Professor Anthony J. Pennings from the Department of Technology and Society, State University of New York, Korea gave a presentation on the topic “Five Stages of ICT for Global Development.”
About the Presentation:
This presentation explores and outlines the following stages of economic and social development utilizing information and communications technologies (ICT). The ICT acronym has emerged as a popular moniker, especially in international usage, for the digital technology revolution and is often combined with “development” to form ICT4D. Development is a contested term with currency in several areas. Still, in global political economy, it refers to the process of building environments and infrastructure needed to improve the quality of human life and bridge equity divides. Often this means enhancing a nation’s agriculture, education, health, and other public goods that are not strictly economy-related but improve well-being and intellectual capital.
Of particular interest is the transformation of public-switched networks for Internet Protocol (IP)-based services and then WiFi and mobile use. Data-intensive solutions are beginning to address many development issues. However, a growing concern is that data is being collected extensively and used intrusively to manipulate behaviors.
The stages are categorized as 1) Containment/Development/Modernization; 2) New World Economic and Information Orders; 3) Structural Adjustment and Re-subordination, 4) Global ICT Integration, and; 5) Smart/Sustainable Mobile and Data-Driven Development.
Using a techno-structural approach, the explication of these stages will provide historical context for understanding trends in ICT innovation and implementation. This approach recognizes the reciprocal effects between technological developments and institutional power and a “dual-effects hypothesis” to illustrate the parallel potentials of ICT4D as both a democratizing and totalizing force. This research will also provide insights into the possibilities of ICT diffusion in developing environments.
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Bio:
Anthony J. Pennings started his Hawaii career as an intern at the Pacific Telecommunications Council (PTC) and took graduate courses at the Communication Department as part of his B.A. Degree at Antioch University. That led to a year-long internship at the East-West Center for the National Computerization Project. where he co-authored Computerization and Development in Southeast Asia with Syed Rahim. East-West Fellowships allowed him to complete his MA and Ph.D. in Political Science. He decided not to do his doctorate in CIS as it was the first year of the program. He left for his first academic position in New Zealand at Victoria University in 1992. As the World Wide Web was taking off, he decided to move to New York in 1996 to teach near his hometown at Marist College. After 9/11 he moved to Manhattan to teach digital economics at New York University where he also created BS degrees in Information Systems Management and another in Digital Communications and Media. He left for Austin Texas in 2012 to help set up the Digital MBA program at St. Edward’s University while his wife went to work for Apple’s Japanese Siri. He has been working in Korea since 2014 and joined the State University of New York in Korea in 2016 where he is a full professor and associate chair managing BS and MS degrees in Technological Systems Management and a Ph.D. in Technology, Policy, and Innovation, taught in English and conferred by Stony Brook University in New York. When not in Korea he lives with his wife and daughter in Austin, TX.