The Link Between Information and Communication Technology and Well-being

Abstract

This paper tends to explore the relationship between Information and communication technology and wellbeing. Now a day technology was taking important part in all aspects. It takes place in every field such as communication, educational and working fields, etc. It plays a vital role in our everyday life. This paper develops and point out four distinct channels through which ICTs can shape well-being: they are time saving, create new activities, facilitate access to information and act as powerful communication tools. We show how these four channels impact well-being in distinct domains of life. A central point is that the effects of ICTs on well-being are mediated by a set of personal characteristics that are specific to each individual and in particular psychological functioning, capabilities, and framing conditions such as culture and beliefs. Hence, it is the interaction between human beings’ activities in the field of life and their individual personal characteristics that explains why the use of ICT has stronger positive effects for some individuals and social groups than others.

Introduction

Technology means “science of craft” in Greek. It was first build and defined by Jacob Bigelow in 1829 as “principles, processes and nomenclatures of the more conspicuous arts, particularly those which involve applications of science and which may be considered useful, by promoting the benefit of society, together with the emolument of those who pursue them”. (Jacob Bigelow, 1829). Educational technology is the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using and managing appropriate technological processes and resources. Educational technology as technological tools and media that assist in the communication of knowledge, and its development and exchange. This is usually what people are referring to when they use the term ‘EdTech’. Educational technology for Learning Management Systems (LMS) was a tool for student and curriculum management and Education Management Information System (EMIS). Educational technology is an inclusive term for both the material tools and the theoretical foundations for supporting learning and teaching. Education technology is anything that enhances classroom learning in the utilization of blended, face to face or online learning.

Information and communication technology (ICT) is not new to the entire world. It changes human nature in all aspects. It has impact on happiness and wellbeing on individual at macro level. The modification in the existing trends through constant experimentation is basic human nature which has resulted in ushering in of newer and advanced technologies. At the same time, we are in constant search of innovative applications of this technology that can contribute to further develop and enhance the quality of human life. The very common and obvious examples can be add-on advancements in computers, mobiles and other similar most popular widely used technologies. Creative minds of the experts constantly keep on exploring the better utility of such technologies in their respective fields. Web-enabled collective Intelligence is one such innovative endeavour in web technology and education is very much party to it. Web can be used to analyse the best possible ways of applying collective intelligence in different areas in education in terms of teaching co-curricular and extra-curricular activities and also formative and summative evaluation of the students’ performance that can help in better quality outcomes. During the last three decades, innovation studies have developed in a number of different directions, but the key underlying motivation that innovation spurs economic performance has implicitly been a common theme in different strands of research (Fagerberg, 2005). Other potentially relevant impacts of new technologies- and in particular on the users’ well-being have largely been neglected (Castellaci, 2005). The present paper focuses on one of the key advanced technologies of Information and Communication Technology (ICT). These have in the last few decades transformed substantially several aspects of our everyday life.

Well-being: definition

“Well-being is a function of expecting to attain the outcomes one values, whatever those might be” (Ryan & Deci, 2001). A relevant domain of life that has been studied in happiness research is the quality of working tasks, and different degrees of creativity and autonomy, which have implication in terms of work-life balance and job satisfaction (Dolan & Metcalfe, 2012). “the condition of being contented, healthy or successful” (Collins Dictionary). “A state of being comfortable, happy and healthy” (Oxford Dictionary). “Mental health is defined as a state of well-being in which every individual realizes his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to make a contribution to her or his community” (World Health Organisation). Well-being Comprehensive and systematic research on the nature and meaning of relationships and social connections occurring through the use of information technologies has the potential to generate important knowledge about the role that information technologies now play in harming young people’s health and wellbeing. Subjective well-being (SWB) was defined by Deiner (2009) as the general evaluation of one’s quality of life. The concept has been conceptualized as the three components: (1) a cognitive appraisal that one’s life was good (life satisfaction); (2) experiencing positive levels of pleasant emotion; (3) experiencing relatively low levels of negative moods (Deiner, 2009).

The effects of ICT on well-being

The study of the effects of ICTs on the well-being presents formidable challenges. There are three important sources of heterogeneity that need to be considered in order to investigate the relationship between ICT and well-being. First, the effects of ICT on well-being arguably differ depending on the specific life domain in which ICT are used (working life, private life, surrounding environment), and the specific personal characteristics and conditions that shape individuals’ perception of their own status and well-being (capabilities, psychological functioning, culture and beliefs). Second, ICTs may arguably have different effects on the two distinct dimensions of well-being is subjective well-being (hedonic, evaluative) and eudaimonic well-being (realization of inner potential). Third, since ICTs include a wide range of different technologies and diverse applications, their impacts on human well-being will obviously depend on the specific type of ICTs that we are considering. All the relevant effects of ICT on well-being can be grouped into four distinct categories.

1. Time saving: ICTs enable to carry out a given activity in a more efficient manner than this was carried out before, thus freeing up time for other activities. Hence, ICT provide individuals with the opportunity to use increased available time for other well-being enhancing activities.
2. New activities: ICTs make it possible to undertake completely new activities that were previously not feasible, and that can have direct benefits for individuals’ well-being in different domains of life, as well as by enhancing their capabilities and psychological functioning.
3. Access to information: ICTs enable individuals to get access, process and archive information in a much more systematic and rapid manner than previously possible. This can increase both efficiency and quality in many fields of human life, and potentially have direct benefits to well-being.
4. Сommunication tools: ICTs also make it possible to use new or improved forms of remote communication, increasing the potential scope and intensity of social interactions.

Conclusion

The paper has carried out a conceptual analysis of the links between ICT and well-being. After a brief summary on well-being and ICTs different domain of life such as private life, work life, and the external environment. The paper has then pointed out the effects that ICTs may have on well-being by shaping individuals’ personal characteristics such as capabilities, psychological functioning, culture and beliefs.

References

1. Bigelow, Jacob. (1829). Elements of technology. Boston: E.P.Dutton & company.
2. Manchekar, Savita. (2015). Web-based collective intelligence in teacher education. Edutracks, 14(12).
3. Deiner, E. (2009). Subjective of well-being. The Sceience of Well-Being, 11-58.
4. Castellaci, F., Grodal, S., & Wibe, M. (2005). Advances and challenges in innovation studies. Journal of Economic Issues, 39(1), 91-121.
5. Fagerberg, J. (2005). The Oxford handbook of innovation: Oxford university press.
6. Ryan, R.M., & Deci, E.L. (2001). On happiness and human potentials: A review of research on hedonic and eudaimonic well-being. Annual Review of Psychology, 52, 141-166.