The world is in the midst of a historical transformation at the turn of the
millennium. Like all major transformations in history, it is multidimensional:
technological, economic, social, cultural, political, geopolitical. Yet, in the end,
what is the real meaning of this extraordinary mutation for social development, for
peopleís lives and well-being? And is there a shared meaning for everyone, or
must we differentiate people in terms of their specific relationship to the process of
social change? If so, what are the criteria for such a differentiation?
There is a raging debate in the world on the mixed record of the information
technology revolution, and of globalizationóespecially when we consider their
social dimensions on a planetary scale. As is always the case with a fundamental
debate, it is most often framed ideologically and cast in simplistic terms. For the
prophets of technology, for the true believers in the magic of the market,
everything will be just fine, as long as ingenuity and competition are set free. All
we need are a few regulatory fixes, to prevent corruption and to remove
bureaucratic impediments in the path of our flight to hyper-modernity. For those
around the world who are not ecstatic about surfing on the Internet, but who are
affected by layoffs, lack of basic social services, crime, poverty and disruption of
their lives, globalization is nothing more than a warmed up version of traditional
capitalist ideology. In their view, information technology is a tool for renewed
exploitation, destruction of jobs, environmental degradation and the invasion of
privacy. Techno-elites versus neo-luddites.
Of course, the real issues are not in-between, but elsewhere. Social development
today is determined by the ability to establish a synergistic interaction between
technological innovation and human values, leading to a new set of organizations
and institutions that create positive feedback loops between productivity,
flexibility, solidarity, safety, participation and accountability, in a new model of
development that could be socially and environmentally sustainable.
It is easy to agree on these goals, but difficult to develop the policies and strategies
that could lead to them. Some of the disagreement comes, certainly, from
conflicting interests, values and priorities. But a considerable source of current
disarray in social and economic policies stems from the lack of a common
understanding of the processes of transformation under way, of their origins and
their implications. This paper aims to clarify the meaning of this transformation,
particularly by focusing on the processes that are usually considered to be its
triggers: the information technology revolution and the process of globalization.
As we shall see, in fact, these two processes interact with others, in a very complex
set of actions and reactions. But they offer a fruitful entry point to discuss the
connection between the new socio-economic system and the generation of
inequality and social exclusion on an unprecedented, planetary scale.
Thus, after having characterized technological innovation, organizational change
and globalization, I will analyse the various dimensions of inequality and social
exclusion, showing the depth of our social crisis, and I will provide some
hypotheses on the reasons for its accentuation in the last decade. I will conclude by
proposing a redefinition of the field of social development, appropriate to tackle
the issues that condition our capacity to live together in the new context of the
Information Technology, Globalization and Social Development
ìinformation ageî. In proceeding along the lines of this argument, I have in mind a
variety of data, from reliable sources, that make somewhat plausible the analysis
presented here. However, since I have just published a book that brings together
many of these data, I take the liberty of referring the reader to it, in order to
concentrate here on the schematic presentation (and expanded elaboration) of my
argument without repeating the presentation of data sources (see Castells, 1996,
1997 and 1998 as well as the synthesis of data on world poverty presented in
UNDP, 1997).