Deck 3: Theoretical Perspectives on Technology

Question 1

What is the core assumption of technological determinism?

A) Technology has primarily negative effects on society
B) An individual's facility with technology determines their social status
C) Technology has a unidirectional, strong effect on society that is at most minimally mediated by other factors
D) Artifacts are socially constructed

Answer 1

C

Question 2

Which perspective sees technology as a regressive force?

A) The value-laden perspective
B) The dystopian perspective
C) Technological determinism
D) Social informatics

Answer 2

B

Question 3

Instrumentalism lies at the intersection of which two theories of technology and society in Feenberg's theoretical matrix?

A) Autonomous and neutral
B) Human controlled and value-laden
C) Autonomous and value-laden
D) Human controlled and neutral

Answer 3

D

Question 4

Which of the following points would a critic of autonomous technology theories argue?

A) Technology is a socially constructed entity whose meaning and use is determined by human action.
B) Technology has negatively impacted the manner in which information is acquired and processed.
C) Technology directs and shapes social interactions and systems of thought.
D) Human agency is limited by the corresponding roles and actions associated with a technology once it has become normalized within a society.

Question 5

Finding it distasteful to breakup with someone by changing your relationship status on social media is an illustration of which theory?

A) Critical theory
B) Social determinism
C) Instrumentalism
D) Substantivism

Question 6

Which theory would demand that for examining technology it is essential to first understand the context of its use and development because technology is a process that directs a specific mode of living and understanding?

A) Critical theory
B) Determinism
C) Instrumentalism
D) Substantivism

Question 7

A new cellphone on the market has an issue with text messages, which sometimes do not come through. A year later, the buzz about this phone is that it is perfect for social networking. This scenario is an example of which of the following?

A) Interpretive flexibility
B) Rejection of technological determinism
C) Social after-effects
D) Closure

Question 8

What is the definition of an actant?

A) A non-human actor who engages in relationships with human and non-human actors.
B) The opposite of actor; an object of the actor's actions.
C) A non-human actor who inhibits or obstructs an actor's activity.
D) A person or entity bearing the capacity to (inter)act independently within society.

Question 9

Technological developments through industrialization and globalization have had in the long run negative effects on the environment such as pollution and decreased biodiversity. Which of the following terms describes this effect best?

A) social after-effects
B) unintended effects
C) autonomous effects
D) deterministic effects

Question 10

Technology as a new means of achieving progress and efficiency is a core tenet of which perspective?

A) Positivist
B) Progressive
C) Utopian
D) Dystopian

Question 11

Social media platforms such as Facebook, help users stay connected. But addiction to social media is an increasing problem in users. This is an example of which of the following?

A) Autonomous effects
B) Social after-effects
C) Unintended effects
D) Technological effects

Question 12

What is Feenberg's critique of the neutrality view of technology?

A) Neutralization of technology implies an inherent positive value of technology.
B) Neutralization of technology focuses on progress in the Global North.
C) Neutralization of technology hinders any in-depth analysis of social change.
D) Neutralization of technology assumes technological determinism.

Question 13

What is the underlying assumption of autonomous technology theories?

A) Technology is shaped by human needs.
B) Technology's meaning is defined by human actions.
C) Technological evolution is controlled and guided by human intervention.
D) Technology itself propels and alters the development of social structures and cultural values.

Question 14

Which of the following is a common critique of the SCOT approach?

A) it lacks an understanding of the empirical evidence for change
B) it does not conceptualize the network properly
C) it lacks an understanding of the dynamics of technological change
D) it examines too many variables simultaneously.

Question 15

In the context of critical theory, technology is a symbol of what?

A) The ability to adopt different directions
B) Linear progress
C) Regression
D) A predetermined end goal

Question 16

What is in place when technology is governed by a dominant group that uses it to reflect their values, social structures, and goals?

A) A dictatorship
B) A democracy
C) A technocracy
D) Resistance

Question 17

A simple tool used for a multitude of purposes by different cultural groups is an example of what?

A) Technological determinism
B) Instrumentalism
C) Social after-effect
D) Interpretive flexibility

Question 18

The "retweet" feature in social media is an example of which of the following?

A) closure and stabilization
B) social after-effects
C) affordances
D) compatibility

Question 19

Science and Technology Studies (STS) reject deterministic approaches to the study of technology and instead call for:

A) Technology-oriented approaches.
B) Holistic approaches.
C) Collaborative approaches.
D) Long-term approaches.

Question 20

Current understandings of technological society propose a process where technological factors impact society and in turn societal factors impact technological design, development, implementation, use, and social consequences. What is this process called?

A) Action-reaction
B) Feedback loop
C) Synergy
D) Mutual shaping

Question 21

Social determinists believe that technology has a strong, unidirectional effect that is minimally mediated by other factors.

Question 22

Those adhering to the dystopian perspective consider technology to be a regressive force.

Question 23

The view that technology is neutral tends to equate technological development with human progress.

Question 24

The opinion that social media is not an appropriate medium for ending a relationship is an example of social determinism.

Question 25

The substantivist position expresses the view that technology can act as an independent force.

Question 26

Critical theory suggests that technology is a simple means of satisfying goals.

Question 27

Qualitative methods, such as case studies and ethnographies, are characteristic of science and technology studies (STS).

Question 28

To understand technical change, the design of tools, and the technology-society relationship, scholars often employ SCOT (social construction of technology).

Question 29

Closure describes the stage in the cycle of design when the relevant social group stops using a tool in one way because it has discovered a new use for it.

Question 30

A risk when conducting research using the technological affordances theory is that scholars may confuse researcher-perceived affordances with user-perceived affordances.

Question 31

What is meant by technology as a regressive force?

Question 32

What are the central dimensions that make-up the matrix of Feenberg's 1999 theoretical model depicting theories of technology and society?

Question 33

Describe the term interpretative flexibility? How does it influence technology design?

Question 34

What are the four key headings used by proponents of SCOT to help understand the interplay between design, technology, and society?

Question 35

Discuss the key critiques of the affordances concept.

Question 36

Identify key social affordances of Twitter and explain how they affect the ways political information diffuses online. Specifically address how features of Twitter like hashtags, direct messaging, and retweets can increase or decrease political conflict.

Question 37

Technology has been seen from many different perspectives. One such perspective is that of technology as neutral. Describe this point of view and discuss its limitations. Use an example to show how the limitations play out.