Industrial and Information Societies the Major Characteristic

¶ … Industrial and Information Societies

The major characteristic of the industrial society, which distinguishes it from the previous society types, is the mode of subsistence. Unlike the previous foraging, pastoral and agricultural societies, gathering food in the industrial society is done by only a tiny fraction of the population, who supply food for the entire population. At the same time, the basis for society shifts, with mass production becoming the basis for wealth and power in an industrial society.

The mass production results in the factors associated with an industrialized society: high consumption of energy; reliance on technology; the production of waste material; urbanization; and reduced emphasis on physical labor.

The effect on society also includes a lesser emphasis on community and family and a growing emphasis on the individual. This further leads to a society where there is a complex class and power structure and a stratum of individuals from the wealthy to those living in poverty.

The information society has grown out of industrial society and places further emphasis on mental labor. Mass production is replaced by information and knowledge as the basis for society. The focus on knowledge also results in scientific progress. The results of this scientific progress ranges from improved health and greater life expectancy to more developed and more destructive weapons of war.

The focus on knowledge also means that individuals in society have access to more information, with the production, dissemination and interpretation of this information a major component of the society.

The amount of information available impacts greatly on the current world view. Greater information is available to all individuals than ever before, but at the same time it is controlled and manipulated through the media and through the information channels available. The end result is that people have a wider world view, but are also able to have their world view manipulated based on what information they are given and in what form.

Neoclassical and Substantivist Economic Theories

Neoclassical theory is the theory that modern economists use to define current society. This theory is based on the concepts of needs and wants, scarcity and rational choices. It looks at how individuals have both needs and wants and how they select from these needs and wants what they will actually buy.

The concept of scarcity means that there are always greater wants than there is the resources to provide for those wants. For this reason, individuals must choose what to purchase with their available resources.

Neoclassical theory also asserts that these decisions will be made rationally. This means that in deciding what to purchase, it is assumed that all options are known and that the decision is made based on what is of greatest benefit to the individual.

Substantivism is a very different theory and is based on the idea that economic systems are socially and culturally determined. Substantivism would argue that the economic system present is defined by the social environment.