My thoughts on Technological Determinism (Week 2)
Technological Determinism (TD) is a hot topic for debate because it can almost be seen as a power play. It's common knowledge that technology can "outsmart" humans in terms of computing power. But what if it starts to manipulate the way we think? Is social media going to dictate how we interact with each other? What if technology has more power over humans in our society?
The answers vary greatly amongst individuals. In Does technology drive history?: The dilemma of technological determinism (viiii-xv), Marx and Smith distinguish between a hard and soft approach to understanding technological determinism.
- Hard: The idea that the "social, cultural, political, and economic developments of each historical period can be related directly to the technology of that period."
- Middle: A technology is "a system of people, texts, artifacts, activities, ideology, and cultural meanings."
- Soft: A view that no technology "ever has initiated an action not preprogrammed by human beings."
For the longest time, I keep jumping from one end of the spectrum to another.
I could see myself as a soft TD advocate: yes, machines can learn and they can learn fast, but they could only do what we tell it to, as we are the ones who invented computers and taught them how to read information in the first place.
Yet giving it more thought, I find myself on the "hard" end, as I witnessed how much social media has changed how people communicate. It went as far as even influencing our political decisions.
Recognizing its power inspired me to do more research to understand how exactly it influences us - does it do us more good than bad or more bad than good?
I came across a documentary called The Social Dilemma. Do you ever blame yourself for spending too much time on social media? Well, turns out it's not a "you" problem - defectors from these tech giants explained that "manipulation of human behavior for profit is coded into these companies with Machiavellian precision." They perfect their algorithms to keep you online for as long as possible, think Youtube Recommended videos, trading your attention span with advertisers to maximize profit. 
Hi Echo,
ReplyDeleteThank you for sharing your thoughts on cybersecurity and the design behind social media features. I also enjoyed watching "The Social Dilemma" and was fascinated by the amount of effect social media has on us. Believe it or not, I was once so addicted to Instagram that I experienced the phantom vibration syndrome. After realizing how toxic it could be, I quit seeking attention on various platforms and started using them mainly for educational purpose. I am grateful for the opportunities and resources technology provides us. Especially during a pandemic, we are able to watch cooking tutorials, take virtual lessons and stay in contact with people around the world through the internet. I think technology can be, and probably will always be manipulative due to its fast-paced nature. However, it is our choice to use it wisely. That being said, there are users like teenagers who are easily affected by digital information and unable to make judgements for themselves. Therefore we should keep advocating for a safer online environment.
Regarding your discussion about regulating data collection, I think we have a long way to go. User data is important for machine learning, and companies will not easily give up their access to this information. What do you think will be a good start to guarding our personal information from social media companies?
Hi Echo,
ReplyDeleteYour reflection is really interesting. I watched the documentary that you mentioned and love it so much. I always know that we are controlled and spend lots of time on social medias, however this is the first time that I really see the data and evidences. Instagram and facebook really eaten up lots of my time compare to five years before. After I watched that video, I recalled back to my primary school life, when I don't really have a digital cell phone and computer. Most of my spare time were spent on books, and some outdoor exercises.However, for now, when I want to take a break from work or homework, I will just grab my phone and spending my time on instagram or facebook.
Also, in the recent one or two years, I always find out that the allocation of advertisement on Youtube or instagram become more and more accurate. It will recommend things that I search on the google recently. I started to feel anxious and afraid. All of our conversation, bank account, searching history are public online and all of our data can be calculated easily by those companies. I have a feeling that we start to lose control to digital and the data as well as technology start to control us.
Hi Echo:
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed your post, and appreciated your thoughts on the 3 approaches to Technological Determinism. It took me a little while to formulate my stance as well, however I had the opposite experience (going from hard to soft approach). At first, I thought of all the ways technology “controls us” in the modern world. For example, social media algorithms designed to hook users to the platform and keep them hooked (which you noted in your blog as well), the algorithms used by financial firms in high-speed stock trading to make money (with no human involvement), facial recognition software that scans every face it comes across, and even bots designed to spread misinformation on social media apps and the web.
As I thought more about those examples however, I couldn’t help but come to the same conclusion. Even though the algorithms/software are automated and operate without human control, they were all created by humans with goals in mind that directly serve the interests of humans. It’s this point that convinces me the soft approach is the true nature of technological determinism, now and throughout human history. That being said, I don’t think that will always be the case. Once AI becomes truly intelligent, I think it will change everything.
ReplyDeleteYour post presents an interesting view on the role of humans in the design and use of ICT and it inspires deeper examination of ethical design.
As you explain with the The Social Dilemma preview, technology is strategically designed to drives human behavior by leveraging psychology and user data. The technology may be controlled by a relatively small amount of programmers who can exploit the People for their own business or to fit their own agenda. This means the designer’s intention and commitment to ethics are important for technology that builds a better society.
The designers intention dictates the planned use of the tech, and can guide the design priorities and inform development interactive functionality of a social tools. You note an important point - people can use technology for other purposes and in other ways than the intended purpose. Unintended uses can sometimes lead to negative social impacts, like in your Facebook example. This is where ethics may come in. If developers focus on the designing ethically, they will focus on developing features that improve the lives of humans. Going forward, these ethics will need to be guided by industry leaders and nonprofits to make sure they stay central to creation.