Ilagan, Cindilyn J.

Ged 109 – BSBA 1202 - (MM)

Research Paper # 1

Give Definition and examples to the 10 important concepts of STS.

1. DELIBERATIVE DEMOCRACY
- is a reform of representative or direct democracies which mandates discussion and
debate of popular topics which affect society. Deliberative Democracy is a tool for making
decisions. Deliberative Democracy can be traced back all the way to Aristotle’s writings. More
recently, the term was coined by Joseph Bessette in his 1980 work “Deliberative Democracy:
The Majority Principle in Republican Government,” where he uses the idea in opposition to the
elitist interpretations of the United States Constitution with emphasis on public discussion.

Example

If there is a political decision about to be made, you, as a citizen, should have some means of having
your say. Of course, in many democracies there are already mechanisms for doing this — from letters to
local members of parliament, participation in public consultation, through to protesting. What
distinguish deliberative democracy is the way in which communication (or deliberation) ideally takes
place and the way that citizens encounter it. The early days of deliberative democracy saw deliberation
couched in terms of a very specific form of rational argument in favour of the common good (public
reason).

2. TRAGEDY OF THE COMMONS

- It is an economic theory where rational people act against the best interest of the group
by consuming a common resource. Since then, the Tragedy of the Commons has been used to
symbolize the degradation of the environment whenever many individuals use a common
resource. Although Garrett Hardin was not an STS scholar, the concept of Tragedy of the
Commons still applies to science, technology and society.

Example

Population growth

Some scientists consider the exponential growth of the human population to be an example of a
tragedy of the commons. In this case, the common resource is the planet Earth and all its shared
resources. The world’s population has reached a whopping 7 billion individuals.

Examining population growth as a tragedy of the commons illustrates that the depletion of
common resources isn’t always the result of greed. Just by existing, each person uses water, air,
land, and food resources; splitting those resources among 7 billion people (and counting) tends to
stretch them pretty thin.

3. ALTERNATIVE MODERNITY

- is a conceptual tool conventionally used to represent the state of present western

society. Modernity represents the political and social structures of the society, the sum of
interpersonal discourse, and ultimately a snapshot of society’s direction at a point in time.
Unfortunately conventional modernity is incapable of modeling alternative directions for further
growth within our society. Also, this concept is ineffective at analyzing similar but unique
modern societies such as those found in the diverse cultures of the developing world. Problems
can be summarized into two elements: inward failure to analyze growth potentials of a given
society, and outward failure to model different cultures and social structures and predict their
growth potentials.

Example

Is the historical experience of Asian societies that they suggests that the search for "alternatives" long
has been a feature of responses to the challenges of Euro modernity. But whereas "alternative" was
conceived earlier in systemic terms, in its most recent version since the 1980s cultural difference has
become its most important marker.

4. PACE OF INNOVATION

-is the speed at which technological innovation or advancement is occurring, with the
most apparent instances being too slow or too rapid. Both these rates of innovation are extreme
and therefore have effects on the people that get to use this technology.

Example

The factors that cause rapid pace of innovations include lack of trial and error, technological
momentum, ease of entry into a field. Innovators usually do not have the burden of proof, thus
regulatory agencies have to prove that the technology has negative effects. The example of this is
slow pace of innovation is caused by, but not limited to, lack of monetary funding, conflict of
interests between the innovators and other factions such as the consumers, and technological
momentum of competing technologies which make the use of new innovations difficult.
Different technologies require different paces of innovation, therefore it is important to note that
the appropriate pace of innovation depends on the context.

5. NO INNOVATION WITHOUT REPRESENTATION

- is a democratic ideal of ensuring that everyone involved gets a chance to be represented

fairly in technological developments.

Example
Is why Political philosopher of technology Langdon Winner states that groups and social interests likely
to be affected by a particular kind of technological change ought to be represented at an early stage in
defining exactly what that technology will be. It is the idea that relevant parties have a say in
technological developments and are not left in the dark.

6. PRIVELEGED POSITION OF BUSINESS AND SCIENCE

-refer to the unique authority that persons in these areas hold in economic, political, and
techno social affairs. Businesses have strong decision-making abilities in the function of society,
essentially choosing what technological innovations to develop. Scientists and technologists have
valuable knowledge, ability to pursue the technological innovations they want. They proceed
largely without public scrutiny and as if they had the consent of those potentially affected by
their discoveries and creations.

Example

Is a science scientists and technologists design and create, while businesses provide the means to
create, produce and implement.

7. LEGACY THINKING

-is defined as an inherited method of thinking imposed from an external source without
objection by the individual, due to the fact that it is already widely accepted by society. Legacy
thinking can impair the ability to drive technology for the betterment of society by blinding
people to innovations that do not fit into their accepted model of how society works. By
accepting ideas without questioning them, people often see all solutions that contradict these
accepted ideas as impossible or impractical. Legacy thinking tends to advantage the wealthy,
who have the means to project their ideas on the public. It may be used by the wealthy as a
vehicle to drive technology in their favor rather than for the greater good.

Example

Those who cannot overcome the barrier of legacy thinking may not consider the privatization of clean
drinking water as an issue. Legacy thinking This is partially due to the fact that access to water has
become such a given fact of the matter to them. For a person living in such circumstances, it may be
widely accepted to not concern themselves with drinking water because they have not needed to be
concerned within the past. Additionally, a person living within an area that does not need to worry
about their water supply or the sanitation of their water supply is less likely to be concerned with the
privatization of water.

8. STS SOCIAL CONSTRUCTION

 -are human created ideas, objects, or events created by a series of choices and
interactions. These interactions have consequences that change the perception that different
groups of people have on these constructs. Some examples of social construction include class,
race, money, and citizenship.

Example

Social construction is the concept of self/ self-identity. Charles Cooley stated based on his
Looking-Glass-Self theory: "I am not who you think I am; I am not who I think I am; I am
who I think you think I am. This demonstrates how people in society construct ideas or
concepts that may not exist without the existence of people or language to validate those
concepts.

There are weak and strong social constructs. Weak social constructs rely on brute facts
(which are fundamental facts that are difficult to explain or understand, such as quarks) or
institutional facts (which are formed from social conventions). Strong social constructs rely
on the human perspective and knowledge that does not just exist, but is rather constructed
by society.

9. TECHNOSCIENCE

- is a subset of Science, Technology, and Society studies that focuses on the inseparable
connection between science and technology. It states that fields are linked and grow together,
and scientific knowledge requires an infrastructure of technology in order to remain stationary or
move forward. Both technological development and scientific discovery drive one another
towards more advancement. Techno science excels at shaping human thought and behavior by
opening up new possibilities that gradually or quickly come to be perceived as necessities.

Example

Techno science thus comprises the history of human application of technology and modern scientific
methods, ranging from the early development of basic technologies for hunting, agriculture, or
husbandry (e.g. the well, the bow, the plow, the harness) and all the way through atomic applications,
biotechnology, robotics, and computer sciences. This more common and comprehensive usage of the
term techno science can be found in general textbooks and lectures concerning the history of science.

10. GENTLE TYRANNY

-is a sociological concept that describes the unintended restrictions placed on a

population through social constructs. Some hallmarks of gentle tyranny include restriction on
choice and is typically very subtle. The concept of Gentle Tyranny can be generally thought of as
a projection of "Hobson’s choice", wherein the illusion of choice is presented, but in reality, the
consumer (in the classic example) actually has none. Referencing a stable owner named Thomas
Hobson (1544- 1631), he infamously would offer customers the choice of buying the horse in the
stall closest to the door or not purchasing one at all. This “take it or leave it” attitude is endemic
to Gentle Tyranny. While Gentle Tyranny is not explicitly defined in sociological circles, but
more a general nomenclature for certain social and technological side effects, including the
unintended consequences that arise from new developments. However, Gentle Tyranny, across
all fronts, describes the phenomena of “living with the enduring consequences of socio technical
changes that occurred years or even generations ago.”

Example

Gentle Tyranny can be found in virtually every social and technological sector. Some, such as
environmental pollution and “brown chemicals”, do not involve an explicit choice by the affected
population whatsoever.