In: Operations Management
Many historical analyses assume technological determinism, but is it not more truthful to say that social invention is more important to historical change than technological invention?
please answer in 500 words.
Technological determinants Seek out the development of media or
technology techniques, in general, as important drivers of history
and social change. This is a theory signed by "hyperglobalists"
that claims that because of the widespread availability of
technology, the push for globalization is inevitable. Thus,
technological development and innovation become key drivers of
social, economic or political change.
Strict proponents of technology determinants do not believe that
the impact of technology differs depending on how much technology
or use is available. Instead of looking at technology as part of a
larger spectrum of human activities, technology settings see
technology as the basis for all human activities.
The determinants of technology are summarized as "belief in
technology as an important control force in society." The idea that
technological development determines social change. It changes the
way people think and communicate with others and can be described
as a logical proposition in three words: "history-defining
technology". The belief is that social progress is driven by
technological innovation which in turn follows the "inevitable."
The "concept of progress" or "doctrine of progress" focuses on the
idea that social problems can be addressed through technological
progress and that is how society moves forward. Technology
determinists believe that "you can't stop progress, which means we
can't control technology." This shows that we have no power and
that society allows technology to manage social change because “the
society fails to realize the value alternatives in it.
Technology determinants are defined as a method that defines
technology or technological progress as an essential element of the
process of social change. When technology is stable, its design
tends to determine consumer behavior by reducing human agency.
However, this position ignores the social and cultural
circumstances in which technology is created. Social science expert
Claude Fischer identified the most well-known technology as
baseball, in which technology was seen as an external force
introduced into social situations that created the effects of the
recovery.
Instead of recognizing how society or culture interacts and shapes
the way technology is used, technology defines technology as "the
use of technology is largely determined by the structure of the
technology itself - its function follows." Its form ”. There is
confusion with Daniel Chandler's "inevitable theory" that when
technology is integrated into culture, what is the inevitable
development of that technology.
For example, we can consider why novels are so prominent in our
society when compared to other forms of novels, such as discoverers
or Western novels. We can say that this is due to the creation of a
perfect connection system developed by the publisher. The glue is
used here instead of the time and costly process of tying the book
with individual signatures. This means that these books can be
widely circulated. We would not be able to have literacy knowledge
without mass production. This example is closely linked to Marshall
McLuhan's belief that the press helped create the nation state.
This changed the society from oral culture to literate culture, but
it also showed a capitalist society where different caste and
individuality existed.
Therefore, computer and television printers are not just
transmitters. It is a metaphor in which we formulate practical
ideas one way or another. They will classify the world for us, they
will define it, they will highlight it, expand it, they will reduce
it, they will prove what it is. By comparing these media, we do not
see the world as it is. We see our code system. This is the power
of information forms.