Lucas Introna
Encyclopedia
Lucas D. Introna is Professor of Organisation, Technology and Ethics at the Lancaster University Management School
. He is a scholar within the Social Study of Information Systems
field. His research is focused on the phenomenon of technology. Within the area of technology studies he has made significant contributions to our understanding of the ethical and political implications of technology for society.
. Thus, instead of using information to inform rationality
(as the traditional normative models assume) information is rather most often deployed as a resource in organisational politics. This fact, Introna argues, requires an understanding of the relationship between information and power rather than information and rationality, as traditionally assumed.
, especially the work of Martin Heidegger
and Don Ihde
Introna together with Fernando Ilharco developed a phenomenological analysis of information technology—in particular a detailed account of the phenomenology of the screen. They argue that in the phenomenon screen, seeing is not merely being aware of a surface. The very watching of the screen, as a screen, implies that the screen has already soaked up our attention. In screening, screens already attract and hold our attention. They continue to hold our attention as they present what is supposedly relevant—this is exactly why they have the power to attract and hold our attention. This ongoing relevance has as its necessary condition an implicit agreement, not of content, but of a way of living and a way of doing—or rather a certain agreement about the possibilities of truth. As such they argue that screens are ontological entities.
and politics of technology—within the tradition of Science and technology studies
. For example with Helen Nissenbaum he published a very influential paper on the politics of web search engines. This research showed that the indexing and ranking algorithms of Google
are producing a particular version of the internet. One which systematically exclude (in some cases by design and in some, accidentally) certain sites and certain types of sites in favour of others, systematically giving prominence to some at the expense of others. Introna also published similar political and ethical studies on Facial recognition systems, Automatic teller machines, and plagiarism detection
Systems, amongst others .
and others then our ethical relationships with the inanimate material world needs to be reconsidered in a fundamental way. According to him this can only be achieved if we humans abandon a human centric ethical framework and opt for an ethical framework in which ‘’’all’’’ beings are considered worthy of ethical consideration.
Lancaster University Management School
Lancaster University Management School in Lancaster, England, is the business school of Lancaster University. The School was established in 1964. A full range of subjects are taught, ranging from undergraduate degrees to postgraduate degrees including MBAs, PhDs and post-experience executive...
. He is a scholar within the Social Study of Information Systems
Social Study of Information Systems
Most simply The Social Study of Information Systems is interested in people developing and using technology and the "culture" of those people.SSIS studies these phenomena by drawing on and using "lenses" provided by social sciences, including: Philosophy, Sociology, Social Psychology,...
field. His research is focused on the phenomenon of technology. Within the area of technology studies he has made significant contributions to our understanding of the ethical and political implications of technology for society.
Work
Early on in his career Introna was concerned with the way managers use information in support of managerial practices (such as planning, decision-making, etc.). In this work he provided a convincing account of the manger as an involved and entangled actor (which is always to a greater or lesser extent already compromised) in contrast to the traditional normative model of the manager as a rational objective free agent. Later on his work shifted to a more critical appraisal of technology itself. He, together with co-workers, published a number of critical evaluations of information technology including search engines, ATMs, facial recognition systems, etc. His recent work focuses on the ethical and political aspects of technology.Management, Information and Power
In his book Management, Information and Power ". Introna argued that most management education is normatively based (i.e. telling managers how they ought to act), yet managers’ organisational reality is mostly based on the ongoing play of power and politics, as has been shown by Henry MintzbergHenry Mintzberg
Professor Henry Mintzberg, is an internationally renowned academic and author on business and management. He is currently the Cleghorn Professor of Management Studies at the Desautels Faculty of Management of McGill University in Montreal, Quebec, Canada, where he has been teaching since...
. Thus, instead of using information to inform rationality
Rationality
In philosophy, rationality is the exercise of reason. It is the manner in which people derive conclusions when considering things deliberately. It also refers to the conformity of one's beliefs with one's reasons for belief, or with one's actions with one's reasons for action...
(as the traditional normative models assume) information is rather most often deployed as a resource in organisational politics. This fact, Introna argues, requires an understanding of the relationship between information and power rather than information and rationality, as traditionally assumed.
Phenomenological and technology
Drawing on phenomenologyExistential phenomenology
Existential phenomenology is a philosophical current inspired by Martin Heidegger's 1927 work Sein und Zeit and influenced by the existential work of Søren Kierkegaard and the phenomenological work of Edmund Husserl....
, especially the work of Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger
Martin Heidegger was a German philosopher known for his existential and phenomenological explorations of the "question of Being."...
and Don Ihde
Don Ihde
Don Ihde is a philosopher of science and technology, and a post-phenomenologist. In 1979 he wrote what is often identified as the first North American work on philosophy of technology, Technics and Praxis. Ihde is Distinguished Professor of Philosophy at the State University of New York at Stony...
Introna together with Fernando Ilharco developed a phenomenological analysis of information technology—in particular a detailed account of the phenomenology of the screen. They argue that in the phenomenon screen, seeing is not merely being aware of a surface. The very watching of the screen, as a screen, implies that the screen has already soaked up our attention. In screening, screens already attract and hold our attention. They continue to hold our attention as they present what is supposedly relevant—this is exactly why they have the power to attract and hold our attention. This ongoing relevance has as its necessary condition an implicit agreement, not of content, but of a way of living and a way of doing—or rather a certain agreement about the possibilities of truth. As such they argue that screens are ontological entities.
The ethics and politics of technology
Introna (with a variety of co-workers) has developed a variety of detailed empirical studies of the ethicsEthics
Ethics, also known as moral philosophy, is a branch of philosophy that addresses questions about morality—that is, concepts such as good and evil, right and wrong, virtue and vice, justice and crime, etc.Major branches of ethics include:...
and politics of technology—within the tradition of Science and technology studies
Science and technology studies
Science, technology and society is the study of how social, political, and cultural values affect scientific research and technological innovation, and how these, in turn, affect society, politics and culture...
. For example with Helen Nissenbaum he published a very influential paper on the politics of web search engines. This research showed that the indexing and ranking algorithms of Google
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
are producing a particular version of the internet. One which systematically exclude (in some cases by design and in some, accidentally) certain sites and certain types of sites in favour of others, systematically giving prominence to some at the expense of others. Introna also published similar political and ethical studies on Facial recognition systems, Automatic teller machines, and plagiarism detection
Plagiarism detection
Plagiarism detection is the process of locating instances of plagiarism within a work or document. The widespread use of computers and the advent of the Internet has made it easier to plagiarize the work of others. Most cases of plagiarism are found in academia, where documents are typically essays...
Systems, amongst others .
The ethics of things
More recently Introna has suggested that if we are cyborgs as argued by Donna HarawayDonna Haraway
Donna J. Haraway is currently a Distinguished Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States...
and others then our ethical relationships with the inanimate material world needs to be reconsidered in a fundamental way. According to him this can only be achieved if we humans abandon a human centric ethical framework and opt for an ethical framework in which ‘’’all’’’ beings are considered worthy of ethical consideration.
Selected Publications
- 1997. Management, Information and Power: A narrative of the involved manager, Macmillan, Basingstoke.
- 1997. Privacy and the Computer: Why we Need Privacy in the Information Society. Metaphilosophy, 28(3): 259-275
- 1999. Privacy in the Information Age: Stakeholders, interests and values. Journal of Business Ethics, 22(1): 27-38 (with Nancy Poloudi)
- 2000. Shaping the Web: Why the politics of search engines matters, The Information Society, 16(3):169-185 (with Helen Nissenbaum )
- 2002. The (im)possibility of ethics in the information age. Information and Organisation, 12(2):71-84.
- 2005. Disclosing the Digital Face: The ethics of facial recognition systems, Ethics and Information Technology, 7(2): 75-86
- 2006. The Meaning of Screens: Towards a phenomenological account of screenness, Human Studies, 29(1): 57-76. (with Fernando M. Ilharco)
- 2007. Maintaining the Reversibility of Foldings: Making the ethics (politics) of information technology visible, Ethics and Information Technology, 9(1): 11-25
- 2008. Phenomenology, Organisation and Technology, Universidade Católica Editora, Lisbon. (with Fernando Ilharco and Eric Faÿ)
- 2009. Ethics and the speaking of things, Theory, Culture and Society, 26(4): 398-419.