Social Beliefs and Social Technical Change: A Case Study and Methods

摘要

The study attempts to provide the theoretical and analytical means to describe technical systems better and to anticipate more effectively their social and cognitive consequences. Three approaches are taken: (1) development of a general framework to classify all types of technical systems in terms of their potential social effects; (2) development of methods to describe the 'social beliefs' of groups potentially affected by social technical change; and (3) applications of these methods to a case study of the social and psychological effects of technological change in northern New England logging practices. The case study is used to illustrate some methods for assessing the social and psychological implications of technological change. Results of 30 open and 51 closed interviews of three types of loggers are presented. Included in the appendices are topics covered in open interviews, core concept definitions, closed questionnaires, and additional results of closed interviews.