The Information Society: Some Trends and Implications

Abstract

This article deals with the question of whether the so-called `information society' really will be an informed society. It is argued that there is empirical evidence to show that information supply in modern societies rises exponentially, whereas consumption and pragmatics of information lag far behind supply. Thus, the gulf between supply of information, on the one hand, and demand for and use of information on the other, is getting broader and broader. This phenomenon may be explained partly by an autonomous tendency in information services to fill-up available production capacity. In other words, the information society is subject to the law of diminishing returns from information. The article concludes with a sketch of some implications for education, public libraries and public administration, drawing on the experience of the Netherlands.