Technophobia, or the fear of technology. Is fear of technology a thing of the past? No. Many people still get short of breath from computers, for example. Why would you be afraid of a few buttons? And will technophobia ever become a thing of the past?

The first technophobes

The English workers were afraid. Afraid of all those new machines that appeared in the textile factories at the end of the seventeenth century. It was called the technological progress of the Industrial Revolution. But in the eyes of the workers it was a danger. Not only did unemployment and poverty threaten as the power looms took over their craft, there was also fear of the technology itself. Because if machines could take over so much of the work now, they could replace humans completely in the future. This must be avoided at all costs, fearful workers thought in 1811. They called themselves Luddites, after their great example Ned Ludd, who demolished a number of knitting machines a few decades earlier. The Luddites entered factories at night to destroy countless looms and other machines. Technoterrorism spread like wildfire across the country. The violence got so out of hand that in 1812 the British Parliament saw no other option than to impose the death penalty for tampering with machines. Thanks to this measure (and the 12,000 soldiers who were ready), the Luddites’ fears were artificially suppressed. The Industrial Revolution picked up where it left off.Such extreme fear as described above seems unthinkable today. Machines and devices have already penetrated too deeply into our daily lives for that. However? The answer is no, because even today many people are afraid of technology. The worst culprit? The computer.

Who is afraid?

Those faint-hearted ones are probably all elderly people? No, more than 900,000 people between the ages of 12 and 74 did not have a computer at home, according to CBS. About half of them are over 65. Among the low-educated, unemployed and immigrants, you will find relatively more computer-less people than among the highly educated, employed and natives. Why do some people refuse to sit behind a screen? The excuse people use for this is often ‘No time’ or ‘Not interested’. But these people are often old or don’t work, so you can hardly say that you don’t have time for it. Few admit it directly, but fear is an important barrier. It’s hard for non-technophobes to imagine: how can you be afraid of a few buttons? They don’t bite, do they?You often see that people have the wrong idea of a technology. For example, ask illiterate people what the internet is and you will get answers such as ‘It is something you can become addicted to’. The threshold can therefore become higher due to a lack of knowledge.

Afraid of ourselves

Devices that look like people? In general we don’t have much of that. Most people are afraid of being dominated by it. Or be replaced by it. The books of biochemist and science fiction writer Isaac Asimov (1920-1992) are teeming with these types of humanoid robots. He called this fear the ‘Frankenstein complex’, after the famous monster that chases away its creator. The term is often used to describe the fear of overly intelligent computers and robots in real life.A philosophical movement that responds to this is ‘Transhumanism’. According to transhumanists , if we can improve humans , physically or mentally, we should do so immediately. Even if that means turning into ‘cyborgs’ (part human, part machine). In fact, according to them, genetically and mechanically improved humans are the logical next step in our evolution.

Fear is current

Computer anxiety is individual. But every now and then we also collectively get the itch of computer-controlled systems. In February 2010, 462,000 Dutch people objected to the inclusion of their medical data in the infamous electronic patient file. This system allows healthcare providers throughout the Netherlands, from general practitioners to pharmacists, to view your medical data. Even 31% of doctors object to this. Why this resistance? You often see these reactions regarding privacy issues. And that’s actually strange. Because in surveys people rarely indicate that they object to the provision of data. Take the Albert Heijn Bonus Card that everyone walks around with. Doesn’t that also mean you give up a lot of data?