In their chapter on "Expectations in Technological Developments", Harro van Lente and Arie Rip, for the first time (1998), introduce the coordinating role of "prospective structures" and the "promise-requirement cycle" in technology development (p. 217). The theoretical ambition of the emerging "sociology of expectations" (Borup et. al. 2006) is to overcome the traditional split between overly structure constraining (functionalism) and overly actor-oriented (symbolic interactionalism) sociologies (see p. 204). Three examples, "Moore's law", "The emergence of membrane Technology in the Netherlands, and "HDTV", illustrate and flesh out how stories and scenarios become a coordinating "third source of change" (p. 205). Of particular interest are under-determined "umbrella terms", such as "membrane technology," that re-describe and merge already existing developments into unifying pathways of potential collaboration (see p. 209). Actors, so to say, mutually position and constitute themselves in fictional scripts to their individual interests, interdependencies, and relevant environments (p. 217). What starts as a mere option or science fiction story becomes a forceful promise when experts assess and formulate requirements, guidelines, and specifications for the realization. Then, the fictional storylines about applications and social contexts of future technologies sufficiently appear to be taken seriously to factually constrain pathways of action and coordinate actors in the supposedly fact-oriented domain of technology development.

Reference: Borup, Mads, Nik Brown, Kornelia Konrad, and Harro Van Lente. “The Sociology of Expectations in Science and Technology.” Technology Analysis & Strategic Management 18, no. 3–4 (July 2006): 285–98. https://doi.org/10.1080/09537320600777002.