Postindustrial Society: its history and characteristics

This era of technological and social change has left a mark on our way of life.

Among many other things, the social sciences have offered us different ways of naming and studying the history of Western societies. Currently, we have different concepts that refer to transformations in production relations, economic changes, technological production, and so on.

One of these concepts is that of the Postindustrial Societywhich refers to the transformations that have taken place in the social organization established after the industrial revolution. Below we explain what it is and where Postindustrial Society comes from, as well as 5 of its main characteristics.

From the Industrial Revolution to the Postindustrial Society.

The reason it has been called Postindustrial Society is to refer to the time and process of transition from a society that was established on the basis of the consequences of the Industrial Revolution of the 18th century. based on the consequences of the Industrial Revolution of the eighteenth century (the Industrial Society), to a society (the Industrial Society), to the society that has been established based on the production of that new technology.

The type of society that had been generated before the Industrial Revolution is known as Preindustrial Society. Among other things, this society was organized by primary (face-to-face) relationships, rural lifestyles, agricultural production, an economic system of feudal and slave government, among other things.

Since the Industrial Revolution, the organization of work was transformed towards the primacy of mass productionwhere each person is part of a large manufacturing system. Technological innovation is booming, based on cost-benefit logic. With this, labor relations also become salaried and market-dependent.

Subsequently, the Postindustrial Society arises, mainly from the technological revolution, the transformation of global geopolitics, economic interdependence on a global scale, the relations between economy, state and society, where the state regulates markets, generates competition at a global level, and ceases to be a welfare state, and finally, an internal restructuring of capitalism (Castell, 1997 in Sisto, 2009).

These transformations have been explained through many other concepts. We have, for example, the knowledge society, the information society, the technocratic era, among others. The multiplicity of terms responds to the need to understand the different ways in which our societies have developed.

For example, if we use the term "knowledge society" it is probably because we pay special attention to the ways in which knowledge is produced, and if we speak of Postindustrial Society we will probably we will probably place more emphasis on the relations of production that are established in this society..

5 characteristics of the Postindustrial Society

The concept of Postindustrial Society arises in the 70's and has been worked on by different people. Daniel Bell is recognized as one of the first to use and develop the term, especially from his book The Coming of the Post-Industrial Society of 1973.

Among other things Bell described 5 dimensions that are characteristic of the Postindustrial Society and that establish important differences with industrial societies: the sector of the labor force, the preference of the occupational sector, the preeminence of theoretical knowledge and the production of both mechanical and intellectual technology.

1. Where is the labor force?

According to Bell, unlike agricultural societies and industrial societies, post-industrial societies have the characteristic that the labor force is concentrated in the service-providing sector (health, education, government). (health, education, government).

In the words of Bell (1976), the industrial society is distinguished from the previous ones by an important change in the economic sector: there is a shift from a commodity-producing economy to a service-producing economy.

2. Who is the labor sector aimed at?

The consequence of this is explained by Bell as another of the characteristics that distinguish post-industrial societies: the labor sector is practically reserved for people with technical and professional (specialized) training. (specialized) training.

In other words, occupational distribution maintains a preference for the professional and technical classes.

3. The primacy of theoretical knowledge

In order to train technicians and professionals, the construction and transmission of theoretical knowledge is fundamental. Post-industrial society has the characteristic of giving primacy to the production of this type of knowledge, not only to impact the occupational sector, but also in terms of the political management of the labor market. in terms of the political management of societies..

Bell (1976) calls this an "axial principle", referring to the centrality of theoretical knowledge as a source of political innovation.

4. Generating mechanical technology

The main resource for providing solutions to the problems facing the post-industrial society is the development of technology. Not only developing technology but also controlling its distribution and regulation.

In other words, the post-industrial society society maintains the expectations of development and its orientation towards the future in the production of technological projects. in the production of technological projects.

5. Generating intellectual technology

Related to the previous point and to the primacy of theoretical knowledge, the post-industrial society constantly generates solutions based on ordered and finite sets of operations, i.e. in the production of algorithms, over the more intuitive resolutions, which in other societies had been more present.

This creation of intellectual technology also constitutes a new form of decision making at the political level.

Bibliographical references:

• Bell, D. (1976). El advenimiento de la Sociedad Postindustrial. Alianza Editorial: Spain.
• Seoane, J. (1988). Postindustrial Society and forms of political participation. Psychology Bulletin [Electronic Version] Retrieved June 05, 2018. Available at https://www.uv.es/seoane/publicaciones/Seoane%201989%20Sociedad%20postinductrial%20y%20formas%20de%20participacion%20politica.pdf.
• Sisto, V. (2009). Changes in work, identity and social inclusion in chile: Challenges for research. Universum Journal, 24(2): 192-216.