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The interplay between media and society
Mass media and culture
Mass media and culture
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Chapter three was focused around the understanding of technological changes in order to surpass the hype cycle with social shaping providing profound historical backgrounds showcasing the technical changes that surpasses technological determinism. Technology has a profound Impact on our worlds culture and the social structure, along with it having the reverse effect of our culture, usage and society impacting the creation of technology.
Rob Kitchin made the observation in 1998 that Cyberspace was one of the most most over hyped terms and ideas of the back end of the 20th century . It is extremely frequent for new technologies to go through a hype cycle for public debate, this is where innovations are able to trigger a set of positive hype
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It is exceedingly important to remember just how much our thinking is shaped by technological determinism. The late Robin WIlliams defined Technological Determinism as a view in which “ research and development have been assumed as self generating. The new tech are invented in an independent sphere, and then create new societies or new human conditions. “ It is important to take notice of two characteristic features of technologically determinist arguments are that the nature of technologies and the direction of changes are unproblematic or predetermined and that technology has necessary and determined impacts upon work, economic life and society as a whole: technological change thus produces social and organisational change. The alternate view form technological determinism is the social shaping of technology. This approach is shaped around the premise that technology is categorized as a social product, which is created and molded by its users. Its is argued that the definition of technology is that it is that hardware needs to be extended and furthered as a hardware to consider the uses. Capitalism has created the issue where there is more rapid development of technological changes in response to many human labor activities being taken over by machines. One tools and …show more content…
Two of the most important thinkers about social media and its impact on our social world were Marshall McLuhan and Raymond Williams. In particular, Marshall Mcluhan focused on the extent we seek to understand culture independently of its technological forms while williams focused on what draws the attention to the socioeconomic and institutional way through which media technologies are created and utilized. McLuhan stated that we use media technologies to enhance communication, but as we communicate, these technologies constitute the cultural environment we live in. This eventually transforms the experiences of knowledge and consciousness a long with time and space. He also firmly believed that Medium is the message, meaning that technologies are an extension of our human capacity. Raymond Williams focussed on stressing the need for culture to be understood as a way of life, which expresses particular meanings and values which were not only in forms of art and learning but also in that of institutions and ordinary behavior. Daniel bell introduced two key issues that he identified as drivers to change towards as information society were the occupational
Working thesis: The advancements in technology have caused the social norms of society to adapt to its rapid change, by becoming captivated to its simple access; which is effecting the way we communicate and act.
When it comes to the definition of technology in their articles, both Carr and Cascio have similarities and differences. Both authors are debating about the use of technology in today’s society. Both of their articles touch base on the ideals of “what technology is” in their perspectives. Carr believes that technology is making us want the quick path to information or common knowledge and says the Internet is “a machine designed for the efficient and automated collection, transmission, and manipulation of information”. Cascio also believes th...
In “ 5 Things We Need To Know About Technological Change”, by Neil Postman, Postman describes the prices we have to pay each time something new is made. The first price is culture, culture always pays a price for technology. For example, cars and pollution ( and many other less obvious examples). As Postman says: “Technology giveth and technology taketh away”.The second thing to know is that there are always winners and losers in technological change. As Postman explains: “the advantages and disadvantages of new technologies are never distributed evenly among the population”. There are always winners and losers in technological change. Winners tend to be those whose lifestyle is most closely aligned with the values of technology. The losers are those who don’t put technology on the first place. So for some technology is everything, while others are not that into it. As for the third thing that Postman describes is that in every technology there is a hidden philosophy about how the mind should work. I believe what Postman is saying is very similar to what Nicholas Carr, the author of “Tools Of The Mind” said. In “Tools of the Mind”, Carr introduces us to a new word, which he frequently uses called “intellectual ethic”, meaning an assumption implicit in a tool about how the mind should work. Carr explains how the map, clock, and writing are “intellectual technologies” that changed society and our ways
Social Construction of Technology (SCOT) is a theory that was introduced by Weiber Bijker that explains the link between social and technical processes of a technology or artifact. Bjiker argued that technology is shaped by human engineers, market forces, consumer’s needs and demands. In SCOT, technology is a social construction. Because technology is socially constructed, it involves flexibility of interpretations, stabilization and closure.
...been put on the technological platform itself and the infrastructure of it, and too little on the social and cultural context of the citizens and users. Communtes basically can not be created with technology if the social and cultural networks are not there, and if users do not see the benefit or are not motivated for using the technology” (Bondebjerg 9)
Williams, R. & Edge, D. (1996). The social shaping of technology. Research Policy, 25 (6), pp. 865--899.
Technology is crucial in influencing society, therefore it is imperative to understand what influences technological development and how it changes society, such as social shaping and theories of technological determinism. Langdon Winner supports the social determination of technology through the findings of others and his theories of politically influenced technologies, thus Winner accounts for technological determinism through defining the theory in this context.
Marshall McLuhan and Raymond Williams, both cornerstones in their respected and media theory and cultural studies, differed in their opinions of the relationship between media technology and social change.
Technological determinism according to Winston is that the diverse forms of technology become the basis of society in which social change and development are shaped by technology. The consequences of technology have a powerful impact on the society that individuals and social interactions develop as technology accelerates. Cultural determinism, on the other hands, is the idea that technology has transformed out of sociocultural contexts such as social, economic, and cultural forces. In other words, rather than a technology’s own trajectory, every aspect of social processes have developed technology.
The term technology was coined as a response to the possibility of women becoming equivalent in the domain of work that involved technological processes. The semantic shift from useful arts to technology took form during the early decades of the twentieth century. By appropriating the idiom of science, industry, engineering, and anthropology these loosely defined associations augmented a new male authority at the end of the century (Oldenziel, 2000). Thus, for an object to be a component of technology it no longer could be described just as an object of physical manufacture. It had to be mechanically operated, or “machine-bound” and created by only those who withheld the knowledge, skills, and expertise to discuss its creation.
Technology allows culture to evolve by creating solutions to problems by removing constraints that exist. Every invention and concept is expanded on to create the utmost perfect solution. Although this process can take decades, or even centuries, to actually develop a proficient resolution, the end result is what advances society industrially. There are conflicting views, however, if these advances are beneficially or maliciously affecting society (Coget). There are three kinds of people in regards to the attitude toward technology: technophiles, technophobes, and those who aren't biased in either regard (Coget). Technophiles understand that the world adapts to the advances in technology and uses them to improve their lives (Tenner). Technophobes observe technology as damaging or are uncomfortable in using it (DeVany). It is undeniable that technology is ever-expanding, thus peaking curiosity to uncover what fuels the fear behind the technophobes. Our focus is concentrated on the technophiles and the technophobes . I will begin with the latter as they contribute greatly to the ov...
The Oxford English online dictionary defines technology: as the product of such application; technological knowledge or know-how; a technological process, method, or technique. Also: machinery, equipment, etc., developed from the practical application of scientific and technical knowledge. In the space of a few decades technology as experienced incredible growth and has become a crucial part of our everyday life. Most of us use technology in every aspect of our lives whether we are at work, school, or relaxing at home in our free time. Now most of us could not imagine returning to a time in which technology was not so readily available. Most of us expect to have access to information at a moment’s notice. There are many advantages and disadvantages to our obsession with technology.
Technology has, since the primitive years, always been used to invent tools in order to solve problems. This would, in turn, simplify and make man’s life easier. Through advancements in the field, man has become more efficient on both the macro- and microscopic level. Anything can be attained with either the flip of a switch or the click of a mouse. One particular technology that came about at this time was the smartphone.
Today, Americans are faced with the increasing change of technology in our everyday life. Sometimes the change happens and we do not realize how it affects our lives. I think it is always a good idea to talk to someone that is older than yourself, like your grandparents to remind you of the times in their younger years. Hopefully, that will open your eyes to the changes we face in this generation and the generation to come. In this chapter, the author explores the relationship of changing technology to changes in both the environment and social institutions.
Nevertheless, many fears to technological advancement have been expressed similarly to that of their predecessors by the ‘Neo-Luddites’ of today (Stewart 1996, p.13). A prime advocate, author of The End of Work and US economist, Jeremy Rifkin asserts that technology is a ‘revolution’ which has taken over the world, posing a significant restructuring of the workforce and quality of life (Wyndham 1997, p.