Dissertationsprojekt von Peggy Reeder, M.A.

The development of formations analogous to religion in Silicon Valley (Working title)

Silicon Valley is a hub for technological innovation and thriving businesses primarily focusing on tech developments. Actors in Silicon Valley exert influence on society, nationally and globally, not only through the applications and devices they develop but also through philanthropic giving to society. Their methods and strategies in this have been described to be different from the predominant form of U.S. philanthropy as Andrew Carnegie first propagated it in the late 19th century.

In many cases, their actions do not appear to be joined to organized religion. However, several formations analogous to religion - described with different analytical categories - have been identified to underlie the activities in the region and the sector as a whole. This includes the religious dimensions of the expectations behind technological progress and data-processing mechanisms termed "Dataism" and "Solutionism," civil religious elements in U.S. American society, and the description of the convictions and practices underlying philanthropic activity by individuals who generated their wealth in Silicon Valley with reference to religious semantics.

In the dissertation, I aim to bring these research results together with the help of a broader analytical category of "formations analogous to religion." I also seek to develop this category further. Silicon Valley serves as a geographical region to investigate if and how previous observations about analogies to religion in the U.S. and the tech industry cluster, interrelate and take shape there.