The article examines some of the most significant aspects of the so-called “globalization” process, expressing great concern about the way psychology — as a science and as a profession — is dealing with them. The basic characteristic of these processes seems in fact to be that of ignoring the need for direct human management of development, in favour of forms of control carried out by computerized systems that are independent of and indifferent to the context.
In a broader sense, development in every sector should be guided by cultural policies and monitored by non-technological means, since — as the philosopher H. Jonas has shown — it is impossible to establish to what extent technologies designed to improve quality of life will have completely beneficial effects in the long run.
Examples are presented of how these issues have become of great public dominion in the past twenty years, with reference to two wide-ranging debates: that on the rationality/irrationality of war and on the great changes war has undergone in our age; and that on the wisdom of accelerating/slowing down the development of our society. In particular, as regards this debate, the article makes an ironic reference to the famous paradox of Zeno of Elea, in which the Homeric hero Achilles, called “fleet foot” due to his running ability, cannot catch up with the tortoise which moves slowly but continuously ahead while he runs the rest of the distance, which therefore never ends. The idea expressed in the article (as a question) is that in every area of globalization, supply now tends to be greater than demand, and so the financial sphere tends to be overshadow the productive economy, the media representation tends to overshadow the events, and so on.
For some time now philosophers, economists, sociologists, jurists, etc. have been expressing their opinions, but not psychologists — apart from isolated, marginal cases. Psychologists seem indeed to prefer to take a totally de-contextualized position of service, refraining from playing a critical role in guiding and adapting processes to the characteristics and limits of the human mind and to the requirements of human coexistence.
The task of psychologists today would be to work alongside those designing the development, in the role of custodians and promoters of an “anthropic principle” which holds that technology is invented and implemented without ever neglecting the study of how human minds relate to one another in a context that is a constant “work in progress”.
Notes
* Clinical Psychologist – Lecturer of Organizational Psychology, University of Chieti, Italy. Top
1. Full text of this article is available in the Italian version. Top
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