This article presents the debate on the autonomy and non-autonomy of technology in society, considering the discussion undertaken in the sociology of science and the recent literature on technology production, especially what came after Martin Heidegger's The question concerning technology. Taking the work of Heidegger as a seminal discussion on the topic of technology, the article proposes an "ontological" reversal in the relationship between science and technology, placing technology before science. The text contrasts different meanings of technology through diverse analytical models, namely, different theoretical and methodological perspectives, philosophical concepts and approaches, including the economic, sociological and historical approaches. Special emphasis is given to the confrontation between the sociological and the economic approach. In the end, the paper offers evidence to support the non-autonomy of technology in society and that which has been called the social content of technology.
Sociology of technology; Sociology of science; Technoscience; Technology production; Technological practice
