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We are so familiar with talk of “the information society” that we sometimes forget there is no such thing, but rather a multitude of societies, unalike from each other, some of which may qualify as information ones in different ways and degrees. So we should really speak of “information societies” without a “the” but with an “s”, and ensure that our generalizations are not so generic as to apply to all of them, while obliterating any salient distinction. Just to be clear, there is always a level of abstraction at which something is like anything else: the moon is like your umbrella, which is like a pizza, because they are all singular objects that exist and look round, for example. The point is not being smug about one’s own acrobatic equations (x is like y which is like z) but being critical in checking whether the level of abstraction at which the equation is drawn is the fruitful one to fulfil the purpose that one is pursuing. All this should clarify why, once we have many information societies that are all different from one another, it still makes sense to compare them in terms of relevant criteria and why, more specifically, it is important to understand what it means for an information society to be more or less mature than others.

DOI: 10.1007/s13347-016-0214-6

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