An international and interdisciplinary organization, SHOT is concerned not only with the history of technological devices and processes but also with technology in history in the broadest sense — including the relationships of technology to politics, economics, science, the arts, and the organization of production, and with the role it plays in the differentiation of individuals in society. Not least, it is concerned with interpretive flexibility, the conception that beliefs about whether a technology "works" are contingent on the expectations, needs, and ideologies of those who interact with it.

SHOT members represent a wide range of disciplines and professions, from history and the humanities to engineering and science, and come from some thirty-five countries throughout the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa. The Society’s journal, Technology and Culture, welcomes submissions from non-members as well as members.