Ergonomics of technology transfer

It is beyond doubt that high technology has elevated the standards of living of mankind. The modern technology created and developed to a great extent by Western or developed societies is now in great demand in Eastern and developing societies who are trying to leap-frog towards advancement. But unfortunately, in the transfer of technology, both the giver and the receiver seem to make many mistakes. A technology transferred without considering the ethnic variables in the societies and differences in the climates, has found to cause problems to the acquirer. Due to the basic human factor differences such as sizes of people, physical environment, physical capacities and organizational and cultural differences, a technology which is unadapted has found to be inappropriate, harmful, hazardous and unsuccessful. In the areas of health, working conditions, production and finance, undesirable effects have resulted through haphazard technology transfer, For a successful transfer, it is therefore stressed that technology has to be adapted or modified taking into consideration the technological, anthropological and socio-economic factors of the acquiring population.