Human reliance on technology: positive and negative implications

¶ … RELIANT ON TECHNOLOGY?

Importance of Technology

Now-a-days, technology has revolutionized everything that is happening around the world and most of the people are heavily dependent on modern technology. Since people are relying more on technological gadgets, it has been observed that there has been decline in various skills especially writing, communication and critical thinking skills. However, some argue that technology has brought positive implications in people's lives and unlimited benefits outclass the drawbacks associated with technology (May & Marsden, 2010). As technological gadgets such as laptops, computers, iPads, iPhones and tablets have become a vital part of everyone's life, people are making less use of their ideas and relying on suggestions made by these technological software.

There is no denial of the fact that technology in various cases has made lives simpler for people but there are numerous consequences associated with each technological development which becomes evident after years of their existence in the market. The biggest advantage of technology is that it helps people to maintain proper records of their important data and even keep information in an organized and logical way so that it can be retrieved whenever required by people (Baxter, 2009). With the help of technological advancements, tasks can be completed efficiently and before agreed time; the production processes have become effective and operations are conducted with perfection; healthcare sector has benefited by introduction of technologically advanced equipments that eases their disease diagnosis and treatment procedures; communication among organizations dispersed in various countries has become quicker and reliable information can be accessed effortlessly from various authentic search engines (Technology, 2010).

Globalization is taking place at an increasing rate worldwide and interconnectivity among different countries is happening on a greater extent on economic, political and social fronts (Kutoma et al., 2010). Such interconnectivity is possible only with the help of technological advancements that are taking place at an accelerating rate; it has even helped people in taking advantage of various opportunities that are available for them. In modern world, there is too much reliance on technology which has both positive and negative impacts on people's lives. Similarly, there have been some changes in people's mindsets about lifestyle that is free from technology.

Reliance on technology -- Positive and negative implications

The level of unemployment has been increasing at an accelerating rate in various developed countries as computers have become a vital part of organizations and they are used as mandatory component in various companies; it is an evidence of reliance on modern technology. Almost all the factories that are manufacturing both electronic and packaged goods have made technology an important part of their production process. In all of these factories, machines that are developed with latest technology are being installed so that products are produced with perfection and meet the specifications of customers (May & Marsden, 2010).

Since machineries are installed in all factories, they have created structural unemployment in various countries as these machines are making employees redundant. All these machines are so advanced that they can automatically perform their work such as manufacturing chips can be installed on computer hard drives that have replaced the workers' jobs effectively; it clearly shows that technology is changing the trends in modern world and there is too much dependency on technological gadgets. Every economic player has to ensure that crucial tasks in organizations are performed by humans rather than machines; the companies have to develop a mindset that the main purpose of technology is to support completion of certain tasks which human beings have difficulty in completing. Technology should be an integral part of work environment rather than a dominating element in organizations (Technology, 2010).

For instance, Singapore has focused its attention to become an economy that has its basis on knowledge; the main area of focus is on the tertiary sector that comprises of service sector. There has been a shift in its direction as it is moving from the manufacturing hub to become a service hub so that it can meet employment needs of its country. In order to get a good job, employees have to make sure that they have technology related skills as well so that they can perform all vital tasks of their jobs (Baxter, 2009).

Even in education sector, technology related tools are embraced to a greater extent so that students' learning experience can be enhanced; it has led to over reliance on technology in this world. The education scenario was totally different couple of years back which comprised of teaching within the classrooms on a whiteboard; now, teaching facilities have been changed drastically and whiteboards have been replaced by tablet PCs, multimedia systems and projectors. Some educational institutions are even offering virtual education programs for students who prefer to acquire education via distance learning programs. Such tools have definitely improved the environment of learning and opened avenues for discussions that are intellectual so that educational standards are raised to higher levels (Ghemawat & Reiche, 2010).

On the other hand, there are some serious concerns for teachers and educational sector as a whole as students are relying on technology to enhance their learning processes and skills such as analytical and critical thinking are declining at an accelerating rate. In order to ease educational process, Internet has been developed to meet their needs so that learning process can be enhanced. It has become a fact that the only reliable source of gathering information is Internet and that is why students are relying heavily on it; it is an issue that needs to be addressed as students have to seek information from various other sources such as newspapers, magazines, digests and news channels.

Since young generation of these times is well equipped with all the latest tools of technology, they are over relying on these technological gadgets. Some critics even argue that various actions such as overseas exchange programs and field trips are taken to integrate students with the outside world but they are not such attractive substitutes for technological alternatives. However, such programs have assisted students in developing connections with the outside world as they are away from the online world for some time and they are able to learn beneficial things from such effectively designed programs.

Similarly, competition among countries has even intensified as they are looking for opportunities for their economic growth; such situation has forced them to rely on technology so that they can try to get a competitive edge in the market. Recently, it is observed that the level of technology available or being developed in a country is an indication of their pace of economic development. Every country's government is looking for effective ways to boost their economic growth and that is why they are emphasizing the need of technological advancements; when governments allocate their resources for technological development activities, only then they are able to meet international standards and heighten the performance of their economy.

When any country is able to earn the reputation of being a leader in a technological world, it is considered as the best option for Foreign Direct Investment and such countries are successful in improving living standards of their citizens (Technology, 2010). For example, one of the countries that initiated the concept of purification of water was Singapore and it was possible by emphasizing the need of technological advancement for water purification; it was the starting point for Singapore to change its status globally i.e. technological hub of the world. Technological innovations are possible only when there is adequate amount of capital available for doing investment in Research and Development activities. As countries strive to be the best destinations for various companies, there will be less focus on complacency; technological innovations is a continuous process and developers have to strive to make remarkable advancements in the market.

As there is too much reliance on technology in this world, some harms that can be brought to the society have been made prominent by various critiques which has helped people to shift from heavily dependent life on technology to a bit carefree and technological free lifestyle. Some health concerns have been highlighted by various health officials and concerned organizations; now-a-days, there is growing trend of reliance on lifestyle that is healthy and spiritual as more focus is on workshops of yoga and seminars are being held to help people in enhancing their soul, body and mind both mentally and spiritually. According to Antonio (2010), there are numerous technologically related stresses that are impacting their lives.

With the advent of technology, communication across the world has become easier and faster. The social networking sites have effectively reduced the communication gap that existed for long in the market; it has allowed employers to gather information about their prospective employees from these sites. However, it has been reported that employees use social networking sites most of time when they are working during office hours; it has hampered their productivity level which has significantly impacted the performance of organizations. As people are using technology for communication, there has been reduction on one to one interaction which was the primary means of strengthening relationships among people.

E-commerce companies are making use of technology to a considerable extent as they totally rely on technological systems for their functioning. Although online business helps in cutting down huge amount of cost but they have to take major risk of system breakdown; if the server will stop working, then there business will be affected. For instance, when Emirates Airlines' system crashed down, its services were impacted till the system got repaired; flights were delayed and passengers had to miss their flights and reached their destinations a bit late.

Medicine field has gained a lot from technological advancement as equipments have been developed with latest technology and unlimited inventions are being done by scientists, doctors and experts of medical industry on an ongoing basis. Almost all medicines are easily accessible and they have been able to cure various diseases. Likewise, some companies have misused the developments of medicines by developing pills that are harmful for people such as weight loss pills, sleeping pills, energy dense pills and many more. Therefore, it can be rightly said that there is over reliance on technology in these days which has both pros and cons for people and it is important that a right line is drawn between right and wrong things.

Conclusion

Overall, modern world is relying on technology to a considerable extent for tackling numerous economical and social issues like global competition so that difficulty can be eradicated from the workplaces and education sector. However, it is evident that people are changing their lifestyles by moving from a society that is saturated with technology to relaxing and stress free life. It is rightly said that there should be a balance when using anything as too much or too less usage will be harmful for the users. Likewise, technology should be integrated into the systems and should not dominate everything; it should be utilized in an appropriate manner so that it does not have negative effects on people's lives and well being.

ARE WE TOO RELIANT ON TECHNOLOGY? 3

Cultural Perspectives of Japan

Japan is among those countries that have done extensive efforts to reach the top position in the world; various reforms by Japanese government have been done to ensure that it is able to get its place among developed nations. It is definitely a country that has some stringent rules in culture that sometimes hampers its business activities. In Japan, professionalism in work and respect to senior people is of utmost importance and they are not at all in favor of having informal discussions in the organizations and value everything that is said by senior people. In most of the organizations in Japan, there is less freedom of participation and employees have to follow the rules strictly and abide by the perceptions held by senior management team. Although the country is among the developed nations but it lacks cultural flexibility element that hinders performance of foreign countries within Japan or Japanese companies located in abroad countries (Kobayashwi & Viswat, 2010).

In Japanese culture, subordinates are not allowed to maintain eye contact when talking with their supervisors and they are not allowed to give any sort of feedback about work environment; they are not encouraged to participate in any decisions made in the organization. In business environment, Japanese women ratio is too less which is about 10%; it is the tradition of country that women has responsibility of taking care of their homes. Likewise, there is strong emphasis on teamwork rather than on individual achievements. For employees, material things and money are most important motivating factors; they rely on technological gadgets for everyday activities which make them technological savvy people; innovation is encouraged but with minimal risk and social status is of utmost importance for everyone living in the country (Antonio, 2010).

Japanese culture is a bit difficult to change as its government and business organizations along with all other institutions are reluctant to bring changes in their culture and traditions. In order to compete successfully in today's modern world, it will have to bring some reforms in its country. It has brought some changes within its sectors such as allowing women to get jobs in organizations, providing ladies opportunity of participating in games, changing educational systems, relaxing some business policies, creating participative environment within organizations and many more. Hence, it is vital for Japan to incorporate cultural changes so that it can compete effectively on a global level. There are many avenues that need to be exploited so that it can meet the international standards set by developed countries. Therefore, changes in culture are required while preserving their roots so that Japan can move in the right direction with full zeal and enthusiasm.