Key Dimensions in Technology Impact Assessment for Peace and Stability: Australia and India
IEEE transactions on technology and society, Vol.First online, pp.1-18
27/08/2026
1
The development and diffusion of new technologies into society requires technology assessment (TA) for their diverse social, political, ethical, legal, environmental and economic impacts. Using Australia and India as case studies on the diffusion of critical emerging technologies, we find that the broad "critical technology" framing adopted by both governments offers no clear direction as to methodologies for conducting technology impact assessment (TIA) of specific technologies or their strategic impacts, and that it frequently conflates peace and stability objectives with economic and industrial policy goals. Currently, there are no best practices for TIA that articulate a defined approach and methodology among scholars or officials. This ambiguity stems from the fact that TIA can be used for many different purposes while focusing on the concerns of different groups of stakeholders. Since 2022, several stakeholders, inclusive of leading intergovernmental organizations, think tanks and specialists, have called for increased attention to TIA and more disciplined approaches, particularly emphasizing effective stakeholder engagement, and consistently ethical, democratic and transparent processes. This paper defines TIA for peace and stability, defines critical emerging technologies, and identifies key dimensions of technology impact assessment together with proposed benchmarks across three tiers of practice: basic, intermediate and advanced. Drawing on nuclear-safety case studies from Australia (nuclear-powered warship visits and AUKUS submarine safety) and India (civil nuclear cybersecurity), together with a comparative analysis of the two countries' practices, the paper finds that TIA for peace and stability is consistently a lower priority than TIA for national defense or domestic security, and that neither country has a standing mechanism for conducting it to a high standard. The paper proposes a hybrid model for balancing transparency and legitimate secrecy in future assessments and sets out options for locating a dedicated institutional home for TIA- drawing on parliamentary, statutory authority and national academy models- in support of peace and stability studies between one or more nation states, toward multi-stakeholder joint impact assessment.
- Key Dimensions in Technology Impact Assessment for Peace and Stability: Australia and India
- Greg Austin - Social Cyber InstituteKarthik Bappanad - InKlude Laboratories (India)Adam P. Henry - Social Cyber InstituteLisa Materano - Social Cyber InstituteKatina Michael - University of Sydney Business SchoolBharath Reddy - Takshashila Institution, Bengaluru, Karnataka, IndiaBrendan Walker-Munro - Southern Cross UniversityGlenn Withers - Australian National University
- IEEE transactions on technology and society, Vol.First online, pp.1-18
- IEEE
- 18
- Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's-Australia India Cyber and Critical Technologies Partnership (Fourth Round) titled: Joint Impact Assessment of Critical Emerging Technologies in Support of Peace and Stability Australian National University (ANU) Human Research Ethics Committee: 2024/1245
This work was supported in part by Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade's-Australia India Cyber and Critical Technologies Partnership (Fourth Round) titled: Joint Impact Assessment of Critical Emerging Technologies in Support of Peace and Stability and in part by The Australian National University (ANU) Human Research Ethics Committee under Grant 2024/1245.
- 991013398151002368
- © 2026 The Authors
- Faculty of Business, Law and Arts; Law
- English
- Journal article