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Before I write on engineers we must do some conceptual ground clearing.
This is important because my gun threads have led to several questions that have a whiff of determinism about them.
So this is a thread on technological determinism & why it is kryptonite for academics.
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This is important because my gun threads have led to several questions that have a whiff of determinism about them.
So this is a thread on technological determinism & why it is kryptonite for academics.
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The 2 central tenets of a theory of technological determinism might be described as:
1) that technological progress confirms its own logic. It is neither culturally or socially determined but follows a fixed causal path towards ever more advanced configurations.
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1) that technological progress confirms its own logic. It is neither culturally or socially determined but follows a fixed causal path towards ever more advanced configurations.
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Artefacts evolve from lower to higher forms of development along some fixed line of technological trajectory.
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2) the chain of technological causality compels society to modify the way it works so as to incorporate these changes.
Society and its military institutions necessarily must change in light of the technological artefacts that emerge from the chain of causality.
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Society and its military institutions necessarily must change in light of the technological artefacts that emerge from the chain of causality.
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Clearly, much here depends on how technology is defined but suffice to say the strong form of determinism that I describe leaves human agency out of the process of technical change.
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& so it is with weapons.
For there is a tendency to assume that each iteration of weapon is somehow an improvement on its predecessor.
In firearms terms, single-shot is replaced by self-loading & then continuous fire weapons.
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For there is a tendency to assume that each iteration of weapon is somehow an improvement on its predecessor.
In firearms terms, single-shot is replaced by self-loading & then continuous fire weapons.
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According to this line of thinking, each iteration is ironing out the engineering problems associated with the previous, increasing killing efficiency and thus closing a gap between some putative 'ideal' firearm and its practical reality.
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In many ways it would seem that strong technological determinism is a straw man.
No one is going to deny human agency in weapon development.
And yet it is surprising how often when push comes to shove, thinking on technology slides back to some form of determinism.
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No one is going to deny human agency in weapon development.
And yet it is surprising how often when push comes to shove, thinking on technology slides back to some form of determinism.
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This is especially true in writing on guns and it is a criticism that has regularly been levelled at military history where several historians have noted the tendency to treat technology uncritically. As if the evolution of a particular technology was obvious.
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Thus technological determinism is kryptonite for academics. To say things are obvious, inevitable or best are the warning indicators.
And this points to another fault line between historians (proper) and military historians.
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And this points to another fault line between historians (proper) and military historians.
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As an aside, the first question from my external examiner at my PhD defence was:
"Matthew, aren't you just a technological determinist?"
What a way to start and firmly set the tone for the next 4 hours!
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"Matthew, aren't you just a technological determinist?"
What a way to start and firmly set the tone for the next 4 hours!
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Of course if (like me) you treat technology & tactics as one & the same thing, then the suggestion that the evolution of tactics from closed order to open order was a necessary adjunct to technological change sounds highly deterministic.
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Because if you boil it down then the claim is effectively that tech drives tactics.
For me that needs a huge amount of unpacking. Something I've tried to do with my threads & writing more generally on guns.
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For me that needs a huge amount of unpacking. Something I've tried to do with my threads & writing more generally on guns.
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So, for example, the 1888 adoption of the Lee-Metford was not about selecting weapons that would produce a revolution in firepower.
The Army adopted the weapon in a way that aimed at limiting the way fire would be applied on the battlefield.
14/ https://twitter.com/warmatters/status/1340658758993768451?s=20
The Army adopted the weapon in a way that aimed at limiting the way fire would be applied on the battlefield.
14/ https://twitter.com/warmatters/status/1340658758993768451?s=20
There are ways to help yourself step round the problem of technological determinism.
In academic terms, this involves engaging with the theoretical literature associated with Science and Technology Studies.
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In academic terms, this involves engaging with the theoretical literature associated with Science and Technology Studies.
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This helps frame the empirical evidence so you read the archives from the point of view of those developing kit.
Here the technologies remain open. No single solution has been identified. It means recognising that engineers & users haven't even worked out the problem yet.
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Here the technologies remain open. No single solution has been identified. It means recognising that engineers & users haven't even worked out the problem yet.
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We can talk Science and Technology Studies later. There are lots of cool people on here who work on this in relation to military organisations. But STS can get very esoteric so it is important to frame it carefully so that we can open the discussions to wider audiences.
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