Technology A Paradigmatic Look

Abstract

Any adequate analysis of technology necessarily requires fundamental understanding of the worldviews underlying the views expressed with respect to the nature and role of technology. This paper starts with the premise that any worldview can be associated with one of the four basic paradigms: functionalist, interpretive, radical humanist, and radical structuralist. The paper looks at the current state of mainstream academic finance and notes that it is founded only on the functionalist paradigm. It argues that any view expressed with respect to technology is based on one of the four paradigms or worldviews. It, therefore, discusses four views expressed with respect to the nature and role of technology. The paper emphasizes that the four views expressed are equally scientific and informative; they look at the nature and role of technology from a certain paradigmatic viewpoint. Emphasizing this example in the area of technology, the paper concludes that there are opportunities for mainstream academic finance, in general, and technology, in particular, to benefit from contributions coming from the other three paradigms if they respect paradigm diversity.