scholarly journals From anthropocentrism to sociology of things and digital sociology

2019 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 10-16
Author(s):  
S. Kibakin
Keyword(s):  
Social Relations ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Human Life ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Weapons Of Mass Destruction ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Information And Communication

The genesis of socio-humanitarian and sociological knowledge, namely: understanding and studying the phenomenon of human life, its biological, vital, informational and social aspects has been revealed. The regularity of the transformation of anthropocentrism under the influence of the development of science and technology, the emergence of the concept of post-humanism has been substantiated. The examples of man-made disasters, the use of weapons of mass destruction, as social facts, that had a significant impact on the development of mankind, have been adduced. The conditions for the emergence of object-oriented sociology and the sociology of things have been shown, some scientific approaches have been disclosed within the framework of this concept of Graham Harman, Brun Latour and his followers. Separately, the methodological approaches of the actor-network theory have been disclosed, the main one has been highlighted. Separately, the methodological foundations of cognition of the world of things have been described within the framework of object-oriented sociology, related to the rejection of opposing pairs of the concepts “society and nature”, “truth is non-truth”, “structure and process” and others. The connection of this theory with the sociology of translation has been shown. The characteristic of the problems of development of the scientific and methodological base of digital sociology in the context of changing the content of social relations “man – machine” on the example of the information and communication network Internet has been given. Among them, have been allocated the problems of delegation to digital technologies, more and more powers in solving complex socio-technical problems, the global centralization of digital resources management, the emergence of virtual actors of social interaction. The author reduces specific examples of the use of actor-network theory to interpret the processes and phenomena of interaction between users of Internet resources with individual components of the Internet. Separately, promising areas of research in this area, related to the phenomena of the Internet of things and neuronet, have been highlighted.

Ecological Democracy and the Co-participation of Things

2016 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lisa Disch
Keyword(s):  
Political Theory ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Science And Technology Studies ◽  
Communicative Competence ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Material Politics ◽  
Alternative Approach ◽  
Ecological Democracy

Is ecological democracy possible? If so, what would it entail? This chapter first reviews the literature based in deliberative democracy that proposes to extend communicative competence to non-humans, and then traces an alternative constructivist line of environmental political thinking from its beginnings in the strand of science and technology studies pioneered by Bruno Latour and others known as actor-network theory, through two actor-network theory-inspired approaches to political theory, “object-oriented democracy” and “material politics/participation.” Whereas this alternative approach solves some of the conundrums to which the communicative model gives rise, it is neither as radical a departure from politics as it is “normally understood,” nor aspoliticalas its proponents claim.

Telling Nonhuman Stories: ‘The secret contours of objects’

2019 ◽  
pp. 96-125
Author(s):  
Danielle Sands
Keyword(s):  
Network Theory ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
First Philosophy

This chapter puts the novels of Jim Crace in conversation with Graham Harman’s Object-Oriented Philosophy. Beginning with a discussion of the development of OOP in contradistinction to Bruno Latour’s Actor Network Theory, it assesses the claims made by Harman for the superiority of OOP over contemporary relational ontologies such as that espoused by Jane Bennett. Turning to Crace, the chapter argues that his fiction enacts a sustained movement away from anthropocentrism, demonstrating the collaborative nature of storytelling and absenting the human from a variety of different landscapes. It argues that, in their examination of the ‘allure’ of objects, these novels espouse a position closer to Harman than Bennett. Finally, the chapter interrogates Harman’s presentation of aesthetics as first philosophy, arguing that the clear alignment between Crace’s fiction and Harman’s work reinforces the claim that aesthetics gives access to the ontological, and demands a reconsideration of agency.

Decadence in the Biographical Sense

2016 ◽  
Vol 8 (3) ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Graham Harman
Keyword(s):  
Social Theory ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Object Oriented Method ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Primary Meaning

This article summarizes the author's 2016 book Immaterialism: Objects and Social Theory, outlining the book's five criticisms of actor-network theory (ANT) and its fifteen provisional rules of object-oriented method in social theory. The article also considers Bruno Latour's criticism of Immaterialism, in particular his view that such terms as “symbiosis” and “decadence” rely too heavily on an inappropriate “biological” metaphor that has no place in discussion objects in a wider sense. In response, the authors claims that the primary meaning of the symbiosis and decadence is not biological, but biographical.

Beyond ANT

2016 ◽  
Vol 20 (2) ◽  
pp. 199-215 ◽  
Author(s):  
Till Jansen
Keyword(s):  
Social Relations ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Fundamental Problem ◽  
Human Agency ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Theoretical Design ◽  
The Social ◽  
Actor Networks

Actor-Network-Theory (ANT) offers an ‘infra-language’ of the social that allows one to trace social relations very dynamically, while at the same time dissolving human agency, thus providing a flat and de-centred way into sociology. However, ANT struggles with its theoretical design that may lead us to reduce agency to causation and to conceptualize actor-networks as homogeneous ontologies of force. This article proposes to regard ANT’s inability to conceptualize reflexivity and the interrelatedness of different ontologies as the fundamental problem of the theory. Drawing on Günther, it offers an ‘infra-language’ of reflexive relations while maintaining ANT’s de-centred approach. This would enable us to conceptualize actor-networks as non-homogeneous, dynamic and connecting different societal rationales while maintaining the main strengths of ANT.

scholarly journals Obraz jako aktor społeczny w sieci. Treści przekazywane w obrębie mikroblogów na przykładzie serwisu soup.io

2012 ◽  
Vol 33 ◽  
pp. 79-98
Author(s):  
Magdalena Szubstarska
Keyword(s):  
Popular Culture ◽  
Economic System ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
The Internet ◽  
Contemporary Culture ◽  
Actor Network

Images: Actors in the Network examines the properties of an image floating around the Internet: the ability of connecting people without usage of words, bonding them because of the mutual feelings they have about the reality outside. Images that are reposted between the users of digital forms such as tumblelogs or microblogs (the article uses soup.io for the case study) cover the needs, fears and aspirations of not only ordinary web-users, but also the users of the contemporary culture and economic system. An image is no longer a passive, visual piece – it acts by joining, addressing and portraying the desires, thoughts of the users. This phenomenon can be connected with Bruno Latour’s Actor-Network Theory, and with the ideas of W.J.T. Mitchell about the active images. The example of soup.io shows how easy it is to bond people through sharing particular images, but also how certain tools of popular culture can be used to create something new. Although it seems as soup.io users are not interested in connecting with anyone but themselves, their microblog is the message to the outside, it is their collage portrait that makes them visible to the others. Image is then not only the tool of connection, but also the tool of representation. What is important, most of the images that can be found on soup.io are anonymous – which means that they no longer belong to a certain person, but become independent and free to act.

scholarly journals IMPEDIMENT FACTORS TO SUCCESSFUL USAGE OF ONLINE HALAL CERTIFICATION

2019 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
pp. 135-145
Author(s):  
Sazelin Arif ◽  
Nurdinah Abu Bakar ◽  
Safiah Sidek
Keyword(s):  
Network Theory ◽  
Technical Problem ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Translation Process ◽  
Technical Problems ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Operational Problem ◽  
Translation Stage ◽  
Halal Food

Purpose of the study: The purpose of this paper is to identify the impediment factors that hinder the successful usage of online halal certification. Methodology: Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 representatives from 14 halal food companies in Melaka, Malaysia. The respondents had used the system either to apply for new halal certificates or to renew the existing ones. The identification of the impediment factor was a part of the fulfillment of the translation process by Actor-Network Theory (ANT) during the process of problematization, interessement, enrollment, and mobilization. Identifying the impediment factors was conducted during the first translation stage of problematization. Main Findings: The findings indicate that there are three impediment factors that hinder the successful usage of MYeHalal system. The factors were categorized into three categories, namely, applicants' problem, technical problem, and operational problem. The applicants' problems were caused by the applicants themselves, while the technical problems were caused by the non-performing dysfunctions of the technology, and lastly, the operational problems were caused by the inefficiency of the certifier in fulfilling the tasks and providing the services to applicants. Applications of this study: The identification of these impediment factors will help halal applicants to be aware of the important elements before submitting their application via MYeHalal system. Further, this study will help to enlighten the ways to improve the performance of the system and make it convenient to be used and managed by both halal applicants and JAKIM as the certifier body. Originality: This paper is the first to discuss the inefficiency issues in the usage of online halal certification, since it was first introduced in Malaysia.

Adoption of ICT in Primary Healthcare in the 21st Century

2019 ◽  
pp. 238-255
Author(s):  
Quazi Omar Faruq ◽  
Arthur Tatnall
Keyword(s):  
Information And Communication Technologies ◽  
General Practitioners ◽  
21St Century ◽  
Primary Healthcare ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
New Technology ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
Communication Technologies ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Information And Communication

This chapter looks at the use of ICT by medical general practitioners in the Australian eHealth and the Virtual Doctor Program. It discusses introduction, adoption, and use of information and communication technologies in primary healthcare and investigates reasons for adoption, or non-adoption, of these technologies. For a new technology to be put into use, a decision must be made to adopt it, or at least some aspects of it, and this chapter makes use of innovation translation informed by actor-network theory to explain this.

scholarly journals A Questionnaire on Materialisms

October ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 155 ◽  
pp. 3-110 ◽  
Author(s):  
Emily Apter ◽  
Ed Atkins ◽  
Armen Avanessian ◽  
Bill Brown ◽  
Giuliana Bruno ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Network Theory ◽  
Object Oriented ◽  
Actor Network Theory ◽  
The United States ◽  
Actor Network ◽  
Speculative Realism ◽  
New Materialisms ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Object Oriented Ontology

Recent philosophical tendencies of “Actor-Network Theory,” “Object-Oriented Ontology,” and “Speculative Realism” have profoundly challenged the centrality of subjectivity in the humanities, and many artists and curators, particularly in the UK, Germany, and the United States, appear deeply influenced by this shift from epistemology to ontology. October editors asked artists, historians, and philosophers invested in these projects—from Graham Harman and Alexander R. Galloway to Armen Avanessian and Patricia Falguières to Ed Atkins and Amie Siegel—to explore what the rewards and risks of assigning agency to objects may be, and how, or if, such new materialisms can be productive for making and thinking about art today.

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