1. Machine Dreams: Computers in the Fantasies of Young Adults.
- Author
-
Broughton, John M.
- Abstract
Designed to pilot a particular technique for eliciting imaginative constructions centered on the microcomputer, this exploratory study used a "projective" type method with a game format that required group performance. Students in a mixed class of 88 graduate students enrolled in a course on social thought were directed to generate multiple fantasy narratives around computer use. To do this, each student was given a sheet of paper with the first line of a story--"Norman (or Jane) sat down at the computer"--and instructed to write the next line of the story. The sheets were then folded in such a way that only the last sentence written was visible and passed down four seats to the left. As the students received the next sheet, they added another sentence and this procedure was repeated until the completed stories averaged 6 to 7 lines in length. Analyses of the data to identify and illustrate qualitative themes and patterns in the stories found the predominant thematic dimension to be the hedonic continuum, from pleasure to pain, with a distinct bias in content toward the latter. A comparison of the results with Gregory Bateson's theories on man and high technology concludes the paper, and an extensive reference list is provided. (RP)
- Published
- 1987