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The Information Revolution: an Analysis of the Internet and Its Impact on the American Worker

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The Information Revolution: an Analysis of the Internet and Its Impact on the American Worker THE INFORMATION REVOLUTION: AN ANALYSIS OF THE INTERNET AND ITS IMPACT ON THE AMERICAN WORKER. A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of The School of Continuing Studies And of The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in Liberal Studies By Erik Nienaber, B.A Georgetown University Washington, D.C. 2/1/2009 THE INFORMATION REVOLUTION: AN ANALYSIS OF THE INTERNET AND ITS IMPACT ON THE AMERICAN WORKER. Erik Nienaber, B.A Mentor: Douglas McCabe, Ph.D ABSTRACT Internet based technology firms have made an enormous impact on our national and global economies. They have not only completely altered the way we share and distribute information, purchase good and services but how we define work and the workplace. To many employers, the Internet is considered a true wonder with few perceivable negatives. It allows virtual human “networks” to be established in seconds and have work seamlessly shared amongst literally thousands of employees. Work rules, procedures and physical barriers have been significantly altered to fit this new model of interaction. Employees are no longer tied to the traditional nine-to-five workplace of a fixed brick and mortar operation and are blurring the line between the concept of “work” time and “personal” time. Although the Internet has altered the delivery and production of work, and when it is to be completed, it has ii also put into question the value and necessity of work. It has also altered how workers perceive their roles, the roles of others and finally how they establish relationships at work and outside the workplace. Through a thorough analysis of a traditional brick and mortar based firm and an Internet giant, the goal will be to outline the differences of each firm and note their impact on American workers. What are the implications of these changes on the American psyche? How has the introduction of new advanced Internet technologies undermined human interaction as no other previous advancement has? iii CONTENTS ABSTRACT . ii LIST OF TABLES . v CHAPTERS 1. A REVIEW OF THE INTERNET AT HOME AND THE AMERICAN WORKPLACE. 1 2. WORK WITHOUT THE INTERNET. 25 3. WE HAVE ARRIVED- HOW AMERICAN BUSINESS IS DEALING WITH THE INTERNET IN THE AMERICAN WORKPLACE . 55 BIBLIOGRAPHY. 83 iv LIST OF TABLES Figure 1.1 Internet Usage Statistics: The Internet Big Picture Users and Population Stats . 5 Figure 1.2 Karl Marx’s Model of Society. 74 v CHAPTER 1 A BRIEF REVIEW OF THE INTERNET AT HOME AND THE AMERICAN WORKPLACE The Internet and the innovative technologies it brings have transformed the standard operating procedures of the American workplace. Also known as the World Wide Web, the Internet provides “full–time” connectivity between American workers and workers all over the world. In some cases, the Internet has actually eliminated the need for the traditional, brick-and-mortar workplace and its associated nine-to-five workday.1 These changes have created the need for new leadership styles, modes of operation, and communication techniques between employers and employees. These changes offer some great benefits, but they must be managed properly to avoid the blurring of professional and personal activities. Unlike other technological advances in the workplace, such as a copiers and fax machines, the Internet has 1Gray, Matthew and Alaa Gharbawi. “Internet Statistics, Revolution of the Internet.” http://www.cs.ucsb.edu. Accessed 22 September 2008. 1 affected the daily activities of almost every individual in almost every workplace. Employers and employees alike use it at work and at home for both work-related and personal purposes. They use it, for example, to attend meetings, email clients, make purchases, and check on their fantasy teams. The Internet has also spawned thriving social communities in the form of websites and forums where people discuss their interests, meet potential partners, and reconnect with old friends.2 In the United States, the Internet has become the most popular mechanism for communicating, acquiring information, and enjoying entertainment for more than 86% of employees under the age of 35.3 Individual Internet usage by individuals and employees has increased dramatically over the past fifteen years and this trend is likely to continue. In April of 1993 there was an estimated .4 million users4. In the last eight years, the 2Gralla, Preston. “How the Internet Works.” New York: Que Publishers, 2003. 3Ibid., 23. 2 world population of Internet users has risen 305.5%; or from 360,985,492 million users in 2000 to 1,463,632,361 by the present data available in 2008.5 (See Figure 1.1). Some have expressed concern that the burgeoning use of the Internet for so many aspects of our lives will result in a devaluation of human interactions and alter, in a negative way, how we perceive and conduct our face-to-face interactions. No other technology has altered the way we think about and interact with each other so significantly. The original concept of the Internet was that it would be used for communications, but today’s Internet has no set limitations. As a result, its use has permeated almost every aspect or our work and personal lives. It is this ubiquitous, diffused presence that allows people to use the Internet as extensions of themselves, whether at work or at home. 4Miniwatts Marketing Group, Internet World Stats Online, November 2008. 5Matthew Gray, Internet Statistics, MIT, 1996. 3 World Population Internet Internet % Usag Usage Regions ( 2008 Users Usage, e Growth Est.) Dec/31, Latest Population % of 2000- 2000 Data Worl 2008 Africa 955,206,34 4,514,400 51,065,630 5.3 % 3.5 1,031. 8 % 2 % Asia 3,776,181, 114,304,0 578,538,25 15.3 % 39.5 406.1 949 00 7 % % Europe 800,401,06 105,096,0 384,633,76 48.1 % 26.3 266.0 5 93 5 % % Middle East 197,090,44 3,284,800 41,939,200 21.3 % 2.9 1,176. 3 % 8 % North 337,167,24 108,096,8 248,241,96 73.6 % 17.0 129.6 8 00 9 % % Latin 576,091,67 18,068,91 139,009,20 24.1 % 9.5 669.3 3 9 9 % % America/Cari 33,981,562 7,620,480 20,204,331 59.5 % 1.4 165.1 Oceania/Aust % % ralia 6,676,120, 360,985,4 1,463,632, 21.9 % 100. 305.5 World Total 288 92 361 0 % % Figure 1.1 Internet Usage Statistics: The Internet Big Picture Users and Population Stats1 4 The Birth of the Internet: A Brief Introduction to the “perfect design” Launched in 1969 by the Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA), the Internet was originally known as Arpanet. The intended purpose was to transmit data between universities, the government, and other institutions so that students and scientists conducting research at one institution could access research materials from other institutions. A major benefit of the Arpanet design was that it continued functioning even if parts of the network were destroyed.6 This capability would later serve as one the key driving forces for its nationwide use and its rapid growth. At present, the Internet is public and accessible by anyone from almost anywhere around the globe. Access is available from millions of locations, and literally millions of applications are in use. The extensive access and utilization of the Internet have blurred its traditional 6Matthew Gray, Internet Statistics, MIT, 1996. 5 definition as being “a PC-Based Communication and Information Messaging System.” The Internet Dissected: A review of basic design In the beginning, the Internet was a link that enabled the flow of data from one computer to the other. In basic terms, the recipient accessed information through a computer and replicated it locally. Everything that happens on the Internet is facilitated by the Transmissions Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). The invention of the internet, along with the field of computer networking, was derived from the invention of the telephone network. Unlike the telephone network, the Internet uses packet switching. Packet switching was invented by three different research groups around the world. MIT graduate student Leonard Kleinrock, one of the first people to invent packet switching, was also the first person to publish work on packet switching.7 The work done at MIT, Rand, and NPL helped lay the foundation of today’s Internet. Kleinrock’s Colleagues J.C.R. 7Alaa Gharbawi, Revolution of the Internet, http://www.cs.ucsb.edu. 6 Licklider and Lawrence Roberts of MIT went on to head the computer science program at the Advance Research Projects Agency (ARPA). Roberts published a complete plan for the APRANET which became the first packet-switched computer network.8 Circuit switching networks (e.g. the telephone) require point to point bonding prior to transfer (there is only one path dedicated for the connection), and networks also require sending and receiving constantly. On the other hand, the packet switching network, which has been used in the Internet, is different. Packet switching networks divide the data into small blocks, each block or packet has the possibility of taking a different path than the other to the destination, the packets will be recompiled into the original message.9 These design elements, of which most current users are unaware, are a key reason for the success of the Internet. Today’s technology supports millions of 8Alaa Gharbawi, Revolution of the Internet, http://www.cs.ucsb.edu. 9Hanson, Jarice 24/7 : How Cell Phones and the Internet Changed the Way We Live, Work, and Play. Westport, Conn. : Praeger, 2007. 7 Intranets and local area networks (LANs or private communication centers) by allowing confidential Intranet centers to be established and expanded based on the extent of need and usage.
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