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Technology, choice and the good life: Questioning technological liberalism

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  • Dotson, Taylor

Abstract

Technologies should be recognized as impacting personal choice concerning the good life. Yet, technological liberalism – the idea that technology permits an extending of individual volition concerning the good without distortion – remains a dominant collective belief. It is not enough to recognize that technologies can serve as “radical monopolies” or “script” human action. They also influence human action and choice in terms of cognition and affect. Technologies-of-choice can be viewed as enabling the belief that one may act as an unencumbered self, even though they do not unequivocally extend the human will. Consideration of the impact of technologies on human volition suggests possible avenues of research into when and how technologically reflexive decision making may actually occur as well as how societies could create space for technologies more compatible with alternative notions of the good, such as that exemplified in the philosophy of Albert Borgmann. Yet, the task of enabling a wider deployment of more focal or communitarian kinds of technology is far from straightforward.

Suggested Citation

  • Dotson, Taylor, 2012. "Technology, choice and the good life: Questioning technological liberalism," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 34(4), pages 326-336.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:teinso:v:34:y:2012:i:4:p:326-336
    DOI: 10.1016/j.techsoc.2012.10.004
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Barry Wellman, 2001. "Physical Place and Cyberplace: The Rise of Personalized Networking," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 25(2), pages 227-252, June.
    2. Hazel Rose Markus & Barry Schwartz, 2010. "Does Choice Mean Freedom and Well-Being?," Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Consumer Research Inc., vol. 37(2), pages 344-355, August.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ravanbakhsh, Rostam & Taqavi, Mostafa, 2020. "Muslim scholars and technological volition," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    2. Oostveen, Anne-Marie & Lehtonen, Pinja, 2018. "The requirement of accessibility: European automated border control systems for persons with disabilities," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 60-69.
    3. Sadowski, Jathan & Selinger, Evan, 2014. "Creating a taxonomic tool for technocracy and applying it to Silicon Valley," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 161-168.
    4. Pütz, Fabian & Murphy, Finbarr & Mullins, Martin & O'Malley, Lisa, 2019. "Connected automated vehicles and insurance: Analysing future market-structure from a business ecosystem perspective," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).
    5. Voinea, Cristina, 2018. "Designing for conviviality," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 52(C), pages 70-78.
    6. Sætra, Henrik Skaug, 2019. "When nudge comes to shove: Liberty and nudging in the era of big data," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 59(C).

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