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Digital hyperconnectivity is a defining fact of our time. The Silicon Valley dream of universal connection - the dream of connecting everyone and everything to everyone and everything else, everywhere and all the time - is rapidly becoming a reality. In this wide-ranging and sharply argued book, Rogers Brubaker develops an original interpretive account of the pervasive and unsettling changes brought about by hyperconnectivity. He traces transformations of the self, social relations, culture, economics, and politics, giving special attention to underexplored themes of abundance, miniaturization, convenience, quantification, and discipline. He shows how hyperconnectivity prepared us for the pandemic and how the pandemic, in turn, has prepared us for an even more fully digitally mediated future. Throughout, Brubaker underscores the ambivalence of digital hyperconnectivity, which opens up many new and exciting possibilities, yet at the same time threatens human freedom and flourishing.
Hyperconnectivity and Its Discontents will be essential reading for everyone interested in the constellation of socio-technical forces that are profoundly remaking our world.
List of contents
Preface
Acknowledgements
Introduction
1. Selves
2. Interactions
3. Culture
4. Economics
5. Politics
Conclusion
Notes
Works Cited
About the author
Rogers Brubaker is Professor of Sociology and UCLA Foundation Chair at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Summary
Digital hyperconnectivity is a defining fact of our time. The Silicon Valley dream of universal connection - the dream of connecting everyone and everything to everyone and everything else, everywhere and all the time - is rapidly becoming a reality. In this wide-ranging and sharply argued book, Rogers Brubaker develops an original interpretive account of the pervasive and unsettling changes brought about by hyperconnectivity. He traces transformations of the self, social relations, culture, economics, and politics, giving special attention to underexplored themes of abundance, miniaturization, convenience, quantification, and discipline. He shows how hyperconnectivity prepared us for the pandemic and how the pandemic, in turn, has prepared us for an even more fully digitally mediated future. Throughout, Brubaker underscores the ambivalence of digital hyperconnectivity, which opens up many new and exciting possibilities, yet at the same time threatens human freedom and flourishing.
Hyperconnectivity and Its Discontents will be essential reading for everyone interested in the constellation of socio-technical forces that are profoundly remaking our world.
Report
"Bracing, stimulating, and recurrently insightful, Rogers Brubaker's exploration of ubiquitous digital connectivity is observant and often wise. He advances our understanding of technology's very mixed human implications, from distractions to deep transformations, and also the implications of how we use new technologies, knowingly and unknowingly."
--Craig Calhoun, Arizona State University (ASU) and London School of Economics (LSE)
"In this lucid, elegant book, Rogers Brubaker demonstrates that if you read hyperconnectivity through the lens of classic social theory, you'll better understand its costs and what to do about them. So when he considers the sociality of the web and our ever-lonelier hearts, his exploration leads him to the dangers of populism and a threat to democracy. He speaks to our moment."
--Sherry Turkle, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
"[A]n informative and engaging overview of digitally intertwined life that does not sacrifice breadth for depth."
--International Journal of Communication
