Technology, Networks and Society Major

Total units 48 Units

Areas of interest Sociology, Information Technology
Major code TNSO-MAJ

Academic career Undergraduate

Technology is a dominant feature of contemporary life. With the rise of digital technologies we are living in a society transformed by networks of data and intelligent machines. Technological change has profound effects on the structure and experience of social life and social relations, promoting widespread changes in identity, knowledge, work, health, relationships, communication, economics and politics. This major gives students the tools to understand and analyse the social and cultural drivers and impacts of technological change. It also enables students to develop skills in cutting-edge digital methods and to use these to conduct online social research, including research that addresses audiences beyond the university.

Technology, Networks and Society adopts a primarily sociological perspective to analyse the social impact of technological change. It explores central sociological concerns such as social inequalities and stratification, identity and embodiment, social movements, social change, production and consumption and the nature of power, all in the context of technological transformation. However, it is an interdisciplinary major, drawing on insights from communication and media studies, cultural studies, science and technology studies, economics, geography and political science.

Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion, students will have the knowledge and skills to:

explain the relationship between technology and society from a sociological perspective;
analyse the social drivers and impacts of technology, especially digital technologies, employing a range of theoretical frameworks;
use a range of digital and web-based social research methods;
carry out independent research on topics related to Technology, Networks and Society; and
reflect on and discuss the impact of technology on sociological and social scientific knowledge and research, as well as on social relations and practices more broadly.

Relevant Degrees

Bachelor of Arts (BARTS)

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Requirements

This major requires the completion of 48 units, which must include:
A maximum of 12 units of courses at 1000 level
A minimum of 6 units of courses at 3000 level

NOTE: SOCY3001 must have a research project on a technology related topic to be included in this major

18 units from completion of the following course(s):

Code	Title	Units
SOCY1006	Society & Technological Change	6
SOCY2169	Online Research Methods	6
SOCY3001	Research Internship	6

A maximum of 6 units may come from completion of courses from the following list:

Code	Title	Units
COMP1030	Art of Computing	6
HUMN1001	Digital Culture: Being Human in the Information Age	6
SCOM1001	Science Communication 1: Science and Public Awareness	6
SOCY1002	Self and Society	6

A minimum of 6 units must come from completion of courses from the following list:

Code	Title	Units
SOCY2166	Social Science of the Internet	6
SOCY2170	Sociology of Emergent Media	6

A maximum of 24 units may come from completion of courses from the following list:

Code	Title	Units
	ARCH 3029: Archaeology and Technology
ASIA2280	Anthropology and Technology in India	6
ASIA3032	Digital Asia: Technology and Society	6
CRIM2010	Cybercrime: an introduction	6
HUMN2001	Digital Humanities: Theories and Projects	6
SCOM2031	Science, Risk and Ethics	6
SCOM3012	Science Communication and the Web	6
SCOM3029	Cross Cultural Perspectives in Science Communication	6
SCOM3030	Science Dialogue Theory and Practice	6
SOCY2008	Risk and Society	6
SOCY2038	Introduction to Quantitative Research Methods	6
SOCY2043	Introduction to Qualitative Research Methods	6
SOCY2053	Imagining the Future: A Sociology of Utopias	6
SOCY2157	Surveillance and Society	6
SOCY2165	Media in the Public Sphere	6
SOCY2166	Social Science of the Internet	6
SOCY3010	Posthuman Bodies	6
SOCY3124	Transforming Society: Towards a Public Sociology	6

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