Digital technology, mediation, and activity theory

In spite of their differences Vygotsky and Leontiev equally confine to speak about mediational means and neglect to reflect on the medium which makes an object being a means. Vygotsky lived at the end of the «Gutenberg galaxy». He was not able to even notice the emergence of digital technology. Leontiev certainly lived in the years of emerging digitalization technology but he was still far away from that widely spreading out impact of computers on our daily life today. It is therefore no judgement about personal limitations when we say that Vygotsky and Leontiev really could not reflect neither on digital technology nor on its revolutionary importance as a new leading medium of a new age or society. Activity theory in its basic structure depends on book culture but does not notice this dependency, because of its loss of adequate concepts. Activity theory cannot escape its own theoretical limits and methodological constraints. For the time being, however, that is during ongoing transition processes, we are still forced to deal with the epistemological and communication theoretical structures of book culture because such an anachronism is rather unavoidable to the transition processes in all present societies. But activity theory is urged to test seriously its common grounds or interfaces with new emerging sciences like media history and media science and to check their specific potential in modelling the new forms of information processing and communication systems if it aims to be still functional in the future of the Digital Age.

1. Bateson G. Ökologie des Geistes. Frankfurt a. M., 1981.
2. Engeström Y. Lernen durch Expansion. Marburg/Lahn, 1999.
3. Engeström Y. Developmental Work Research. Expanding Activity Theory in Practice. Berlin, 2005.
4. Giesecke M. Der Buchdruck in der frühen Neuzeit. Eine historische Fallstudie über die Durchsetzung neuer Informations – und Kommunikationstechnologien. Frankfurt/Main, 1991.
5. Giesecke M. Sinnenwandel, Sprachwandel, Kulturwandel. Studien zur Vorgeschichte der Informationsgesellschaft. Frankfurt/Main, 1998.
6. Giesecke M. Von den Mythen der Buchkultur zu den Visionen der Informationsgesellschaft. Frankfurt/Main, 2002.
7. Giesecke M. Die Entdeckung der kommunikativen Welt. Frankfurt/Main, 2006.
8. Leontiev A. A. The life and creative path of A. N. Leontiev // Journal of Russian and East European Psychology, Vol. 43, 3, 2005.
9. Leontiev A. N. Lekcii po obščej Psichologii. Hrsg. von A. A. Leont’ev und E. E. Sokolova. Moskva, 2001.
10. Leontiev A. N. Tätigkeit, Bewusstsein, Persönlichkeit. Köln, 1982.
11. Leontiev A. N., Panov D. Ju. Psichologija čeloveka i techničeskij process. Moskva, 1963.
12. Leont’ev A. N., Panov D. Ju. Psichologija čeloveka i techničeskij process // Voprosy filosofii, № 8, 1962.
13. Leontiev A. N. Probleme der Entwicklung des Psychischen. Berlin/DDR, 1971.
14. Leontiev A. N. Frühe Schriften, Band II. Hrsg. von G. Rückriem. Berlin, 2006.
15. Postman N. Wir amüsieren uns zu Tode. Frankfurt/Main, 1988.
16. Rückriem G. Digital Technology and Mediation: A Challenge to Activity Theory // Learning and Expanding with Activity Theory. Eds. A. Sannino, H. Daniels and K.Gutierrez. Cambridge UP, 2009.
17. Rückriem G. La technología digital y la mediación: un desafío a la teoría de la actividad. Conferencia invitada de la Facultad de Psicología de la Universidad Autónoma de Mejico (UNAM) y de la Universidad Abierto y Educación a Distancia (CUAED). 28 de septiembre del 2009. In: Sinéctica 34. Revista electronica de Educación. Enero-junio de 2010. http://www.sinectica.iteso.mx/index.php?cur=34&art=34_00
18. Rückriem G., Ang-Stein C., Erdmann J. W. Understanding media revolution – how digitalisation is to be considered. Lecture given at the Summer School of MGPPU, August 2010, Moscow, Russia. Revised version of the Lecture on FISCAR. Nordic Conference on Activity Theory, May 23-25, 2010, Aalto University, Helsinki, Finnland, 2010.
19. Surowiecki J. The Wisdom of Crowds. Why the Many are Smarter than the Few and How Collective Wisdom Shapes. New York, 2004.
20. Van der Veer R., Valsiner J. Understanding Vygotsky: A Quest for Synthesis. Cambridge Mass., 1991.
21. Van der Veer R. The Concept of Culture in Vygotsky’s Thinking // Culture and Psychology, № 2, 1996.
22. Vygotsky L. S. Socialističeskaja peredelka čeloveka // VARNITSO. Vol. 9-10, 1930.
23. Vygotsky L. S. Denken und Sprechen. Hrsg. von J. Lompscher und G. Rückriem. Weinheim und Basel, 2002.
24. Vygotsky L. S. Mind in Society. The development of higher psychological processes. Cambridge, MA, 1978.
25. Vygotsky L. S. Geschichte der höheren psychischen Funktionen. Münster/Hamburg, 1992.
26. Vygotsky L. S. Briefe/Letters 1924-1934. Hrsg. von G. Rückriem. Berlin? 2009.
27. Vygotsky L. S. Ausgewählte Schriften. Bd. I. Hrsg. von J. Lompscher. Berlin, 2003.
28. Yudin E. G., Judin E. G. Sistemnyj podchod i princip dejatel’nosti. Moskva 1978. In German: Systemansatz und Tätigkeitsprinzip. Methodologische Probleme der modernen Wissenschaft. Hrsg. von G. Rückriem. Berlin, 1978.
29. Judin E. G. Das Problem der Tätigkeit in Philosophie und Wissenschaft. In: D. Viehweger (Hrsg.), Grundfragen einer Theorie der sprachlichen Tätigkeit. Berlin, 1984.
30. Willke H. Systemisches Wissensmanagement. Stuttgart, 1998.