Exam: Technology, Policy & Society
16 december 2022
Lecture 1 ‘Perceptions of technology’
Background
ICT interacts with different environments
● Social environment: our social environment is dominated by technology (whatsapp)
● Political environment: the political domain is intertwined with technology (dissemination of
news, governmental communications).
● Work environment:There are hardly any jobs without a form of ICT.
● ICT environment: ICT interacts with itself. The more data you have, the more you can link
and generate information and use it in different ways.
→ Organisations have adapted to the online world and are increasingly being organised online.
Example: protests.
Technology is important, because:
● Speed: technology moves faster
● Impacts a lot of different things: social, political and work environments are influenced.
● Solutions but also problems – technology can lead to solutions and problems
Case: FLIWAS (Flood information and warning system)
Algorithm that aims to predict water management (flooding). It aims to calculate damage (life loss,
property damage, nature damage). We can predict how high the water can be based on other streams
of information.
● Everything eventually correlates
● Algorithm is vague, as no one is aware of how it exactly works
● Implication unclear
● Who is allowed to view? Who can see/act on the information provided by the algorithm.
→ Takeaways: How do we deal with those who do not believe and how can we know the algorithm is
in fact right? Also need to consider ethical issues.
The technology debate (Moody & Gerrits, 2015)
The technology debate concerns the different viewpoints on technology. It is aged, as it has been
academically debated for over 300 years. There is also no solution.
, → this leads to 4 different positions that differ in their view on
(a) Agency: who is driving change, humans or technology?
(b) Neutrality: is technology neutral or does it have inherent values?
(1) Instrumentalism
● Agency: humans have agency, technology has no agency. There is no relation between
technology and society.
○ Humans steer technology: technological progress is human endeavour.
● Neutrality: Technology is neutral and value-free. It has no inherent meaning, it is a means to
achieve any end dependent on the user.
● Very few people are instrumentalists, but a good place to start the debate.
● Technology = any technological advancement (e.g. hammer)
● Example: People kill people with guns.
(2) Determinism
● Agency: technology has its own will/ agency and steers society.
○ Humans cannot steer technology: Technological advancement does not depend on
the intention of the user, but is fixed within the technology itself. In other words, the
maker/user of technology might have specific intentions/goals in mind, but
technology leads us where it wants to go.
● Neutrality: technology is not value-free/neutral, it can be good/bad or a mixture. Certain
political and social norms/values are hidden inside technology.
● Example: Guns kill people
(3) Social constructivism
● Agency: Humans have primary agency. Technology influences society, because of the
meanings we ascribe to it (so only in the way we intend it).
○ Humans steer technology: humans determine the practice and outcomes of
technological shape. Our economy, society, institutions and culture shape the
direction and scope of technology via choices made in the design of technology.
● Neutrality: technology is assigned a specific value by humans.
● The technological frame = the set of rules, ideas, and meanings within a group that
determines the interaction between the members of a group. Over time, these different
perspectives will converge into one dominant meaning of what technology is. This dominant
meaning will then steer society.
● Example: guns only kill if we decide they do
16 december 2022
Lecture 1 ‘Perceptions of technology’
Background
ICT interacts with different environments
● Social environment: our social environment is dominated by technology (whatsapp)
● Political environment: the political domain is intertwined with technology (dissemination of
news, governmental communications).
● Work environment:There are hardly any jobs without a form of ICT.
● ICT environment: ICT interacts with itself. The more data you have, the more you can link
and generate information and use it in different ways.
→ Organisations have adapted to the online world and are increasingly being organised online.
Example: protests.
Technology is important, because:
● Speed: technology moves faster
● Impacts a lot of different things: social, political and work environments are influenced.
● Solutions but also problems – technology can lead to solutions and problems
Case: FLIWAS (Flood information and warning system)
Algorithm that aims to predict water management (flooding). It aims to calculate damage (life loss,
property damage, nature damage). We can predict how high the water can be based on other streams
of information.
● Everything eventually correlates
● Algorithm is vague, as no one is aware of how it exactly works
● Implication unclear
● Who is allowed to view? Who can see/act on the information provided by the algorithm.
→ Takeaways: How do we deal with those who do not believe and how can we know the algorithm is
in fact right? Also need to consider ethical issues.
The technology debate (Moody & Gerrits, 2015)
The technology debate concerns the different viewpoints on technology. It is aged, as it has been
academically debated for over 300 years. There is also no solution.
, → this leads to 4 different positions that differ in their view on
(a) Agency: who is driving change, humans or technology?
(b) Neutrality: is technology neutral or does it have inherent values?
(1) Instrumentalism
● Agency: humans have agency, technology has no agency. There is no relation between
technology and society.
○ Humans steer technology: technological progress is human endeavour.
● Neutrality: Technology is neutral and value-free. It has no inherent meaning, it is a means to
achieve any end dependent on the user.
● Very few people are instrumentalists, but a good place to start the debate.
● Technology = any technological advancement (e.g. hammer)
● Example: People kill people with guns.
(2) Determinism
● Agency: technology has its own will/ agency and steers society.
○ Humans cannot steer technology: Technological advancement does not depend on
the intention of the user, but is fixed within the technology itself. In other words, the
maker/user of technology might have specific intentions/goals in mind, but
technology leads us where it wants to go.
● Neutrality: technology is not value-free/neutral, it can be good/bad or a mixture. Certain
political and social norms/values are hidden inside technology.
● Example: Guns kill people
(3) Social constructivism
● Agency: Humans have primary agency. Technology influences society, because of the
meanings we ascribe to it (so only in the way we intend it).
○ Humans steer technology: humans determine the practice and outcomes of
technological shape. Our economy, society, institutions and culture shape the
direction and scope of technology via choices made in the design of technology.
● Neutrality: technology is assigned a specific value by humans.
● The technological frame = the set of rules, ideas, and meanings within a group that
determines the interaction between the members of a group. Over time, these different
perspectives will converge into one dominant meaning of what technology is. This dominant
meaning will then steer society.
● Example: guns only kill if we decide they do
