SOCIAL MOBILITY
IN THE DIGITAL AGE
THE STORY OF HOW TECHNOLOGY HASTENS,
PREVENTS AND CHANGES THE DYNAMICS OF
SOCIAL MOBILITY.
“Thus for the first time since his creation man will be
faced with his real, his permanent problem — how to
use his freedom from pressing economic cares, how
to occupy the leisure, which science and compound
interest will have won for him, to live wisely and
agreeably and well.”
JOHN MAYNARD KEYNES.
ECONOMIC POSSIBILITIES for OUR GRANDCHILDREN, 1928
Almost a century past, John Maynard Keynes, the great Cambridge economist,
predicted that the children of the 21st century would work no more than 15 hours a
week. His belief was founded upon the idea that the accumulation of capital,
accelerated by technological efficiencies, would generate productivity that far
exceeded the consumption of necessities.
This utopian future seemed achievable for much of the 20th century. Technological
advances pulled billions out of poverty, extended life expectancy, and put humans on
the moon. Upon a foundation of science and technology a contract was built that promised that
prosperity was guaranteed for all those who became educated,
worked hard and obeyed the laws of the land. We referred to this process of
prosperity as social mobility.
That exchange has become radically distorted. Asset
inflation and falling yields have ensured that home
ownership, long-term financial wellness and
economic prosperity are unattainable goals for most
college graduates in today's developed world. The
frustration caused by this corruption in the social
contract has manifested as cultural protests and
political activism the world over in a form that is likely
to last for decades.
conomic inequality is at the heart of many of society's most challenging problems.
It pervades every aspect of civic discourse, social interactions and cultural
institutions. The gap between rich and poor is widening and the likelihood of
becoming upwardly mobile, based on salary alone, is lessening. This will continue to
have profound consequences for our economic systems and social unrest fomented
by systemic inequity. This is an investigation into the ways in which technology
exacerbates and sometimes mitigates those issues. We’ll consider how inequitable
systems of social mobility are a predictor of future fragility and we’ll consider some of
the possible solutions to this extraordinary problem.