Theorizing technology and international relations: prevailing perspectives and new horizons

Abstract

This chapter provides an overview of the literature on technology and International Relations (IR) theory. First, the chapter considers how technology is treated in more general IR theory, including what role technology plays in the wider paradigmatic debates of IR. Second, the chapter scrutinizes attempts to develop specific theories on technology and international relations. Third, the chapter discusses the advantages and disadvantages of different approaches, including whether there are some areas that are amply theorized while others remain under-researched. In particular, the chapter addresses how and to what extent various approaches have been able to analyze the relationship between technological and societal change, both including the rapid development of new technologies (concerning, for example, cyber, nano, space, robotics and AI technologies), and how technologies and critical infrastructures are becoming increasingly interconnected. Finally, the chapter suggests new horizons for empirically grounded theory on the relationship between technology and international society