Text

Course syllabus - Technology and Society

Scope

7.5 credits

Course code

IEO101

Valid from

Autumn semester 2017

Education level

First cycle

Progressive Specialisation

G1N (First cycle, has only upper-secondary level entry requirements).

Main area(s)

School

School of Business, Society and Engineering

Ratified

2017-01-27

Literature lists

Course literature is preliminary up to 8 weeks before course start. Course literature can be valid over several semesters.

    • Ratified date: 2020-07-13
    • Latest update: 2020-10-05

    Books

    Lecture 1

    Bowker, Geoffrey C.; Star, Susan Leigh

    Sorting things out : classification and its consequences

    Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, cop. 1999 - xii, 377 s.

    ISBN: 0262024616 LIBRIS-ID: 4737909

    pp. 33-50.

    Felt, Ulrike

    The handbook of science and technology studies

    Fourth edition : Cambridge, Mass. : MIT Press, cop. 2017 - 1190 pages

    ISBN: 9780262035682 LIBRIS-ID: 19974354

    pp. 529-554

    Books

    Lecture 2

    Mignon, I; Kanda, W

    A typology of intermediary organizations and their impact on sustainability transition policies. Environmental Innovation and Societal Transitions, 29

    2018

    pp. 100-113

    Books

    Lecture 3

    Le Dantec, C; DiSalvo, C

    Infrastructuring and the formation of publics in participatory design. Social Studies of Science, 43(2)

    2013

    pp 241-264

    Lievrouw, Leah A.; Livingstone, Sonia M.

    Handbook of new media : social shaping and social consequences of ICTs

    Updated student ed. : London : SAGE, 2006 - 1 online resource (xix, 475 p.)

    ISBN: 9781446211304 LIBRIS-ID: 18695460

    URL: Table of Contents / Abstracts

    pp. 151-162

    Books

    Lecture 4

    Francesca Musiani; Nanette S. Levinson; Derrick Cogburn; Laura Denardis

    Researching Internet Governance: Methods, Frameworks, Futures

    uuuu-uuuu

    LIBRIS-ID: s5wn6qnbqr9ltvxk

    Campbell-Verduyn, Malcolm

    Bitcoin and beyond : cryptocurrencies, blockchains, and global governance

    London : Routledge, 2018 - 207 sidor

    ISBN: 9780415792141 LIBRIS-ID: 22063179

    pp.133-156, Musiani, F., Mallard, A. and Méadel, C. (2017). Governing What Wasn't Meant To Be Governed: A Controversy-Based Approach to the Study of Bitcoin Governance

    Books

    Lecture 5

    Launberg, A

    An interactive perspective on the use of science (Ch.2). In: Launberg, A. Creating value from science. Interaction between academia, business and healthcare in the Uppsala PET Centre case. Ph.D. thesis

    Uppsala University, 2017

    URL: Available at:

    Books

    Lecture 6

    Harvey, P; Knox, H

    Otherwise engaged. Journal of Cultural Economy, 1(1)

    2008

    pp. 79-92

    Kimura, S

    When a Seawall Is Visible: Infrastructure and Obstruction in Post-tsunami Reconstruction in Japan. Science as Culture, 25(1)

    2016

    pp. 23-43

    Books

    Lecture 6

    Star, S.L.

    The trojan door: Organizations, work, and the ‘open black box’. Systems Practice, 5 (4)

    1992

    pp. 395-410

    • Ratified date: 2019-06-26
    • Latest update: 2019-06-26

    Books

    Vinck, Dominique

    Everyday engineering : an ethnography of design and innovation

    First MIT paperback ed. : Cambridge, Mass. : MIT, 2009 - vi, 247 s.

    ISBN: 978-0-262-51264-0 LIBRIS-ID: 11731580

    Other materials

    • Ratified date: 2018-05-28
    • Latest update: 2018-05-28

    Books

    Vinck, Dominique

    Everyday engineering : an ethnography of design and innovation

    First MIT paperback ed. : Cambridge, Mass. : MIT, 2009 - vi, 247 s.

    ISBN: 978-0-262-51264-0 LIBRIS-ID: 11731580

    Other materials

    Additional reading will be made available on Blackboard

    • Ratified date: 2017-10-15
    • Latest update: 2017-10-15

    Articles

    Bowker, G.; Baker, K.; Millerand, F.; Ribes, D.

    Toward information infrastructure studies: Ways of Knowing in a networked Environment

    International Handbook of Internet Research. Springer, Dordrecht,, 2010

    pp. 97-117

    Bruni, A.

    Shadowing Software and Clinical Records: On the Ethnography of Non-humans and Heterogeneous Contexts

    Organization, 2005

    12:3, 357-378

    Bruni, a.

    Buster at work: intertwining technology with organizational and working practices.

    Designing Technology, Work, Organizations and Viceversa, Vernon Press., 2015

    Cecez-Kecmanovic, D.; Galliers, R. D.; Henfridsson, O.; Newell, S.; Vidgen, R

    The sociomateriality of information systems: Current status, future directions

    MIS Quarterly, 2014

    38(3), 809-830

    Dougherty, D.; Dunne, D. D.

    Organizing ecologies of complex innovation

    Organization Science, 2011

    22(5), 1214-1223

    Elander, I.; Gustavsson, E.

    Lab Rats or Curious Citizens? Place and Participation in three ICT-Based Urban Planning Initiatives

    Annual Swedish Political Science Association Conference., 2017

    Godin, B.

    Innovation: The History of a category

    2008

    URL: Link

    Gustafsson, C.; Svanberg, C.; Mullersdorf, M

    Using a robotic cat in dementia care. A pilot study

    Journal of Gerontological Nursing, 2015

    41(10), 46-56

    Kline, S.

    Innovation is not a linear process

    Research Management, 1985

    28(4), 36-45.

    Latour, B.

    Technology is society made durable

    Essays on power, technology and domination. London and New York, Routledge, 1991

    pp. 103-131.

    Obermöller, A. F.

    Innovation failure: losing sight of the big picture

    Entrepreneurship and Innovation, 2013

    14(4), 301-306

    Orlikowski, W. J.; Scott, S. V.

    Chapter 10: Sociomateriality: challenging the separation of technology, work and organization

    The Academy of Management Annals, 2008

    2(1), 433-474.

    Persson, M.

    The impact of a robotic cat on dementia caregivers’ psychosocial work environment-A pilot study

    Proceedings New Friends-The 1st International Conference on Social Robots in Therapy and Education., 2015

    Pflugfelder, E. H.

    Failure matters: conflicting practices in a high-tech case

    Journal of Technical Writing and Communication, 2016

    0(0), 1-22.

    Sarpong, D.; Maclean, M.

    Scenario thinking: A practice-based approach for the identification of opportunities for innovation

    Futures, 2011

    43, 1154-1163.

    Sismondo, S.

    The prehistory of science and technologies studies

    An introduction to Science and Technology Studies (Second Edition). Oxford, Wiley-Blackwell,, 2009

    pp. 1-11.

    Välikangas, L.; Hoegl, M.; Gibbert, M.

    Why learning from failure isn’t easy (and what to do about it): Innovation trauma at Sun Microsystems

    European Management Journal, 2008

    27, 225-233.

    Veroort, J. M.; Bendor, R.; Kelliher, A.; Strik, O.; Helfgott, A. E. R.

    Scenarios and the art of worlmaking

    Futures, 2015

    74, 62-70.

    Other materials

    Additional reading will be made available on Blackboard

Objectives

The purpose of this course is to introduce scientific frameworks for assessing the relationship between technological development and societal processes, frameworks that the students apply in several ways during the course in order to learn how to design and develop technologies that respond to societal needs.

Learning outcomes

After completed course the student shall be able to:
1. describe conditions that favour technological innovation.
2. map the requirements on technology posed by the main actors involved in technological processes.
3. model infrastructures that handle the complexity and challenges of technological change at different levels.
4. contribute to designing future technological scenarios by evaluating the feasibility of assigned technological solutions.
5. critically evaluate how technology is used to solve societal challenges by selecting relevant scientific literature and comparing different scientific paradigms.
6. critically assess the politics and policy of technological innovation and change.

Course content

The students work with different group and individual assignments and are supported by lectures and seminars that introduce and discuss concepts and tools for working with technological development. The students produce not only own suggestions for models and solutions in the group and individual assignments, but also perform critical evaluations of such suggestions.

Tuition

Lectures, seminars, presentations, group and individual work.

Requirements

Physics B, Chemistry A, Mathematics D or Physics 2, Chemistry 1, Mathematics 4.

Examination

Assignment (INL1), 1 credit, grade Pass (G) [learning outcome 1]
Group assignment (GRU1), 1,5 credits, grade Pass (G) [learning outcomes 2, 3]
Group assignment (GRU2), 1 credit, grade Pass (G) [learning outcome 4]
Assignment (INL4), 2 credits, grades 3, 4 or 5 [learning outcome 5]
Assignment (INL3), 2 credits, grade Pass (G) [learning outcome 6]

A student who has a certificate from MDU regarding a disability has the opportunity to submit a request for supportive measures during written examinations or other forms of examination, in accordance with the Rules and Regulations for Examinations at First-cycle and Second-cycle Level at Mälardalen University (2020/1655). It is the examiner who takes decisions on any supportive measures, based on what kind of certificate is issued, and in that case which measures are to be applied.

Suspicions of attempting to deceive in examinations (cheating) are reported to the Vice-Chancellor, in accordance with the Higher Education Ordinance, and are examined by the University’s Disciplinary Board. If the Disciplinary Board considers the student to be guilty of a disciplinary offence, the Board will take a decision on disciplinary action, which will be a warning or suspension.

Grade

Pass with distinction, Pass with credit, Pass, Fail