Untitled - socium.ge

The network society in Catalonia 247CONCLUSION: TECHNOLOGY, COMMUNITY, ANDCULTURE IN THE TRANSITION TO THE NETWORKSOCIETYThe study of the network society in Catalonia confirms the need to understandthe Internet, and information technology-powered social networks, in thespecific social and cultural context in which they operate. There is no networksociety, but network societies. At the same time, there are some commonfeatures that specify the social structure characteristic of the network society,as argued in chapter 1 of this volume. In our analysis of Catalonia we observedboth these common trends, and the variations produced by history, culture, andinstitutions.Among the commonalities, we found the role played by the Internet and bythe networking logic in the construction of social autonomy for those socialactors capable of articulating their individual and collective projects. We alsodiscovered how social structure shapes social networks and conditions theuses of the Internet, so that the processes of domination and inequality, presentin the social structure, are amplified by the new communication technology.We confirmed, as well, the findings of researchers around the world that showhow people adapt technologies to their needs and values, so that their patternsof behavior in everyday life are reproduced on the Internet: children play, theyoung explore, the mature work and manage, the elderly run after the processof social change, while trying to keep in control of their lives. Identity buildingis, by and large, primarily rooted in individual projects, as the process ofindividuation of meaning characterizes Catalonia as much as other developedsocieties in the world.On the other hand, we also discovered how the specific structural conditions,history, and culture of Catalonia influence the uses of the Internet andtheir social and organizational correlates. A territorially rooted culture, familyoriented,and with highly dense networks of strong ties in social relationships,builds networked sociability on top of community and kinship as the predominantmode of social interaction. National identity is still significant, andwhen, in a minority of the population, it appears linked to a collective projectof cultural transformation, it finds in the Internet a strong element of supportand connectivity. The generation gap that characterizes societies in a processof rapid social change takes a dramatic dimension in Catalonia, as the youngCatalans, heavy users of the Internet and network-oriented in their social practice,contrast sharply with a majority of poorly educated people, often resistantto technological change.Yet, the social cohesion provided by strong communities, built on territoriallybased families, friends, and neighbors, reunites the segments of society