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The Capitalist Determination of Technical Change

In: Capitalist Macrodynamics

Author

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  • David Laibman

    (City University of New York)

Abstract

One of the most pervasive illusions of our time is technological determinism. Our culture promotes a firm belief in the ‘march of technical progress’, seen as an inevitable and external motor driving the shape of our social and economic life. This belief actually encompasses and contains its apparent opposite: the ritual rebellion against technology, science, and progress. The rejection of technology in its entirety appears as a futile gesture, which in fact confirms what we really thought all along: technology follows a preordained curve, and will ultimately prevail. This plays a direct ideological role, as when ‘technical change’ is blamed for a variety of ills, from the fragmentation of personality and loss of community to unemployment, regional decline, and many other symptoms and components of capitalist crisis.

Suggested Citation

  • David Laibman, 1997. "The Capitalist Determination of Technical Change," Palgrave Macmillan Books, in: Capitalist Macrodynamics, chapter 6, pages 51-61, Palgrave Macmillan.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:palchp:978-0-230-37534-5_6
    DOI: 10.1057/9780230375345_6
    as

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