Industrial Technologists and the Social Sciences

Trechnological education is at first sight hardly a suitable subject for an inaugural lecture by a professor of economics. But in the course of the great debate which has taken place over the last six years there has been much discussion of foreign educational institutions where technological students receive a grounding in the social sciences-economics, politics, sociology, psychology, and other disciplines, such as law, history and philosophy, concerned with man's behaviour in community life. While I can lay no claim to be an expert on this matter, I thought it might be useful to attempt a brief appraisal of the case for including social studies in technological education, and of the implications of the case for this country. It also seemed to me that a lecture which marked the establishment of an economics chair with special reference to industrial organisation would be a suitable occasion for the task. I shall divide my discussion into four parts. First, I shall say a word or two about the impact of natural science on industrial development, and the problems it creates. Next I shall consider whether and how the solution of these problems could be facilitated by including social studies in the education of engineers and the other applied natural scientists whom we call technologists. I shall then go on to consider whether the curriculum changes suggested could best be met through new institutions or by the adaptation of existing ones. Lastly I shall outline what we are doing in this matter, and what I hope we shall do, here in London University

Curriculum · Engineering ethics · Natural (archaeology) · Pedagogy · Political science · Politics · Sight · Social science · Sociology · Subject (documents) · Computer Science · Economic Theory and Institutions · Engineering · History · Law