Abstract
Over the years, it is argued that due to cultural differences between traditional and more innovative societies, technologies which have been invented, developed and served their intended purposes without disrupting the culture of the society to which they were meant to be used, should be modified to suit the culture of other societies. The author strongly believes that in order for the people in less developed societies to be more creative and to act independently, people in more developed societies should avoid imposing their ideas and technologies upon the indigenous systems of social organisation. This paper explores the possibility and ways through which to attract and encourage people from developing countries to consider the information and communication technology industry as a potential field of study for their children and prepare themselves to secure jobs in the information industry, as the world is gradually but surely transforming itself from industrial society to an information and knowledge society. The paper presented the result of a study about how the people of Tonga view computers and computerised information systems. An overview of the importance of socio-cultural values is presented, followed by a discussion of the impact of cultural interaction and cultural change on traditional societies. The concept of appropriate and suitable technologies is briefly described. Finally, a study of the perception of Tongans, in the Waikato area in New Zealand is presented, followed by a strategy that may be used to improve people’s understanding of computers as tools for processing, sharing and preserving information.
Recommended Citation
Latu, Savae, "Culture and Information Systems: The Tongan Experience" (2005). ACIS 2005 Proceedings. 30.
https://aisel.aisnet.org/acis2005/30