Theories of the Information Society, Third Edition - Cryptome

POST-INDUSTRIAL SOCIETY
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‘microelectronics revolution’ was founded on known principles of physics. Again,
the potentially awesome consequences of genetic engineering stem from the
identification and codification of humankind’s genetic make-up, an ambition that
drives the Human Genome Project. As Bell puts it, production in PIS is ‘primarily
dependent on theoretical work prior to production’ (Bell, 1973, p. 25).
The proposal is that nowadays theory is pre-eminent not just in the area of
technological innovation, but even in social and economic affairs. For example,
governments introduce policies that are premised on theoretical models of the
economy. These may be variable – Keynesian, monetarist, supply-side and so
forth – but they are, nonetheless, each theoretical frameworks which underpin
any day-to-day decisions ministers may make in response to exigencies.
Elsewhere, one may instance the primacy of theory in social affairs, for instance
in the creation of educational and medical provision, where experts make their
decisions on the basis of theoretical models of the operation of family structures,
lifestyle variations and demographic trends. Recent debates, as well as formulation
of policies in the UK and beyond, on provision of pensions into the midtwenty-first
century revolve around projections and models of age structures,
longevity, employment and migratory patterns.
It is salutary to reflect here on contemporary policies orientated towards
resolving environmental problems. It quickly becomes evident that these are not
merely responses to particularly pressing problems (e.g. an oil spillage at sea,
desertification). They do involve such contingencies, of course, but they are also
proposals developed on the basis of theoretical models of the ecosystem’s
sustainability. Thus, for instance, environmental debates are routinely informed
by theoretical projections on matters such as population growth, fish stocks and
the condition of the ozone layer. Practical policies are imaginable only on the
basis of these sorts of theoretical model as in, for example, appropriate reactions
to a noticeably dry or warmer summer in the UK which is comprehensible only
in a context of theoretical models of the long-term likelihood of and consequences
of global warming. To be sure, such models are at present inchoate and
unrefined, but they and other instances help us to appreciate that, while theoretical
knowledge does not have to be ‘true’ in any absolute sense, it does play
a decisive part in our lives. The theoretical knowledge used here is often imprecise,
but this does not undermine the point that it is a prerequisite of action. The
truth is that, where once actions were responsive to practical issues (e.g. a technical
problem, a social obstacle), nowadays much of life is organised on the basis
of theories – of abstract, generalisable principles – of behaviour.
Bell thinks this change has important consequences. Perhaps most important,
the primacy of theory in all spheres gives PIS a capacity to plan and hence to
control futures to a much greater degree than previous societies. This capability
of course accords with the professionals’ predisposition to organise and arrange
life. In addition, theories are made more versatile thanks to the advent of information
technologies. Computerisation allows not just the management of
‘organised complexity’, but also, through programming, the creation of ‘intellectual
technology’ (Bell, 1973, p. 29) that incorporates knowledge (rules, procedures
and the like) and in turn facilitates innovations based on theoretical knowledge.
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