Abstract
This essay argues for a new turn after the empirical turn in the philosophy of technology: the
societal turn, which is the turn from reflective philosophy of technology (academic philosophy
concerned with analysis and understanding) to constructive philosophy of technology (philosophy
that is directly involved in solving practical problems in society). The essay aims to describe in
detail what a constructive approach would look like and how it could be achieved. It claims that at
least in the European Union, the conditions for a constructive philosophy of technology are
favorable, due to the emergence in both policy and academics of the notion of Responsible
Research and Innovation (RRI). It then goes on to describe how a constructive philosophy of
technology can contribute to better technology development, better technology policy and better
implementation and use of technology, through engineering-oriented, policy-oriented and useoriented approaches to research.