The Information Society : An International Perspective

While most industrial nations have already begun to adapt to the information explosion, developing countries have suffered a lag in keeping up. The Information Society: An International Perspective examines many of the issues facing all nations, but especially the Third World, as information continues to assume a more central place. Critical analyses of the political and economic impact resulting from the diffusion of information are provided throughout by author Raul Luciano Katz. The international workforce is given close attention as internal structural similarities between countries are highlighted. Other subjects covered include communications and industrial policies, mass communication, and modernization. American Libraries Katz examines the development of the information society in developing countries and offers a comprehensive comparison of how such a society evolves in developed and developing nations. Among the issues explored are: the emergence of a sizable information workforce across countries; the occurrence of internal structural similarities of information workforces in different countries; and the existence of global trends in the diffusion of information techniques. In the absence of common trends and development patterns, the author offers an explanation of the factors causing different evolutional paths. Based on his analysis, Katz derives new hypotheses for the diffusion of information technologies and the expansion of information workforce in developing countries.