NAISBITT, J., & ABURDENE, P. (1990). MEGA-
TRENDS 2000: TEN NEW DIRECTIONS FOR THE
1990'S. NEW YORK: WILLIAM MORROW AND COM-
PANY, INC., $21.95 (HARDCOVER), 384 PP. (ISBN
0-688-07224-0)
Reviewed by Daniel A. Levy
John Naisbitt & Patricia Aburdene offer
prophecies regarding the nature of contempo-
rary society in MEGATRENDS 2000: TEN NEW DI-
RECTIONS FOR THE 1990'S. Naisbitt and
Aburdene are well known for their earlier
work, MEGATRENDS, in which they accurately
described trends of the 1980s. Many are tak-
ing a close look at MEGATRENDS 2000; as of
July 1990, it had been on the NEW YORK TIMES
Best Sellers list for twenty-five weeks. In
addition to the book's broad appeal, educa-
tors in technology education may find it
helps clarify important directions for the
field.
It may be foolhardy to predict the im-
pact of events across a ten year period, but
Naisbitt and Aburdene are looking at trends
which are already occurring. They do not
dwell on negatives. In their introduction,
they credit those who report on crime, drugs,
AIDS, deficits, and other crises as doing
their jobs. Doomsayers will be let down; the
authors do not see the world coming to an
end. Their mission, as they see it, is to
"point out information and circumstances that
describe the world trends leading to opportu-
nities." They may be proven wrong in their
overly positive view, but they have provided
a context within which to view world events.
They suggest that without such a frame of
reference we tend to miss much information.
If you fear you may already be missing
out on a major trend, I will not keep you in
suspense. The ten trends, listed by chapter
titles, are The Global Economic Boom of the
1990's, Renaissance in the Arts, The Emer-
gence of Free-Market Socialism, Global Life-
styles and Cultural Nationalism, The
Privatization of the Welfare State, The Rise
of the Pacific Rim, The 1990's: Decade of
Women in Leadership, The Age of Biology, Re-
ligious Revival of the Third Millenium, and
Triumph of the Individual. These chapters
are the body of the book, surrounded by in-
troductory and concluding chapters, extensive
endnotes, and an index.
The first chapter, "The Global Economic
Boom...," describes, in part, the information
economy, its creation of high-paying, chal-
lenging jobs, and the lack of enough ade-
quately trained workers in the U.S. to fill
those jobs. According to Naisbitt and
Aburdene, "There are not nearly enough people
with college degrees or advanced vocational
and technical training to fill the more than
2 million new managerial, administrative, and
technical jobs coming on-line annually." If
our mission in education is not yet clear,
consider also their emphasis on retraining:
we must upgrade the skills of 120 million
people in the U.S. work force today.
The importance of education is empha-
sized again in the chapter on the rise of the
Pacific Rim, when Naisbitt and Aburdene em-
phasize the positive correlation between im-
provement in education and global
competitiveness. Other trends are equally
important in technology education, including
management and leadership trends, and new
roles for women. MEGATRENDS 2000 emphasizes
the impact of the arts in the 90s, including
a greater job growth rate than other pro-
fessions. It will become increasingly impor-
tant for all undergraduates, and especially
students in technical fields, to increase
their study of the arts, humanities, and so-
cial sciences. Starting during the 1990s,
Naisbitt and Aburdene claim, the arts will
replace sports as our dominant leisure activ-
ity. Perhaps we have buried the last vestige
of "art" in our field at a time when socie-
ty's needs have come full circle.
Anyone reading MEGATRENDS 2000 is likely
to come away with a clearer, and no doubt
more positive view of world events. Although
the authors back their general assertions
with specific cases, you may be aware of
studies which reach different conclusions.
You may also see other trends which transcend
those selected by the authors. The important
point, according to Naisbitt and Aburdene,
"is to craft your own world view, your own
personal set of megatrends."
----------------
Daniel Levy is a Technology Teacher,
Lansdowne Middle School and Chatsworth
School, Baltimore County, Maryland.
Permission is given to copy any
article or graphic provided credit is given and
the copies are not intended for sale.
Journal of Technology Education Volume 2, Number 1 Fall 1990
