Cazzo

Christian Zerilli

Research Project

ILR 260

January 31, 2014

Amber Anaya

Project Introduction

Internet and new technologies have shaped the world and its history. While human kind is increasingly dependent on technology and internet, communication and jobs are being affected as the need of human interaction at local businesses is slowly phasing out. This research project will try to answer a fundamental question: how does technology affect jobs and communication?

According to Daniel Stockhaus, Editor Chief of Ligo.co.uk, individuals across the United States, as well as the whole world, are talking on the phone less than ever in history. In fact, the average phone call is now 50% shorter than it was 5 years ago (Stockhaus, 2009). Another impact technology has had on communication, is the fact that face to face interaction has decreased by 9%. All this data shows a downward trend in human communication, which poses threats not only to humankind but also to businesses and the way our world functions. The increasing reduction in human interactions is causing economists and experts in the job market to evaluate how this trend will impact job growth and the overall basics of human nature.

One of the experts who has spent many years in researching the relation between technology and jobs is David Rotman, editor and journalist for MIT Technology Review. According to an interview David Rotman conducted with Andrew McAfee and Erik Brynjolfsson, David Rotman has found that technology plays a big role in the automation of jobs, which result in less jobs and a society more dependent on technology and machines (Rotman, 2013, pp. 27-35). The author also reviewed how technology boosts productivity which consequently makes individuals wealthier, but at the same time it’s eliminating the need for many jobs skills which consequently doesn’t allow income to rise. David Rotman goes further in analyzing different productivity studies which demonstrated that a connection...