Transition to the knowledge society: policies and strategies for individual participation and learning

Knowledge and information are central elements within the rapidly transforming economic and social structures of industrial nations. In this book, the authors describe the wide-ranging implications of information and communication technologies (ICTs) and the growth of global competition. The authors address the complex issues of distribution and equity, with a particular focus on the disparities involving class, gender, ethnicity, age and skill level. This book indicates that there are risks associated with the widespread use of ICTs that could lead to a society of 'haves' and 'have-nots', and with poorer areas of the world's population facing the prospect of marginalisation or exclusion from the knowledge-based economy and society. The book consists of five parts containing 22 individual chapters. Part 1 'Economic and social policy for the knowledge economy' contains: The role of knowledge and innovation for economic growth and employment in the information and communication technology (ICT) era / Charles Edquist and W. Craig Riddell; New growth theories and economic policy for the knowledge economy / Richard G. Lipsey; The social contract in a knowledge society / John Richards; Transition to the knowledge economy: economic and social disparities in the new economy / Tom Wall. Part 2 'The global market, regions, and communities' contains: The nexus of the information revolution and globalization / Someshwar Roa and Ron Hirshhorn; European regional development policy and innovation / Nicola De Michelis; Globalization, information and communication technologies, and local and regional systems of innovation / David A. Wolfe; Innovation, organisational capabilities, and competitiveness in a global economy / Luigi Orsenigo. Part 3 'Work in the knowledge economy' contains: Employment in a knowledge-based economy / Pascal Petit; Work organisation and information and communication technologies / Henri Rouilleault; Human resource practices and information technology in Canada: results from the WES pilot data / Caroline L. Weber; The changing skill structure of employment in Canada / Yves Gingras, Phillipe Masse and Richard Roy; Technology, jobs, and skills: evidence from Europe / John Van Reenen. Part 4 'Participation and inclusion in the knowledge society' contains: Learning in the workplace: training patterns and training activities / Gordon Betcherman, Norm Leckie and Kathryn McMullen; Firms and human resources investments / Gerhard Bosch; The impact of the knowledge-based economy on women's participation / Brenda Lipsett; The changing gender division of labour in the transition to the knowledge society / Ursula Huws; Lifelong learning for the knowledge society: demand, supply, and policy dilemmas / Kjell Rubenson and Hans G. Schuetze; Learning to be a citizen of cyberspace / Vincent Mosco. Part 5 'Measuring the knowledge society' contains: Measuring human capital: data gaps and survey requirements / Albert Tuijnman; The development and use of a Canadian linked employer-employee survey / H. Krebs, Z. Patak, G. Picot and T. Wannell; Monitoring workplace change in the European Union / Kevin P. O'Kelly.