The ideas and examples referenced below are notes compiled by Robert Keel from his reading of Volti, Rudi. 2014. Society and Technological Change. 7th edition. New York, NY: Worth Publishers. They are intended for classroom use.

The Nature of Technology

Technology —

• It can be exhilarating and terrifying, or mundane (a toothbrush).
• In general, the public supports technology — in spite of disasters (nuclear reactors, the Challenger disaster).
• In general, most of us are poorly informed about how technology actually works.
• All technologies have some basic features in common.
• Why study this stuff?

Defining Technology

• "technology" is a fairly new word — coined by Jacob Bigelow (Harvard, 1820's).
• technology — techne (Greek) art, craft, or skill and logos: knowledge.
• teks (Indo-euro) weave or fabricate.
• Technologies are developed to help us do something we otherwise could not do.
• Our ability to create technology sets us apart from other animals.

"Beavers build dams, and chimps use sticks but no animal comes close to humans in our ability to extend our natural environment through technology" (page 4)

• Reliance on technology is as old as the human race.
• Technology is a Cultural Element. (Culturomics)
• It shapes us and at the same time is shaped by us: Socio-Cultural Change
• Technology and Politics (See Winner, "Do Artifacts have Politics")(local copy)
  • Used as ways of settling issues within a specific community:
    • Robert Moses and Long Island overpasses.
    • Settling labor issues: McCormick's reaper manufacturing machines (1880s) and cigar making (1869).
  • Some technologies are inherently political: centralization of authority (the factory system, nuclear versus solar power), weapons of mass destruction.

"To quarrel with technology is to quarrel with the nature of man— just as if we were to quarrel with his upright gait, his symbolic imagination, his faculty for speech, or his unusual sexual posture and appetite." (from J. Bronowski, quote on page 4)

• Tools and techniques have indisputably assisted the physical survival of the human race.
• But technology has not spontaneously appeared. Certain elements have made technology possible:
  1. Organization— development of technology requires a group effort.
  2. One individual may be able to learn all the parts of a technology but one can not do every task required to make a technology work.
  3. It's a System— technology has to be supported by other components.
  4. This is true of the technologies of handwriting as well as the modern airplane.

Definition of technology: "A system created by humans that uses knowledge and organization to produce objects and techniques for the attainment of specific goals." (page 6)

Above definition has its limitations:

• The last part of the definition assumes that technology comes about in order to meet existing needs -- this is not always the case.
• History of technology full of examples of inventions looking for problems to solve.
• New technology often creates its own needs.
• Goals achieved through technology don’t always have to be "practical" ones.
• New technologies often developed as a symbol of prestige: Automobile — do we drive Yugos or Porsches?

Technological Advance and the Image of Progress

• "The development of technology is an inherently dynamic and cumulative process (page 7).
• Leaving aside social concerns, technological change is usually one of continuous improvement of existing technologies.
• We can always make things better and faster.
• This dynamic, progressive element of technology makes it a unique human endeavor.
• Other endeavors do not have this characteristic: We still love Shakespeare, Beethoven, and the Bible, BUT, yesterday's computer is a real drag.
• Technology represents humankind’s dream of continual progress (maybe even creates the dream).
• Some countries may be advanced technologically, but not in other human endeavors such as equal distribution of goods and services and social justice.
  1. Nazi Germany — developed the Mercedes but murdered millions of Jews and others.
  2. Primitive societies — advanced artistry and social relationships, but little technology as we think of it.
• Thus, the notion of "progress" is complex and can only be understood in the context of a given set of cultural beliefs and values.
• Four Philosophies of Technology

Technology as a Metaphor:

• Technology — metaphor of our human notion of continual progress.
• Technology has also shaped the way we think about ourselves and our world.
  • Feedback — principle in technology
    1. "A method of controlling a system by reinserting into it the results of its past performance." (page 11).
    2. It is a regulation device, that when used will help an unbalanced system gain its equilibrium.
    3. This principle was incorporated into other areas of social life — the stock market.
    4. And has been adapted to other areas as well--"audio feedback."

Technology and Rationality

• Technology has given us the belief that progress is a natural part of life.
• Underlying this belief is a rational approach.
• A Technologically progressive society is one in which problems are observed in systematic way and, more importantly, that solutions to problems are possible. We don’t view inclement weather as punishment from an angry God, we develop methods to understand weather patterns and how to better deal with changes.

"A rational approach to problem-solving is continuously concerned with identifying and developing appropriate means for achieving of particular ends." (page 12)

• Rational modes of thought do not confer moral superiority.
• In fact, extreme rational thought can result in great moral transgressions — Nazi Germany.
• Rational thought processes also carry a reluctance to admit there is anything capable of withstanding logical and empirical scrutiny. (12)
• Max Weber and "Disenchantment." (Shull, Kristina. Anamesa, Vol. 3, issue 2, Fall 2005.)

"With the progress of science and technology, man has stopped believing in magic powers, in spirits and demons; he has lost his sense of prophecy and, above all his sense of the sacred. Reality has become dreary, flat and utilitarian, leaving a great void in the souls of men which they seek to fill by furious activity and through various devices and substitutes."(page 14, Julian Freund, French Sociologist)

• Rationality requires objectivity — coolness and detachment.
• This can make for Technology that is not compatible with social beliefs and values. (See Winner, "Do Artifacts have Politics")(local copy)
• Rationality and masculinity: male domain often ignores female contributions

Technological Determinism

• Technology is often believed to be an independent force in human life--one that enslaves us and may be out of our control.
• Whyte, Lynn. 1974. "Technology Assessment from the Stance of a Medieval Historian." The American Historical Review. Volume 79: 1. Pages 1-13.
• The "Social Construction of Technology" offers a different perspective.
• The reality is that technological development and social change occur symbiotically--there are probabilities and possibilities, and most importantly, reciprocity.
  • Computers and the Internet.
  • The importance of human agency.
  • The element of power: Who controls and understands technology is of key importance --This influences what technology is or is not made available to the rest of us.
• "...technology has not operated as an agent independent of the society in which it is embedded." (page 16)

A Technological Society

• Technology extends humanity's power and has improved lives, but is not without problems.
• Due to its very nature, few us can actually understand it.
• Our lack of understanding can render us powerless over it.
• True believers and wild conspiracy theories emerge (and some may not be so wild).
• There are always costs associated with the benefits of technology.
• Who decides?

Questions (page 18):

1. What recent technology has produced the greatest benefit?  Which has produced the greatest harm?  Are there harmful elements to beneficial technologies?   Beneficial elements to harmful technologies?
2. Do all technologies require tools or material artifacts, of some sort?  Is bureaucracy a form of technology?
3. How do you respond when a technological device you depend on malfunctions?   What attitudes towards technology do your responses reveal?
4. Can you think of technologies that were developed simply because of the challenge? Are these sorts of technologies impractical? Can they be justified?
5. Are technologies "gendered?" On what basis can such distinctions be made?

Chapter 2

URL: http://www.umsl.edu/~keelr/280/soctechchange/soctech1.htm
Owner: Robert O. Keel: rok@umsl.edu
Last Updated: Monday, February 1, 2016 10:35