Environmental Context

spaceParticipation

Rationale


Role of Experts
space• Democracy vs Technocracy
spaceDecisions as Technical
spaceOpposition to Participation

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Participants

Democracy vs Technocracy

Bullet pointTechnocratic Approach
the search for a rational solution agreed to by experts and requires solutions to "display both technical efficiency and economic rationality".

Bullet pointDemocratic Approach

seeks to maximise participation in decision making and argues that a redistribution of power is just as likely to achieve a favourable outcome as anything the experts will come up with; humane and socially just solutions are sought.

Bullet pointAuthority vs Argument

In an ideal world evidence would be necessary to persuade us of what is right but in a complex technological society we all depend to some extent on the authority of experts, without questioning their credentials or the soundness of the arguments.

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Whilst there is increasing pressure for the second approach to be taken, those in power have done their best to gain control of and limit the possibilities of such mechanisms as technology assessment, which were supposed to meet the demands for greater participation in setting technological goals.

Most people respect and acquiesce to those who claim to have specialised knowledge. In a complex society with a division of intellectual labour, social relationships require trust and the granting of authority to those with specialised knowledge. However, the degree to which public decisions draw upon expertise has caused some writers to raise questions about the extent to which democracy is viable in a society dependent on experts, since experts are not usually directly accountable to electorates.

In a democracy people want to have a say in decisions that affect them but at the same time policy makers have to rely to some extent on expert advice about many of these decisions and the more they rely on experts the less democratic the decision will be. "The power afforded to those who control technical information can threaten democratic principles, reducing public control over many public policy choices."

In an ideal democracy experts would give advice and the public would then weigh up the evidence provided by the experts and collectively decide on the best course of action. However this does not happen for a variety of reasons. Firstly experts give differing evidence, advice and interpretations and it is not always easy for a non expert to decide which experts to believe. Secondly, experts have a certain authority and there is a tendency to accept expert advice without question. Thirdly few people have the time, energy or inclination to become fully informed on every decision and it is often easier to leave such decisions to others.

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