Routledge Information Technologies and Social Orders

According to Carl J. Couch, the history of human society is one of successive, sometimes overlapping, information technologies used to process the various symbolic representations that inform social contexts. Unlike earlier “media” theorists who ignored social context in order to concentrate on the information technologies themselves, Couch implements a consistent theory of interpersonal and intergroup relations to describe the essential interface between information technologies and the social contexts in which they are used. Couch emphasizes the formative capacities of information technologies across historical epochs and cultures, and places them within the major institutional relations of various societies. He views social orders as reflexively shaped by the information technologies that participants use, and as susceptible to mass brutality and oppression due to oligarchic control though he hopes technology will remain humane. The original edition of this manuscript was nearly complete at the time of Couch’s death and was brought to completion by two of his closest associates. Now after two decades, during which its impact is indisputable, it has been updated for a new generation of students and scholars. Additions include discussions on books in the digital age, social media, mobile telephones, recordings, participatory culture, and more. Review “Information is so central to modern societies that the primary knowledge centers, i.e., universities, ‘compete with state and economic structures for hegemony in programming the future endeavors of humanity.’ Through his emphasis on the social context, Couch has brought an important balance to the study of information technologies.” ―M. Oromaner, Choice About the Author Carl J. Couch (1925--1994) was professor of sociology at the University of Iowa and president and co-founder of the Society for the Study of Symbolic Interaction. He created the New Iowa School of Symbolic Interaction. Mark D. Johns is a professor of communication studies at Luther College where he teaches courses in media studies, media production, and public relations. Shing- Ling Chen is assistant professor of mass communication at the University of Northern Iowa.