Historian Dr. Kevin Wong argues that technological determinism fails because identical technologies produced different societies depending on existing social structures.
Which historical comparison would best support Wong's social structure emphasis?
Technology has changed over time
Societies differ
Historians study causation
The factory system produced independent yeoman farmers in early America but created proletarian dependence in England; the same railroad technology strengthened centralized empires in some regions while enabling federal decentralization in others
Correct Answer: D
Choice D is the best answer. Same technology + different social outcomes across cases disproves technological determinism.
💡 Strategy: Challenging determinism needs same-technology, different-outcome cases.