Does Society need technology

to improve the quality of

everyday life?
Based on
Chapter-1,Gales of Creative Destruction, Innovation and Its Enemies:
Why People Resist New Technologies
WHY DO WE NEED TECHNOLOGY ?

To address basic Address economic

needs of the slowdown in
developing world developed nations

Respond to
climate change
In general technology is need by the entire
world for
Sustainability
Health
Security
Life enrichment
Technology in today’s world
Complimentary institution development not able to
Fast keep up pace
advancement in
technology

Shortening of Anticipatory regulations needed

innovation cycle

Globalization
Developing nation have early access to technology
Features of technology/innovations
• Radical or incremental
• Can be disruptive or improvement in existing system
• But argued that disruptive change necessary
• Non Economic equilibrium
• Non Darwinian
• Usually forced by producers.
• Hierarchies of technology
• Level 1:Natural phenomenon to meet human needs
• Level 2:Collections assemblies to leverage natural phenomenon
• Level 3:Entire collection of devices and engineering practices available to society
• Technology can exist in isolation from economy in labs and museums but
economy cannot exist independent of technology
Creative Destruction
• Introduction of new product
• Development of new practice
• Opening of market
• Sourcing of new material and semi manufactured goods
• Reorganization of industrial sector
Role of social institutes
• Enable society to adopt to change
• Coordinate activities among various actors and achieve specific goals
• Manage conflict between different agents
• Allocate necessary resources.
• Incentivize people to achieve goals
• Maintenance of continuity and sustainability
Social Response to technology

Intuitive factors
Intellectual Response
Sociopsychological factors
 Does not fit
Intuitive factors into accepted
social or
ecological
pattern

Absence of relevant
reference point or trusted
Cultural Concern
authority of new
technology being
Lack of impure
knowledge how
to control it
Domestication
Seem to
of monster
challenge
,purity and
Using science to address perceptive view
danger
these issues often backfire as of nature
it is seen as encroachment of
science over cultural and
personal matter
Vested interest
• Luddites slowed mechanization in textile industry as substituted labor.
• Even other social groups supported them fearing the spread of
automation to there work.
• Distribution of winners and losers
• Generally the number of producers is less as compared to consumer
leading to more benefits to producers but makes them vulnerable to
collective action by consumer groups.
• Usually free economy are more friendly towards technology as
compared to controlled economy
Methods adopted
• Non market mechanism
• Safety regulation
• Regulatory capture
• Extralegal means
• Arson
• Personal violence
• Riots
• Anti competitive
• Denial of credit
• Blocking their own innovation [contd]
Blocking their own innovation
• IN 1930s Bell labs developed highly advanced magnetic audio
recording system but intentionally delayed its production for almost a
decade to shield their primary business of telephones services.
• As the recording system would adversely affect its telephones
business as:
• Slip of tongue in formal communication could be used against the
speaker which would lead to consumer reverting back to mail to avoid
it
• About one third of calls were related to illegal activities which would
stop due to fear of legal action.
Intellectual Response
Manipulation
Risk Aversion
of nature for
Negative externalities human
Correlation between technology and social and political usesbenefit

Philosophical objection to the manipulation of nature for human benefit

RISK AVERSION

• Unknown risks and unintended consequences

• Asbestos was widely used for its heat resistance properties but was
later found to be carcinogenic and banned.
• DDT is banned in USA and the uses of anti biotic chemicals is being
questioned due to microbes property to mutate.
Negative externalities
• Often technology uses too much of natural resources and leads to
commercialization of natural resources otherwise free.
• Carbon tax has been introduced to include these externalities in the
economy
Correlation between technology and social and
political uses
• Weapons become more dangerous ,many countries are concerned
with the use of nuclear power for warfare and international agencies
are trying to find a method to regulate nuclear power of rogue
nations like North Korea.
• Assembly lines or technology leads to loss of creativity of labor apart
from the obvious reduction in unemployment
• Technology in developing countries is often seen as a symbol of
foreign domination
Philosophical objection to the manipulation of
nature for human benefit
• According to some nature is best preserved by excluding human
activities.
• Which is partially incorrect due confusion between technology in
general and impact of few specific technology.
• For example the field of chemistry has led to development of DDT but
at the same time has introduces a field of green chemistry
 Sociopsychological factors
• Not rational
• People’s reluctance to break out of existing habits
• Perceived risks associated with technology
• Public attitude towards technology
Habits and technology
• It is very difficult to change existing habits of people as it involves
both destroying old habit and forming new habit.
• So it would be better to introduce a new habit independent of old
habit
• For example instead of substituting existing diet with a protein rich
diet in developing nation ,a protein rich beverage could be introduced
Perceived risks
• When talking about risks intellectually the gains and losses from the
technology are considered rationally.
• But people put more weightage on losses due to
• Status quo bias
• Omission bias
• It’s the tendency to favor inaction over action
• According to human psychology harm due to inaction is better than harm due to action
INNOVATIONS AND UNCERTANITY
• Future improvement
• Marginal benefits of investment usually more in emerging technology
• Initially firearms/tractors were less effective than bow arrow/horses
• Innovation in complementary in technology
• Gas radio promoted by gas suppliers to compete with electricity as a power source
• Influences on the emergence of new technological system.
• IT has improved efficiency of many other industries
• Development of new applications
• Technological Convergence
• Instead of displacing radio internet has merged radio broadcasting into itself