Society and Technological Change

Eighth Edition

Publication Date: December 06, 2017

Paperback ISBN: 9781319058258

Pages: 488

Society and Technological Change is the definitive introduction to the study of society and technology.

With an engaging and insightful presentation, Rudi Volti examines both how technology has influenced our lives and how it is shaped by the societies that create it. The new Eighth Edition features new and updated coverage of the gig economy; technology, income inequality, and the...

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Part 1 Defining Technology
1. The Nature of Technology
2. Winners and Losers: The Differential Effects of Technological Change

Part Two The Process of Technological Change
3. The Sources of Technological Change
4. Scientific Knowledge and Technological Advance
5. The Diffusion of Technology

Part Three How Technology Affects the Health of the Earth and Its Inhabitants
6. Technology, Energy, and the Environment
7. Medical Technologies
8. Genetic Technologies

Part Four Technology and the Transformation of Work
9. Work in Nonindustrial Societies
10. Technology and Jobs: More of One and Less of the Other?
11. Technological Change and Life on the Job

Part Five Communication
12. Printing
13. The Electronic Media: From the Telegraph to Television
14. The Internet Age

Part Six The Tools of Destruction
15. Weapons and Their Consequences
16. The Era of Smart Weapons*
17. How New Weapons Emerge—And How They May Be Contained

Part Seven The Shaping and Control of Technology
18. Technology and Its Creators: Who’s in Charge of Whom?
19. Organizations and Technological Change
20. Governing Technology

Engaging and accessible presentation
Comprehensive exploration of the key concepts and theoretical underpinning of the study of technological and societal change
Excellent examples providing concrete handles for student comprehension.
Historical perspective on the interrelationship between technological and societal change.
Thoughtful organization presents the role of technological change in key societal institutions.
Through provoking discussion questions at the end of each chapter
Part opening discussions introduce overarching chapter concepts.

The 8th edition features new coverage of:

New coverage of work and the economy with a new example on the success and effect of Uber and ride-sharing and new sections on The Gig Economy: Technology and Income Inequality, and Technology, Employment, and a Changing Workforce.
New coverage and updated coverage of communication technologies with new sections on Digitizing the News, Reading Digitally: Social Media and the Network Effect, and Internet Access: Net Neutrality and Walled Gardens.
New and updated coverage of technology and warfare with new material on the technological development of cruise missiles, updated coverage on the use of drone strikes, and a new discussion of cyberattacks.
New and updated coverage of technology and the environment with new coverage of fracking, renewable energy sources, and climate change.
New and updated coverage of medical and biological technologies with new coverage of gene patenting, updated data on health care costs, and new coverage of angioplasty and heart disease.

Rudi Volti

Rudi Volti is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at Pitzer College, and he is a founding member of the program in Science, Technology, and Society of the Claremont Colleges. His books and articles have covered a variety of topics relating to the interaction of technology and society, including technology transfer to East Asia, the history of the engineering profession, the origin of frozen foods, and the history of automobile engines. He currently serves as book review editor for Transfers: The Journal of Interdisciplinary Mobility Studies. His personal encounters with  technology center on cars, motorcycles, and model railroading.