Theories of the Information Society, Third Edition - Cryptome

REGULATION SCHOOL THEORY
1
regime of accumulation by taking into account some of the major social and
economic trends and events of the 1970s. It was at this time that, amidst a sharp
recession and the shock of sudden large-scale oil price rises in 1973, there came
about an awareness that developments were taking place that meant the Fordist
regime was no longer sustainable. Post-Fordism, signalled by the trends that
undermined Fordist conditions, began to emerge during this period. As we shall
see, at the storm centre of these changes were ways of handling, storing and
acting on information.
Globalisation
1
1
2
1
1
The most important factor that has led to the downfall of Fordism, and something
which is often thought of as a defining characteristic of the post-Fordist era,
is globalisation. In recent years, it is fair to say, the term has become one of the
most frequently used by social scientists as well as by political and business
leaders concerned with managing change (Held et al., 1999; Steger, 2003).
Globalisation is a long-term development, one still far from accomplished, but
which accelerated during and since the 1970s. The term refers not merely to an
increasing internationalisation of affairs that suggests more interaction between
autonomous nation states. Globalisation means much more than this: it signals
the growing interdependence and interpenetration of human relations alongside the
increasing integration of the world’s socio-economic life. There is a tendency to
conceive of globalisation as primarily an economic affair, manifest in the tying
together of markets, currencies and corporate organisations. It is this, but it is
simultaneously a social, cultural and political condition evident in, for example,
an explosive growth of migration, of tourist activity, hybrid musical forms and
heightened concern for global political strategies to meet threats and challenges
to survival.
Capitalism, which has pioneered globalisation, has proven itself extraordinarily
successful: it has extended its reach across the globe simultaneously with
penetrating deep into intimate realms of life. Thus, for example, capitalist activities
are today at once worldwide (and rapidly extending into hitherto isolated
areas such as the former Soviet Union and China) and, at the same time, well
able to enter into spheres such as childcare, personal hygiene and provision of
everyday foodstuffs. Moreover, as it has done this, capitalism has brought the
entire world into networks of relationships such that, for example, we may get
our coffee from one part of the world, our wines from another, they their television
from one region and their clothing from another, all of this conducted by
interconnections which integrate the globe. Quite simply, the trend is towards
the world being the context within which relationships are conducted, no matter
how localised and particular an individual life may appear to be (Wolf, 2005;
Bhagwati, 2004).
In addition, and crucial to the operation of globalisation, is the expansion of
transnational corporations (TNCs) that have provided the major foundations of this
phenomenon, although TNCs have been a feature of most of the twentieth
69