Harvard Belfer Center
Technology assessments should “scratch real itches,” responding to needs of the end user or people directly impacted by the technology.
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The next generation of technologies will be transformative. How those technologies – from artificial intelligence to synthetic biology tools – are developed, distributed, and managed will affect how societies reap their benefits and mitigate their costs.
To protect the lives and livelihoods of all Americans, the 117th Congress and the Biden Administration must prepare to take a deeper look at the social impacts of emerging technologies, Mike Miesen and Laura Manley write in a new report, “Building a 21st Century Congress: A Playbook for Modern Technology Assessment.” ... that Congress and the Executive Office of the President (EOP) incorporate four “pillars” of effective technology assessment into their processes.
A technology assessment is not an argument for a specific policy or set of policies, or the answer to a policy problem.
Instead, a technology assessment should offer policy options, where appropriate, to help policymakers reckon with the technology and its potential implications. A technology assessment should be an important input into the policymaking process without deciding on the “right” option—a task best left to elected officials, who are best suited to represent their constituencies’ needs and values as they weigh various policy options.
Practically, members of Congress do not want answers from a technology assessment body, because it is their responsibility to come up with the answers. Legislation that is grounded in the analyses of legislative committees and individual members—and supported by a thorough technology assessment—will be stronger and more likely to pass, as it will be responsive not only to an analysis of the technology but also to constituents.
Politically, this ensures that the technology assessment body serves as a resource, not a rival.
