Analysis of Students' Socioscientific Decision-Making from the Nature of Technology Perspectives

Abstract

Since socioscientific issues (SSI) reflect various characteristics of new technologies designed to meet the incessant human needs in the contemporary society, this study explores the feasibility of adapting nature of technology (NOT) to analyze students' socioscientific decision-making. To achieve the aim, forty-five college students enrolled in a liberal arts course on science and technology studies participated in the study and responded to a GMO (golden rice) scenario in a written form. Four major viewpoints were identified from their writing: 1) is the technological artifact able to solve a societal problem?, 2) are there some alternatives to solve the societal problem?, 3) what kinds of side effects or flaws could turn up during distribution and consumption of the technological artifact?, and 4) can we cope with the technological uncertainty? We revisited the viewpoints within the NOT framework (technology as a 'fix,' cultural context and role of values, technological trade-offs, technology as a system, and technological progression). As a result, unlike NOS, NOT were quite explicitly represented in their decision-making and students' level of understanding on NOT varied. It indicates that NOT can be a promising construct for cultivating informed SSI decision-making.