The co-evolution of technology and discourse: A study of substitution processes for the insecticide DDT

Product substitution is an important discontinuity in technology evolution. Conventional accounts draw on rational, linear models of change and emphasize that the process is driven by the appearance and adoption of new artifacts. This article adopts a constructivist approach to address the question of whether the social reconstruction of incumbent artifacts can trigger their substitution, even in the absence of new alternatives. Drawing on a case study of the insecticide DDT and employing a discourse analytical perspective, four artifact-constituting discourses which have been employed to construct and reconstruct DDT are identified, and their implications for product substitution discussed.