Technological development and its impact on Vietnamese family, society, and business

Vietnam

Moral and Ethical Issues

Clearly technological development, especially in terms of IT, has significantly impacted social and family life within Vietnam. In terms of family life, the structure and view of the family as a unit has changed in several ways. In terms of society, the globalization as a result of IT development has significantly impacted on Vietnamese philosophy and ethics.

Vietnam and International Business

International pressure has not only impacted on family and social life within Vietnam, but also on the business world, especially in terms of information technology. According to Ramsay, Vietnam stands at the dawn of huge economic growth and the global world is advised to invest in time to capitalize on this potential. Certain Vietnamese regulations in terms of IT ethics however remains somewhat rigid in terms of the rest of the world. This may be an indirectly remaining result of the generally accepted philosophy of Confucianism. Thus, while Vietnam is South-East Asia's fastest growing economy (Ramsay), certain ethical issues remain a factor in the global desire to invest.

Internet censorship is for example a major issue in this regard. James Wolfensohn, the president of the World Bank (Business Asia) holds the view that Vietnam needs to fully embrace information technology with all its implications and potential. If this is not done, the country cannot be a serious player in the global business world. Current censorship practices pertain mostly to politically sensitive material. The problem is one of ideology: Vietnam is predominantly a communist country.

Whatever the country's ideology, Wolfensohn makes it clear that global competition and business practice require a more tolerant point-of-view. Internet censorship is not beneficial for global business or indeed investment in Vietnam. For a country with such great potential in terms of economy and industry, it makes better sense to lift censorship as a signal of goodwill towards the global world. To pull away from globalization for the sake of a political ideal is not beneficial for business. Indeed, in a country where society and the family unit are increasingly relying on technology for their structure and their ideals, ethics should include lifting censorship.

Knowledge-Based Economy

One of Wolfensohn's suggestions is that Vietnam build a knowledge-based economy (Business Asia). To a great extent this is already being done. As mentioned above, families are increasingly making use of technology and devices to gather information, or for entertainment purposes. The knowledge revolution, as the World Bank president terms it, is already underway in Vietnamese society. If the country is then to be internationally competitive, this revolution should be embraced by society and politicians alike, rather than shunned.

Information technology serves an empowering purpose in all sectors of society. Business owners can gather knowledge about global business practice, minority groups such as women are empowered to reach their full potential, and the poor are empowered with a greater amount of opportunities. Vietnam is still one of the world's poorest countries. It officially accepted Internet technology during 1997. While many of its citizens are using the technology, this occurs mostly among the richer sector of society, due to high charges. Furthermore anti-communist Vietnamese groups hosting websites from abroad are blocked by "firewall" software (Business Asia).

These are problems that alienates a potential investor's market from the rest of the world. Ethics is no longer an acceptable basis from which to refuse the reforms necessary for beneficial empowerment. The information revolution is perhaps the one that has been most beneficial for all parties concerned. This is why every aspect of business and social life, including ethics, should be adjusted according to what is necessary for the greatest amount of empowerment of the greatest amount of people.