ABSTRACT
This chapter deals with the effects of new technology on skills. It describes other effects on humans at work. The alternative view is that new technology is a means of liberating the worker from the boredom and drudgery of much of his working life. By eliminating the repetitive and/or physically demanding elements of the job, the individual is free to pursue its more creative and fulfilling aspects; furthermore, his or her personal skills become enhanced as the sophistication of the technology increases. There was similarly conflicting evidence about the belief that the level of education influences the likelihood of an individual accepting change in the form of new technology. The proposition that a higher level of education renders an individual more likely, other things being equal, to adjust to change, seems to be more strongly held by those who are relatively less well educated.
