Studying Technological Change: A Behavioral Approach

Cover......Page 1
Contents......Page 8
Figures......Page 12
Tables......Page 14
Preface......Page 16
Part I......Page 18
1. Introduction......Page 20
About Technology......Page 21
Two Perspectives: Scientific and Humanistic......Page 22
Decision-Making Processes and Technological Change......Page 23
A Preview......Page 24
Notes......Page 25
Technology and Mass Media......Page 27
Media Themes and Plots......Page 28
Creative Anachronism......Page 29
Progress Narratives......Page 31
Technological Revolution......Page 32
Cryptohistory......Page 33
Diffusion Theory......Page 34
Folk Theories......Page 35
Notes......Page 37
3. A Conceptual Scheme......Page 39
Fundamental Constructs......Page 40
Social Competence......Page 45
Categories of Technology......Page 46
Life History Models......Page 47
Decision Making and Life Cycles......Page 55
Notes......Page 57
Peer Competitions......Page 60
Social Role Expectations......Page 65
New Social Groups, Social Roles, and Activities......Page 66
Maintaining a System of Status Differentiation......Page 67
Summary......Page 69
Notes......Page 70
Part II......Page 72
Project-Stimulated Invention: The Cascade Model......Page 74
Technological Disequilibrium......Page 80
Continuous Change and Adaptive Response......Page 81
Cultural Imperatives......Page 82
Accident or Unexpected Performance......Page 84
Independent Invention......Page 86
Summary......Page 87
Notes......Page 88
6. Technology-Stimulated Invention......Page 90
Material-Stimulated Invention......Page 91
Component-Stimulated Invention......Page 94
Product-Stimulated Invention......Page 95
Process-Stimulated Invention......Page 98
Invention Stimulated by Complex Technological Systems......Page 99
Metapatterns......Page 100
Notes......Page 101
Developmental Distance......Page 103
Convergence......Page 106
Distributed Development......Page 108
Social Differentiation and Social Integration......Page 109
Technological Traditions and the Knowledge in Technology......Page 112
Notes......Page 113
Technical Choices, Formal Properties, and Performance Characteristics......Page 115
Technical Constraints......Page 117
Creating Engineering Science......Page 119
Varieties of Engineering Science......Page 120
Flawed Engineering Science......Page 123
Design as a Social Process......Page 125
Consumers Often Lack Social Power......Page 129
Some Groups Can Acquire Social Power......Page 130
The Performance Preference Matrix......Page 132
Studying Design Change......Page 134
Summary......Page 135
Notes......Page 136
9. Manufacture......Page 138
Seeking Evidence on Product Manufacture......Page 139
Collector Data and Temporal Patterns of Production......Page 145
Changes in Manufacture Processes......Page 150
The Manufacture Process and the Archaeological Record......Page 153
Notes......Page 156
Sources of Evidence......Page 158
Groups and Subgroups......Page 159
General Patterns of Household Adoption......Page 160
The ActivityEnhancement Process......Page 161
Ensemble Adoption......Page 162
Activity-Entailed Adoption......Page 163
Sequential Adoption......Page 164
Coerced and Imposed Adoption......Page 165
Additional Social Processes......Page 166
Artifact Replacement......Page 167
Competing Technologies......Page 168
Adoption Without Competition......Page 177
Notes......Page 179
Part III......Page 182
Long-Term Competitions......Page 184
Technology Transfer and Technological Differentiation......Page 192
Trends and Technological Saltations......Page 197
Summary......Page 201
Notes......Page 202
12. Reflections......Page 204
On Creating Narratives......Page 205
Notes......Page 206
Glossary......Page 208
References Cited......Page 214
Index......Page 230