ABSTRACT
Citizenship implies agency, but what is agency and how is agency possible in a technologically advanced society where so much of life is organized around technical systems commanded by experts? This chapter addresses these questions from the standpoint of philosophy of technology and constructivist technology studies. The chapter first establishes the conditions of agency, which are knowledge, power, and an appropriate occasion. It then considers the role of bias in the construction of technological systems and the importance of participant interests in modifying that bias. Finally, the chapter addresses the wider issue of the nature of progress in the light of the new understanding of technology.
