human factors in Technology

Human Factors in Technology

The exponential development of technology is inevitably the result of the global linking of markets , the increasing fluidity of capital , and to a greater extent the advance of human knowledge . Herein , the value placed by humans on technology in recent years has been rising , perhaps because technology increases productivity and overall the efficiency of firms operating in a free-market system . Perhaps , the rising cost of living in the cities stimulated the advance of technology , for in an open-market system , the private sector is the one regenerating capital

at the lowest possible cost and as such new technologies reduce the cost of production . Although this may be an understatement , for other variables other than economic may play a significant role in enhancing growth in technology

Role of Technology in Introducing New Products to Consumers

In a free-market system , theoretically , the consumer dictates the goods and services to be produced by the market . The only function of the market is to determine the point of equilibrium of supply and demand Demand is the number of goods and services the consumers wants and is willing to purchase . Supply is the available goods and services that firms are willing to supply given the market price . When the point of equilibrium is determined , the consumers and the producers would benefit from the transactions , and thus the potential deadweight loss to the society is more or less close to zero

In the real world however such relationship is blurred by many factors First , firms introduce products to the market through what we call advertisements ' Advertisement serves as a propaganda ' tool for the firms in to encourage potential consumers to buy their newly introduced products in the market . In a way , the firms are creating demand to the consumers . This demand becomes elastic , in a sense that consumers would be willing to purchase the good when its effectivity is proven

Where is then the role of technology in this scenario ? It should be noted that in for the firm to introduce new products to the market , it must differentiate its production methods from its earlier blueprints . In short , there must be a change in production methods which is a function of technology . Advances in technology , through R D , potentially alter the production techniques the firm uses . The implication is that the firm can now produce new products (goods and services ) that the public demanded ' This process of product alternation will eventually result to further product alternation , for in a free-market system , competition would drive other firms to develop technologies that are far more efficient than the first firm

According to Keynes (1936 , on the production side , advances in technology can increase the potential PPF (Production Possibilities Frontier ) of the firm . Production Possibilities Frontier is the amount of goods and services that a firm can produce given a fixed level of labor and capital using an existing technology . In this scenario , the firm can increase its PPF either by increasing the level...