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Social construction of technology (SCOT) is a theory within the field of science and technology studies. Advocates of SCOT—that is, social constructivists—argue that technology does not determine human action, but that rather, human action shapes technology. They also argue that the ways a technology is used cannot be understood without ...
In this way, social shaping theorists conceive the relationship between technology and society as one of 'mutual shaping'. Some versions of this theory state that technology affects society by affordances, constraints, preconditions, and unintended consequences (Baym, 2015). Affordance is the idea that technology makes specific tasks easier in ...
In contrast, social determinism (SD), popularized by social theorists Karl Marx and Emile Durkheim, purports that social structure is the driving factor towards change in society. [6] Following this view, society is the governing force that determines social behaviour, and technology is created and adapted based on society's wants and needs. [7]
He contributed to the concepts of technological momentum, technological determinism, large technical systems, social construction of technology, and introduced systems theory into the history of technology. His book American Genesis was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize. He was elected to the American Philosophical Society in 2003. [6]
Technological determinism is a reductionist theory in assuming that a society's technology progresses by following its own internal logic of efficiency, while determining the development of the social structure and cultural values. [1]
Thus, his theory is often considered a case of Technological determinism, but is really more than that. Ogburn posited four stages of technical development: invention, accumulation, diffusion and adjustment. Invention is the process by which new forms of technology are created. Inventions are collective contributions to an existing cultural ...
Technology is the sum of ways in which social groups construct the material objects of their civilizations. The things made are socially constructed just as much as technically constructed. The merging of these two things, construction and insight, is sociotechnology.
Technological determinism is the idea that "features of technology [determine] its use and the role of a progressive society was to adapt to [and benefit from] technological change." [12] The alternative perspective would be social determinism which looks upon society being at fault for the "development and deployment" [13] of technologies.