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Enhancing Social Well-Being (Print This) | |
Technology is changing so rapidly that people who are not prepared to deal with it can quickly find themselves falling behind. Losing touch in this way can leave people with a sense that they have somehow lost control of their lives, that the world is moving on without them.
For much of human history, changes in technology, were not a problem because changes occurred slowly enough that people had plenty of time to adapt and get used to them. But eras of rapid change-the Industrial Revolution in England, for example, or the United States in the late 1800s and early 1900s-have tested the limits of human adaptability. In times of rapid change, many people struggle to adjust to a world that is suddenly quite different from the one they have known.
Even for people who can cope with specific how-tos of modern life, living in a highly technological world can be alienating. This idea has been studied by sociologists and historians and explored in the popular media, including books, movies, and television programs.
In the next few decades, people's abilities to adjust to new ways of doing things will be tested far more than they have ever been tested before. The more adaptable people-those who are invigorated, or at least not threatened, by the new and the unfamiliar -- will do well. But many people will find that their sense of well-being and their quality of life are diminished rather than enhanced by new and improved technologies. They will wish that the world were not moving quite as quickly toward the future.
Technological literacy can provide a tool for dealing with rapid changes. A technologically literate person will find it easier to understand and assimilate new technologies and so will be less likely to be left behind. Equally important, technologically literate people will have a high enough comfort level with and broad comprehension of technology to put the changes in context and accept them even if they do not fully understand them. Technological literacy, along with many other types of literacy, can empower people by giving them the tools to make sense of their world, even as it changes around them.
Review other benefits of technological literacy.
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