Reflections on the Philosophy of Technology and Human Autonomy in the context of Information and Communication Technologies

Abstract

The aim of this article is to examine the influence of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) on human autonomy and self-organization, exploring their positive and negative impacts from a philosophical and interdisciplinary perspective. While ICTs facilitate communication and access to information, they also raise issues of privacy, surveillance, and control. In this context, we investigate to what extent this human-machine relationship enhances or diminishes individual and collective human autonomy based on the concepts of autonomy (Gonzalez, 2017) and self-organization (Debrun, 1992). The article analyzes ICTs through three approaches from the Philosophy of Technology, proposed by Alberto Cupani (2016): Mario Bunge (1985); Albert Borgmann (1984); and Andrew Feenberg (2002). The analysis of the aforementioned authors is conducted to ground the discussion of the possible alteration of degrees of human autonomy, which fluctuate based on the self-organization of a social system, entangled by ICTs in the context of the 21st century. We emphasize the concepts of cosmotechnic proposed by Yuk Hui (2020), which unites technique and culture, and technodiversity, criticizing the hegemonic tendency toward a homogeneous system imposed by the Western perspective, while highlighting the current state of the information society. In summary, the central question of this article is: How can Information and Communication Technologies become hegemonic by altering human autonomy and self-organization? Finally, we argue that while ICTs offer benefits, we still need to reflect on the universal imposition of technology and data control by large technology companies to ensure that technology serves social and ecological well-being without sacrificing cultural diversity, human autonomy, and self-organization.