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Science Technology and Society

Module description

To provide training in the essential skills of conducting and reporting research in the field of Science and Technology Studies. The module will invite you to question the taken-for-granted status of contemporary science and technology and to explore the relations between social interaction, local cultures, and processes of innovation. A wide range of materials will be used, including case studies on productive, reproductive, domestic, and computing technologies. Some problematic issues will be particularly explored like the role of authority in science, technology transfer, the attribution of agency in innovation processes, the sociology of environmentalism, and the images of technology in the media. The major theoretical approaches will be critically evaluated while a number of key ethical, social, cultural and policy issues associated with scientific research will be explored.

Module aims - intentions of the module

To provide training in the essential skills of conducting and reporting research in the field of Science and Technology Studies. The module will invite students to question the taken-for-granted status of contemporary science and technology and to explore the relations between social interaction, local cultures, and processes of innovation. A wide range of materials will be used, including case studies on productive, reproductive, domestic, and computing technologies. Some problematic issues will be particularly explored like the role of authority in science, technology transfer, the attribution of agency in innovation processes, the sociology of environmentalism, and the images of technology in the media. The major theoretical approaches will be critically evaluated while a number of key ethical, social, cultural and policy issues associated with scientific research will be explored.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate in writing and orally a detailed awareness and comprehension of the interaction between society, science, and technology, as well as the theories that explain this interaction.
• 2. Recognise the contribution of the social sciences to the analysis of science and technology, and its contribution to other disciplines.
• 3. Be able to critically evaluate in writing and orally the diversity of specialised techniques and approaches involved in producing research in Science and Technology Studies.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 4. Analyse and synthesise different types of material and evidence.
• 5. Identify and assess the empirical usefulness of different theoretical approaches
• 6. Demonstrate sufficient initial knowledge to present independent interpretations.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 7. Undertake independent study and research planning
• 8. Build and defend a sound argument both in written form and orally.
• 9. Co-ordinate group discussion

Syllabus plan

Whilst the precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover all or some of the following topics:

• The philosophical and sociological background;
• Technological determinism;
• Interpretation and classification;
• Knowledge and interests;
• Gender and Technology;
• Military and productive technologies;
• Domestic and reproductive Technologies;
• Relevant social groups;
• Actor Network Theory;
• Science communication;
• Revision

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

B. Barnes, About Science (Blackwell, 1995).
B. Barnes, D. Bloor, J. Henry, Scientific Knowledge: a Sociological Analysis (Chicago, 1996).
The Cyberculture Reader, eds. D. Bell, B. Kennedy (Routledge, 2000).
M. Biagioli (ed.), The Science Studies Reader (Routledge, 1999).
M. Lederman, I. Bartsch (eds.), The Gender and Science Reader (Routledge, 2001).
B. Latour, Science in Action (Harvard, 1985).
J. Law, Organizing Modernity (Blackwell, 1994).
J. Golinski, Making Natural Knowledge (Cambridge U.P., 1998).
H. Collins, T. Pinch, The Golem: What You Should Know About Science (Cambridge U.P., 1993).
S. Jasanoff et al. (ed.), Handbook of Science and Technology Studies (Sage, 1995).
D. Haraway, Modest Witness @ Second Millenium (Routledge, 1997).
D. MacKenzie, Mechanizing Proof: Computing, Risk, and Trust (MIT Press, 2001).
D. Mackenzie, J. Wajcman (eds.), The Social Shaping of Technology (Open U.P., 1999).
J. Wajcman, Feminism confronts Technology (Penn State Press, 1992)

Key words search

Science Technology Society