Technological Innovation and Economic Transformation: A Method for Contextual Analysis

Society, in its quest for order in an inherently chaotic natural setting, tends to think about technological innovation much too narrowly. Innovation is necessary for economic growth, yet this narrow attitude limits its possibilities and focuses on achieving a single goal without acknowledging its effect on other aspects of society. By thinking out of the box, this book encourages thoughtful innovation while remaining conscious of its positive and negative consequences for society. It presents a method for contextual analysis that enables assessment of the disruption that any innovation could induce, and puts ideas into contexts so that innovators may anticipate consequences, minimize resistance, and enhance acceptance.

Drawing on Anglophone and Francophone literatures in business, economics, history, and sociology, this book reminds us that progress is often achieved at some sacrifice of well-being. It allows academics and practitioners from these traditions to engage in systematic communication and enrich one another with new ideas.

Heidi Gautschi is a Research Fellow in the College of Management at Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne, Switzerland. Prior to joining EPFL, she was Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at Lesley University, USA. Her main area of interest is communication technology and its interaction with society, with special emphasis on the comparative French and American contexts. She is the co-editor of Dancing with Digital Natives.

David Gautschi is Dean Emeritus and holds the Joseph Keating, S.J. Professorship at Fordham University, USA. He was previously the Kirby Cramer Scholar of Marketing and International Business at the University of Washington and has served on the faculties of Cornell, INSEAD, Yale, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He has founded three start-up companies in marketing analytics and served for four years as a Firm Director of Deloitte and Touche LLP in its e-business practice.