People's
social behavior with respect to technology is a topic that has
concerned diverse disciplines, but it has been rare to find graduate
training that prepares students to bridge several of those fields in
the way that is so demanded by both academic and industry research jobs
of today. This program takes students from a variety of backgrounds and
gives them rigorous training in Humanities and Social Sciences
methodologies to allow them to understand technological developments in
their broadest possible contexts. Students should either have a
technological background already, or be prepared to acquire the
relevant skills early in their graduate program, and the implementation
or production of media, information or communication technology is an
expected part of the program of study.
Affiliated faculty come
from the entire School of Communication, the departments of
Anthropology, Computer Science, School of Education and Social Policy,
Engineering, History, School of Law, Linguistics, Psychology, and
Sociology, and the Kellogg School of Management.
Critical
evaluation of disciplinary perspectives, as well as integration of
disciplinary methodologies, is a key goal of the TSB track. The
required courses therefore provide theoretical, historical,
psychological, and sociological perspectives on technology, along with
classes in research methods. For the remaining courses, in conjunction
with their advisors, students will put together a course of study that
approaches one theme within technology and social behavior from more
than one approach.
