Optimistic, "computopian" scenarios of the new information age emphasize the possibility of radically reversing the central tendencies of industrialization through the implementation of computer technologies that increase the ability to recognize and accommodate the needs of individuals. Pessimistic, dystopian scenarios, in contrast, point out that microelectronic technologies have been introduced as a way to greater efficiency in industrial production. Historical antecedents suggest that microelectronic innovation is not the precursor of a radically new form of social organization, but, rather, is the logical extension of the historical trend to rationalize production processes and to counter the declining rate of profit by substituting equipment and machinery for labor and wages. Whereas computopian and dystopian views recognize the capacity of the new technologies to increase differentiation, it is evident that increased social differentiation has increased social disintegration. At a time of crisis in the welfare state, governments now hope, unrealistically, to find within a compassionate community the resources needed to compensate for the loss of institutional supports and services. As the price of estrangement in society becomes increasingly apparent, public policy must be focused on the reintegration of society. In that effort, technological innovation has an as yet unrealized role to play. (RH)