March 1, 2000 - Caught in the Web? The Web in the U.S.
Computer technology has spread rapidly throughout the United States and affected American society in a variety of ways: people order groceries and books over the Internet, trade stocks more frequently, communicate by email, play electronic games with geographically distant partners, and use the Internet and Web for educational purposes ranging from instruction in elementary schools to earning MBA degrees online from prestigious universities.
The use of computers expands significantly when corporations like the Ford Motor Company offers its workers free PCs and access to the Internet for $5 a month. Other companies provide free computers to customers who sign-up for Internet service. Basically, in the United States, the financial barriers to enter cyperspace are collapsing.
Given these developments it is not difficult to foresee a time when the Internet will be the dominant way to communicate, shop, and learn. More importantly, the uses of computer technology are expansive: it's likely that a company is inventing cyber vacations–not only will you be able to visit remote parts of the word via computer but, with the addition of a special peripheral device, you'll be able eat the local food, smell the local sites, and even get a tan.
Questioning this optimistic scenario, a recent study of computer users in the U. S. by Norman Nie, a political scientist at Stanford University, found that "the more hours people use the Internet, the less time they spend with real human beings." In other words, there appears to be a negative effect of computer use on the quality of social life in the United States. Indeed, in Nie's view the possibility of social isolation creating an atomized world without human contact or emotion can eventually result in fundamental social change.
The Web in the World
Has the impact of the World Wide Web and the Internet been as significant in other parts of the world? Will it become the "backbone" of not only the new U.S. economic paradigm but also the infrastructure for a new global economic system? Will it have the same potentially negative impact on social life in other cultures?
In Latin America, for example, although the Internet is growing rapidly, E-commerce has been slow to develop compared to its explosive growth in the U.S.
In China, because of the authoritarian political system, ordinary citizens are afraid to use the Internet without imposing self-censorship to avoid running afoul of state ideology and facing possible fines and prison. In addition, the Chinese government wants foreign companies that do business in China to disclose the type of encryption they use to protect their communications. Divulging this information could permit the Chinese government to eavesdrop on commercial transactions.
From the perspective of international organizational behavior some issues are:
- In what ways does culture influence the adoption and use of new information technologies?
- What are some reasons that E-Commerce is slow to develop in particular cultures?
- To what extent has the Internet changed the cultures and work organization of various countries?
- How will the Internet change national and organizational cultures in the future?
Web Exercise
In Latin America, where the growth of the Internet is increasing rapidly, a new Web Site is http://www.Loquesea.com. Its chief creative officer Adriana Lozada says that because Latin America is "a very controlling sort of society, you're taught from a very early age not to question so much." To capture the teen audience, which is estimated to be 40% of Internet traffic in Latin America, Loquesea's content is intentionally provocative and challenges the prevailing cultural value system (Wall Street Journal,February 9, 2000 pA22). Although it is in Spanish it's possible to get an idea of the content on this site by examining its pictures (recently it included various shots of a toilet and a young girl shaving her head). How would you evaluate the content of Loquesea.com from the perspective of the values of the teenage culture in your society? Is this site likely to increase interest in the Internet and result in improved use of E-Commerce and email? Can this site result in the social isolation of its users?
Using a search engine such as http://www.yahoo.com, http://www.altavista.com, or http://dogpile.com try to locate Web Sites that track the use of the Internet in various cultures including the percent of the population that owns computers, the extent of connections to the Internet, demographic data concerning Web use, and the typical uses of the Web. Other places to begin the search might be the web sites for the United Nations, the European Union, and university research centers that focus on issues of developing economic trends or the use of new communication technologies. Another site that may be useful is http://www.razorfish.com.
Finally, consider the following:
- To what extent is the Internet a force for the convergence of societies and behavior in organizations?
- Can the Internet reinforce already existing patterns of behavior and maintain their differences across cultures?
- Have the Web and Internet changed your behavior patterns? For example, do you communicate differently with your friends and family? Have your shopping patterns changed? Has the Internet changed the way you go to school, learn, and conduct research? Has the Internet changed your social life?
[ I N T E R N E T E X E R C I S E S | U P D A T E S | F E E D B A C K | S A L E S C A T A L O G U E ]
© 2002 Prentice-Hall, Inc.
A Pearson Education Company
Upper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458
Legal Statement