Analyzing the relations between technologies and user behavior

Abstract

In myriad ways, the authors of this book have discussed the intricate connections between technology design and user behavior. The specific properties of technological devices appear to have close relations with the behavior of the people using them. This makes clear that the sharp distinction that is often made between the functional world of technological artifacts, on the one hand, and the social world of human beings on the other, needs to be abandoned, both in theory and in practice. Technologies always have consequences for human behavior, and for understanding human behavior it is necessary to take into account the ways in which it is influenced by technology. For this reason, policy making that aims to influence human behavior should also pay attention to the technological context of behavior, and policy making regarding technology cannot ignore the behavioral effects of technologies. The classic distinction in policy making between social approaches which pertain to human behavior and technical approaches pertaining to technology should give way to a 'sociotechnical approach', as it is called in the field of Science and Technology Studies. Towards a Conceptual Framework This makes the study of technology-behavior interactions an inherently interdisciplinary activity. This accounts for why disciplines from the entire scientific spectrum have contributed to this book: from psychology to policy studies, from industrial design to philosophy, from consumer research to science and technology studies, and from safety studies to marketing research. Precisely the lack of interdisciplinary cooperation in the study of technology-behavior interactions was one of the main reasons for composing this book. In this concluding chapter we will first present an interdisciplinary vocabulary to describe and explain relations between technological products and user behavior, which we draw from the analyses in this book. After this, we will formulate some overall conclusions regarding the implications for technology design and policy-making. © 2006 Springer.