Technophilia (from

Greek Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

τέχνη - ''technē'', "art, skill, craft" and φίλος - ''philos'', "beloved, dear, friend") refers generally to a strong

enthusiasm In modern usage, enthusiasm refers to intense enjoyment, interest, or approval expressed by a person. The term is related to playfulness, inventiveness, optimism and high energy. The word was originally used to refer to a person possessed by Go ...

for

technology Technology is the application of knowledge to reach practical goals in a specifiable and reproducible way. The word ''technology'' may also mean the product of such an endeavor. The use of technology is widely prevalent in medicine, science, ...

, especially

new technologies Emerging technologies are technologies whose development, practical applications, or both are still largely unrealized. These technologies are generally new but also include older technologies finding new applications. Emerging technologies ar ...

such as

personal computer A personal computer (PC) is a multi-purpose microcomputer whose size, capabilities, and price make it feasible for individual use. Personal computers are intended to be operated directly by an end user, rather than by a computer expert or tec ...

s, the

Internet The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...

mobile phone A mobile phone, cellular phone, cell phone, cellphone, handphone, hand phone or pocket phone, sometimes shortened to simply mobile, cell, or just phone, is a portable telephone that can make and receive calls over a radio frequency link whil ...

s, and

home cinema Home cinema, also called home theaters or theater rooms, are home entertainment audio-visual systems that seek to reproduce a movie theater experience and mood using consumer electronics-grade video and audio equipment that is set up in a roo ...

."Technophilia." The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. 2003. Houghton Mifflin Company 23 Sep. 2012 http://www.thefreedictionary.com/technophilia The term is used in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

to examine individuals' interactions with

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

and is contrasted with

technophobia Technophobia (from Greek τέχνη ''technē'', "art, skill, craft" and φόβος ''phobos'', "fear"), also known as technofear, is the fear or dislike of advanced technology or complex devices, especially computers. Although there are numerou ...

. On a psychodynamic level, technophilia generates the expression of its opposite, technophobia.Richards, Barry. "Technophobia and Technophilia." British Journal of Psychotherapy 10.2 (1993): 188–95. Print. Technophilia and technophobia are the two extremes of the relationship between

technology and society Technology society and life or technology and culture refers to the inter-dependency, co-dependence, co-influence, and co-production of technology and society upon one another. Evidence for this synergy has been found since humanity first starte ...

. The technophile regards most or all technology positively, adopts new forms of technology enthusiastically, sees it as a means to improve life, and whilst some may even view it as a means to combat social problems. Technophiles do not have a fear of the effects of the technological advancements on society, as do technophobes.

Technological determinism Technological determinism is a reductionist theory that assumes that a society's technology progresses by following its own internal logic of efficiency, while determining the development of the social structure and cultural values. The term is ...

is the theory that humanity has little power to resist the influence that technology has on society.Baym, Nancy. "Personal Connections In the Digital Age". Cambridge: Polity Press, 2010. p.24

Etymology

The word ''technophile'' is said to have originated in the 1960s as an "unflattering word introduced by technophobes". The idea of technophilia can be used to focus on the larger idea on how technology can create strong innovative positive feelings about different technologies. On the other hand, sometimes technology can prevent an accurate view on environmental and the social impact of technology when it comes to society. Technophiles also are not afraid of the effects that today's developed technologies have on society compared to technophobes.

Narcissism through technophilia

Many forms of technology are seen as venerable because the user experiences them as the embodiment of their own narcissism. Technophiles enjoy using technology and focus on the egocentric benefits of technology rather than seeing the potential issues associated with using technology too frequently. The notion of addiction is often negatively associated with technophilia, and describes technophiles who become too dependent on the forms of technology they possess.

Technological utopia

Technophiles may view technology's interaction with society as creating a

utopia A utopia ( ) typically describes an imaginary community or society that possesses highly desirable or nearly perfect qualities for its members. It was coined by Sir Thomas More for his 1516 book ''Utopia (book), Utopia'', describing a fictional ...

, cyber or otherwise, and a strong indescribable futuristic feeling. "In the utopian stories, technologies are seen as natural societal developments, improvements to daily life, or as forces that will transform reality for the better. Dystopian reactions emphasize fears of losing control, becoming dependent, and being unable to stop change". Both utopian and dystopian streams are weaved in

Aldous Huxley Aldous Leonard Huxley (26 July 1894 – 22 November 1963) was an English writer and philosopher. He wrote nearly 50 books, both novels and non-fiction works, as well as wide-ranging essays, narratives, and poems. Born into the prominent Huxley ...

's ''Brave New World'' (1932) and

George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...

's ''Nineteen Eighty-Four'' (1949).On the contrast between Huxley and Orwell on that issue, see

Michel Weber Michel Weber (born 1963) is a Belgian philosopher. He is best known as an interpreter and advocate of the philosophy of Alfred North Whitehead, and has come to prominence as the architect and organizer of an overlapping array of international sc ...

's
Aldous Huxley and George Orwell on the political use of technoscience
" The Condemned Playground, Balliol College, Oxford University, September 1 / September 4, 2013.

References

* * {{Digital media use and mental health Technology in society

Etymology

Narcissism through technophilia

Technological utopia

See also

References