towards the technological development in Indonesia. Another matter of concern is the imbalance in communication technology and industrial technology of the country. It also raises the issue that the focus towards communication technology might have diverted the attention of government, policy makers and general people to the same technological advancement in other sectors of the country. Purpose It is defined in the research of Anderson, Carter, & Lowe (1999) that communication technology is closely related to the social and behavior components and patters of the society. These components are defined as factors in the “Adoption Model” where there is a room for modification and innovation in the system structure. Anderson, Carter, & Lowe has explained in his report that communication technology is more related to the social structure of the country, whilst industrial technology is more related to the governmental structure and economic outlook. The solidarity of the social structure is thus demonstrated from the communication advancement in the country (Anderson, Carter, & Lowe, 1999) (Daft & Lengel, 1984). The government of Indonesia is well set for starting its 4G communication plan and hardware for implementing the setup has already been established (Jakarta Globe, 2012). This advancement shows that people in Indonesia have adapted to the latest technological trends in the communication sector, and are about to move another step further. According to the report of Maidden and Rainie (2003), the number of growth in Internet chat rooms usage grew 18% from 2001-2002 in Indonesia (Maidden & Rainie, 2003). Nearly 29 million people have accounts on chat rooms and about 5 million of them use these chat rooms on a daily basis. Another report by Domar (1946) tells that the Instant Messaging boom is very prominent in Indonesia where more than 240 million IM were reported to be sent per day. Social networking sites have given rise to the 3rd generation of communication technology, where messaging service and the Internet service were merged in a single device. The number of people using mobile and internet increased significantly over the period of last few years, and it seems like communication has become the most vital segment of everyone’s life (Latour, 1987). Theoretical Framework After laying down the basic facts about the growth in communication technology, we are now in a position to evaluate the reason why people are urging so speedily towards these communication channels. One answer to this is given Ruggiero (2000) making the “Uses and Gratification theory” as the base of explanation. Ruggiero explains that people like to be the active participants of the society and not passive. For this reason, they like to be engage into media and communication mediums that can provide them the room and opportunity to connect with each other and express themselves. This is one source of finding gratification through media or communication channels. Another source of gratification, as explained by Richard & Lynn, (2007) is that people like to have the power of creating media, and not just consuming it. This concept is based on the “Mass Society Theory” that a source of pleasure and gratification for a person or society is to feel their contribution in changing the perception of others about a particular object, event or personality (Richard & Lynn, 2007). This is the when the power of media is experienced by people; they feel the joy and gratification for it (Bucy, 2002). There is another approach to the Uses and Gratification theory (UGT) introduced by Katz, Blumler, and Gurevitch (2011). This approach is based on the needs and satisfaction by gratification rather than the previous approach of pleasure due to the contribution. This approach is known as the ‘Heuristic Approach of UGT’ where the needs and expectations of people from mass media are catered (Katz, Blumler, & Gurevitch, 2011). Some of the needs defined in this report were that to get a refreshing environment that can isolate the person from the stresses of daily lives, and to find people with similar interest or habits who can serve the physiological need of understating a person. These approaches to the UGT illustrate that communication technology, unlike other technologies; serve as the physiological and social needs of people of the country (Bijker, Hughes, & Pinch, The social construction of bakelite: Toward a theory of invention. In The social construction of technological systems:, 1987). The 2011 report of the World Factbook has reported that there are nearly 236,800,000 numbers of mobile phones in the country, in comparison to the total population of around 237,556,363. This tells that there are more mobile phones in the country than the entire population. The figure below provides the graphical illustration of the trend of internet usage as a percent of the population in Indonesia. (World Bank, 2013) Result and Analysis A very prominent increase in the internet usage from 2009-2011 can be seen from the graph. This growth is phenomenal in comparison to the previous internet growth in the country, and also to growth in other parts of Asia, with respect to heir population. With a percentage of nearly 18% of the total population, Indonesia has experienced the largest internet growth in terms of the population, among all other Asian countries. These facts urge to determine the change in the social construction that has resulted in such a tremendous growth in usage of internet and cell phones over the last couple of years. The book of Bijker and Law (1995) tells that this technological advancement into phases of social advancement. Giving the example of the phases of the development of bicycle, Bijker explains that initially the bicycle had bid steel tires (Bijker & Law, 1995). During the passage of time, the technology was been modified and the tires were then made with air tube. Scientist consider it only from the view point of technology and research involve in its modification; however there are certain social factors that also contributes in this technological advancement. For cyclist, there was a concern of more speed, for the non-cyclist there was a concern of more safety and protection. There was another general concern of looks and style in the bicycle, for which big steel tires was not appropriate (Bijker & Law, 1995). Hence, all these social needs and requirements form the basis of technological advancements made in bicycle. This theory helps in comprehending then role of society behind technological advancement. Lin and & Atkin, (2002) explains that the communication technology is viewed from then financial point of view that can help in revenue generation of the cellular or internet service provider companies. A similar point of view can be observed from the perspective of policy makers and governments where they will get opportunities to benefit from the communication medium provider companies (Lin & Atkin, 2002). Furthermore, as more people in Indonesia have move towards the communication technology it demonstrates their desire for ease in communication and getting visibility among friends by keeping the latest technology in hands. Therefore, it is evident that social and political desires are the grass root causes of the technological advancement. If the desire for better communication tool or using the communication medium to express one’s feelings and status is absent, then technological advancement in the communication sector is least likely to occur (Booth (1999), Fane & Condon (1996), Hill (1995), Hill & Wie (1998)). The research of Haard (1993) can be used to explain the peak in technological position of Indonesia in the last few years. Haard (1993) explains that Indonesia has been acting as the technology adaptor country over the past; however in the recent years structural change in education and society has made it to work act as a technological innovator, especially in the communication sector. So, now the both the economy and natives of the country are directly exposed to the communication technology, and barriers in adapting to the latest technologies have been suppressed (Pinch, Mendelsohn, & Weingart (1977); Haard (1993)). Conclusion It can be concluded that the communication technology swift observed in Indonesia is interdependent on the environment and the social setting of the country. It is not simply the role of companies innovating and advancing these communication services, but also the impact of how these social attitude and behavior which are stimulating the process of technology. Indonesia had initially adopted the communication mediums from other countries .As the acceptance and demand of this technology increased that is the change in the social construction, the country moved into the sphere of technology innovator, and technological growth increased significantly. Recommendations As communication technology served as the source of gratification and satisfaction for people, the government has to associate this perception with other modes of technology as well. Facts from Indonesia demonstrates that social construction and society shift of the country has palsied a significant role in the communication technological up-liftment of the country. This advocates that there is a potential in the country for further growth in the other sectors of technology, if proper political, economic and social systems are developed for it. Works Cited Anderson, R., Carter, I., & Lowe, G. (1999). Human behviour in the Social Environment. Hawthorne: Institute of Econoimc Sciences. Bijker, W., & Law, J. (1995). Of bicycles, bakelites, and bulbs: Toward a theory of sociotechnical change. Cambridge: MIT Press. Bijker, W., Hughes, T., & Pinch, T. (1987). The social construction of bakelite: Toward a theory of invention. In The social construction of technological systems:. Cambridge: Universityn of Cambridge. Booth, A. (1999). Education and Economic Development in Southeast Asia:. ASEAN Economic Bulletin, 16(3), 290-306. Bucy, E. (2002). 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Pacey, A. (2000). The Culture of Technology. . Cambridge: MIT Press. Pinch, T., Mendelsohn, E., & Weingart, P. (1977). What does a proof do if it does not prove? In The social production of scientific knowledge. Amsterdam: Netherland National Publications. Richard, W., & Lynn, T. (2007). ntroducing Communication Theory. New York: McGraw Hill. Ruggiero, T. (2000). Uses and Gratifications Theory n the 21st Century. Mass Communication and Society, 3(1), 3-37. World Bank. (2013). Internet asage as per population . Retrieved May 17, 2013, from World Bank: http://www.google.com/publicdata/explore?ds=d5bncppjof8f9_&ctype=l&strail=false&bcs=d&nselm=h&met_y=it_net_user_p2&scale_y=lin&ind_y=false&rdim=region&idim=country:IDN&ifdim=region&tstart=-308908800000&tend=1300464000000&hl=en_US&dl=en&q=internet+users+in Read More