Abstract
The authors identified interactionism’s conceptual foundations for the study of technology, such as Mead’s examination of the constitution of objects through action and Blumer’s analysis of social change during industrialization. These classic (symbolic) interactionist studies have provided scholars with a starting point for theorizing how technology is embedded within “joint action”. Through their analysis of how people practically orient to technology and other people in their ongoing social lives, the authors have variously demonstrated how the deployment of technology becomes implicated in power relationships, processes of identity construction, and the (re)organization and accomplishment of institutional interaction. Interactionist perspectives had a strong influence on social studies of science, including the influential field of Science and Technology Studies. This tradition emerged in the 1970s and helped to reveal the epistemic and socio-political context in which particular technologies were developed, such as bicycles with pneumatic tires or electricity networks.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | People, Technology, and Social Organization |
| Subtitle of host publication | Interactionist Studies of Everyday Life |
| Publisher | Taylor and Francis Ltd. |
| Pages | 277-287 |
| Number of pages | 11 |
| ISBN (Electronic) | 9781000967074 |
| ISBN (Print) | 9781032230689 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 1 Jan 2023 |