The Sociology studies the ways in which culture and social structures influence the technology and vice versa.
Technology is the application of science to try to solve the problems of everyday life. Technology introduces advances and information that play an important role in helping society achieve its goals.
It is undeniable that technological advances such as television, radio, computers, airplanes, satellites, telephones and the Internet have changed the world and the way of life of almost all its inhabitants in an extremely significant way.
In fact, the technology introduced in the 20th century has irreversibly changed the way people meet, interact, study, work and play.
Technological information grows exponentially. In the last few decades, there has been an explosion of technology and information. Technological advances have resulted in increased knowledge and information and, consequently, in the discovery of ways to further improve technology. Technology advances rapidly. Sociologists study how societies will be forced to adapt to the social changes caused by technological advances.
However, not all members of a society have the same degree of access to technological advances. Technology often results in even greater social inequality, because as it progresses, social differences become even more striking.
There are two forms of technological stratification . The first is unequal access to technology between different social classes and geographic regions. This is called a digital divide . This phenomenon leads to the second form of inequality: the “ knowledge gap” , which means a difference in knowledge, which is an increasing gap between those who have more and those who have less access to technology. Wealthier countries and higher social classes are more exposed to technology and, consequently, have more access to better opportunities for entrepreneurship and work.
Technology and the Media
Technology created new means of communication, which created new forms of action and interaction in the social world. Technology and means of communication are interconnected. Today, it is impossible to discuss the media and the ways in which societies communicate without addressing the rapid progress of technology. In fact, technology determines how and how information is shared.
New technologies enable interactivity with the world, facilitate access to information and influence how we interact with other people. Thus, technology creates new forms of communication and types of social relationships, both personal and professional.
For example, technology influences how and where people work. Thanks to technological advances, a person can work remotely : through a computer and Internet access, he can be constantly connected to the people he works with. Today, it is easy to communicate instantly with people who live in other cities or countries. Telecommunication allows employees to work outside the traditional workplace. This form of work has helped many people to enter the job market, including disabled people and mothers who need to spend most of the day at home, taking care of their children.
Technology has changed the way many people communicate on a daily basis: the physical presence to interact with others becomes less necessary as more people communicate virtually . In addition, the media transformed the spatial and temporal organization of social life, creating new forms of action and interaction and new ways of exercising power, which no longer depend on a fixed location.
The means of communication
The media are another agent of socialization. Television programs, films, popular music, magazines, websites and other forms of mass media influence our political views, our interests and preferences, the way we view men, women and minority members and our beliefs and values in general.
The media are often blamed for both youth violence and other ills in society. It is estimated that when watching films and television programs, a child is exposed to thousands of scenes of violence. This can have a huge negative influence on children and young people. At the same time, the commercials transmitted by the media influence our daily lives: what we eat and drink, how we dress and the material goods we acquire. The media also reinforce gender and race stereotypes. In some cases, because some media outlets target women’s bodies, they lead some men to believe that they are nothing more than sexual objects.
Technology and the media promote globalization. Globalized communication creates a world culture . The same news and programs can be broadcast simultaneously all over the world. Thus, the information disseminated around the world is the same.
Today, thanks to technology, there is also a standardization of consumption habits that occurs as a result of contact between different cultures. Thus, the world becomes more and more globalized. The circulation of ideas and information also generates new behaviors, fosters the desire for greater freedom and promotes the universalization of democratic values.
The Internet
The Internet is a worldwide network with millions of computers connected. Through the Internet, people can share written information, sounds, images, photos, videos, etc. The number of people using the Internet is constantly growing.
The Internet originated from a system created by the US Department of Defense to ensure that the United States maintained a communications network that even a nuclear attack would not be able to destroy. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Internet was used only by the United States government and its use was limited to military and academic purposes. In 1995, the Internet was opened to the public. A few years later, hundreds of millions of computers around the world were already connected to the Internet.
Sociologists study the social implications of the Internet: new forms of interaction between people, virtual communities, cyber crime, etc. These are all relatively new phenomena. Google, for example, was created in 1998, Wikipedia in 2001, Facebook in 2004 and YouTube in 2005.
The Internet is a deeply democratic entity. Virtually anyone can create a website or blog and use it to convey their thoughts, beliefs and opinions – political, social, religious, etc. Sociologists also study how the Internet leads to social inequality and social exclusion. The Internet exemplifies what happens thanks to the digital divide. On the one hand, many people access and use the Internet practically every day: they pay bills online, make purchases, search for information and communicate with other people. For such people, the Internet is improving and modernizing their lives. On the other hand, there are people who do not have access to the Internet or do not know how to use it and, consequently, are deprived of the benefits, social opportunities and practicalities that this new technology offers. The digital divide causes certain groups in society to be segregated. Such groups are made up of people who do not have access to computers and the Internet and older people who do not keep up with technological innovations.
The Internet is certainly an extremely agile and effective form of communication. However, there are critics who argue that the Internet can be harmful, as it allows young people and children to have free access to pornography. Even more worrying is the fact that sexual predators use the Internet to identify potential victims. The Internet can also result in other ills: social isolation, the spread of false information, plagiarism, distance between family members, etc.
