Information

Society
Muhammad Usman Saeed
09020716-005
Background
Term “information Society’ originated in Japan
in 1960s
Concept of ‘post-industrial society’ by Daniel
Bell (1973)
‘Information Economy’ by the economists
Machlup (1962) and Porat (1977)
Post-Industrial Society
This term was the most
frequently used one
before the expression
“information society”
gained overall
acceptance; it defined
the newly emerged
social-economic
phenomenon by
emphasizing the fact
that the old structures of
the industrial era were
replaced by new ones.
(Denial Bell, 1973)
Information Society
Melody (1990: 26-7)
describes information
societies simply as those
that have become
‘dependent upon
complex electronic
information networks
and which allocate a
major portion of their
resources to information
and communication
activities.
László Z. Karvalics
A new form of social
existence in which the
storage, production, flow,
etc. of networked
information plays the
central role.
Hungarian definition
A social structure based
on the free creation,
distribution, access and
use of information and
knowledge […] the
globalisation of various
fields of life.
((Hungarian) National
Strategy of Informatics,
1995)
Table: Comparison
of the
characteristics of
Post Industrial and
information society
by Yoneji Masuda.
Source: Masuda,
1980
Innovational Technology

Post-Industrial Society Information Society

Core Steam engine (power) Computer (memory,
computation,
Basic function Replacement, Replacement
control) ,
amplification of amplification of
Productive Power Material
physical productive
labour Information
mental productive
power power
labour
 Post-Industrial Society Information Society
Socio–economic Structure

Products Useful goods and Information,

services technology

Production centre Modern factory Information utility

(machinery, equipment) (information networks,
data banks)

Leading industries Manufacturing Intellectual

industries (machinery industries,
industry, chemical (information
industry) industry, knowledge
industry)

From of society Class society Functional society

(centralized power, (multicentre, function,
classes, autonomy)
control)
 Post-Industrial Society Information Society
Socio–economic Structure

National goal GNW (gross national GNS (gross national

welfare) satisfaction)

Force of social Labour movements, Citizens’ movements,

change strikes litigation

Social problems Unemployment, war, Future shock, terror,

fascism invasion of privacy

Most advanced High mass consumption High mass knowledge

stage creation
 Post-Industrial Society Information Society

Ethical standards Fundamental human Self-discipline, social

Values

rights, humanity contribution

Spirit of the times Renaissance (human Globalise (symbiosis of

liberation) man and nature)
Other Related Concepts
Post-industrial society (Daniel Bell),
Post-fordism
Post-modern Society
Knowledge Society
Telematic Society
Information Revolution
Network society (Van Dijk,1993; Manuel
Castells, 1996).

Network Society
Van Dijik (1999) suggests that modern society
is in a process of becoming a network society:
‘a form of a society increasingly organizing its
relationships in media networks which are
gradually replacing or complementing the
social networks of face to face
communication.
Conclusion
“Information society” is a term used to
describe the most recent stage of social
history. In the 20th century the most
developed countries gradually entered the
state of information society and it is expected
that within a matter of a few decades the
majority of the world’s population will be
living and working in a global information
society.
Critics
The information society concept has not been
universally accepted as helpful for analysis,
for reasons that have in part been explained.
A central problem is the lack of political
dimension, since it seems to have no core of
political porpose, simply an (attributrd)
inevitable technocratic logic of its own. (van
Dijik, 1999).
 Q
u
?? es
t io
n s.
.
Sources
László Z. Karvalics (2007), Information Society
– what is it exactly? (The meaning, history
and conceptual framework of an expression)
Information society, From Wikipedia, the free
encyclopedia.
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