Subject: Technology and Inequality
Attached please see the introduction, which I have been composing. May you please assess its efficacy towards the completed assignment?
In this Portfolio Project, you are creating a sociological research proposal, imagining a scenario where you are completing this proposal with students in a college-level Introduction to Sociology class.
You will be creating pieces or components for this final Portfolio Project throughout SOC101, in the Portfolio Milestones in Weeks 3, 4, 5, and 6. This week, Week 8, you will construct new pieces for the final proposal as well as compile all the components into a final research proposal.
Please organize your Portfolio submission in this order:
Note that in Week 8, you create the following pieces:
1
Describing the Portfolio Project’s Subjects
Pedro Henrique Mello Vinhais
Colorado State University Global
SOC101: Introduction to Sociology
Dr. Alissa King
October 31, 2021
2
It would make an interesting research study for students to conduct as a group in an
Introduction to Sociology.
Re: The impact of Artificial Intelligence in society.
Technology and Health,
urbanization of society
Subjects:
3
The internet was an interconnected system through which computer networks, including
internet-of-things-connected devices, may exchange information. The United States
Department of Defense developed packet switching, which transmitted data over a digital
network, in 1960. Also, the Advanced Research Projects Agency Network (ARPANET)
connected devices for military purposes in the 1970s, and the National Science Foundation
Network advanced the research and education concerning networking in America in the
1980s. By 1993, the internet was a global network involving most European countries and
north-American countries (Lee, 2014).
Countries with access to the internet dissipated information promptly. The internet was an
exogenous factor that influenced one’s viewpoint; people access information via the internet,
impacting their perception of others and their opinions. E.g., people have real-time
information concerning events happening in countries around the world. This way, the
internet allowed individuals to have a greater understanding of international affairs.
Companies expect employees to provide operational feedback promptly.
Also, the internet allowed people to share their likes and dislikes, consequently promoting
social change related to how cultural and social institutions change over time, causing
societal change (Dunfey, 2019). E.g., once familiar with smartphones and email, people
expected to read feedback from friends via the social platforms’ like button, receiving
information via text message instead of phone calls. Similarly, firms implement digital
marketing strategies to communicate their credibility via online customers’ feedback.
Technology changed how we interact with each other, given that people have ongoing access
to information conveyed via the internet—such a change derived from the societal change
derived from greater technology adoption. Pierce (2009) commented that such a feature
attracted between 35 and 40 percent of teens who reported using text messaging between one
and four hours daily. Understanding one’s interaction was vital to establish the symbolic
4
interaction or symbols that influenced opinions and decision-making—technology alongside
specific brands associated with social class and status. E.g., Apple-product owners were more
likely to have access to abundant resources to purchase a product whose design is excellent
and protects consumers’ privacy.
In addition to the symbolic interaction, the conflict theoretical perspective associated
technology with societal inequalities. Technology promoted social changes and class-based
inequality, which produced a digital divide and a knowledge gap (OpenStax College, 2016).
The difference between individuals’ familiarity with technology constitutes the digital divide.
Well-funded schools exposed students to technology, enhancing privileged students’
marketability based on the technology-centered market.
Similarly, individuals who live in urban and suburban areas more likely have the
infrastructure, which enables the access to high-speed internet. Individuals who possess
computers and infrastructure are more likely to complete and submit online job applications.
11
Technology and internet access vary by race, class, and age. Also, it varies by economic and
socio-political characteristics.
5
The instant messaging system is convenient, enabling people to convey written messages
using smartphones, crafting their message to ensure that the recipient interprets the sender’s
information correctly.
E.g., firms use algorithms to motivate customers to purchase a product.
Technological inequality relates to the unequal access to technology due to social
fragmentation. Applying the conflict viewpoint, one may assess how technology firms may
enhance systemic inequality, including political interests.
Artificial intelligence includes social factors, such as race, color, and ethnicity, into its
systems, such as Google research, which may provide meaning concerning sexism and
racism.
E.g., Google search’s results amplify inequality.
technology globalization,
social fragmentation
enables
Such a change in interaction patterns translates into businesses’ strategy which includes
digital marketing. Customers may base their opinions on others’ online reviews regarding a
product which is similar to an item of interest. This way, customers may establish their
expectations based on others’ experience when using the product.
6
References
Dunfey, T. S. (2019). What is social change and why should we care? Retrieved from
https://www.snhu.edu/about-us/newsroom/social-sciences/what-is-socialchange#:~:text=Social%20change%20is%20way%20human,a%20profound%20impa
ct%20of%20society.&text=Sociologists%20define%20social%20change%20as,transf
orm%20cultural%20and%20social%20institutions.
Lee, T. B. (2014). 40 maps that explain the internet. Retrieved from
https://www.vox.com/a/internet-maps
OpenStax College. (2016). Introduction to sociology.
Pierce, T. (2009). Social anxiety and technology: Face-to-face communication versus
technological communication among teens. Computers in Human Behavior, 25(6), 13671372.
7
Describing the Portfolio Project’s Subjects