Unlocking the Puzzle of Public Participation

Bulletin of Science, Technology and Society 22 (3):179-189 (2002)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

Public participation is well known for its practitioner insights and wealth of case reports. This knowledge is essential and has been well employed. Likewise, the theoretical literature on public participation is growing rapidly. The need for better conceptual and theoretical understandings of public participation has become clear. Public participation theories have not received great attention, and few have been proposed or tested. Yet theory offers much to practitioners of various interventions. The authors summarize work toward developing a public participation theory and propose a way to conceptualize its skeletal components. The authors recognize that any theory must acknowledge that different people have different beliefs about what public participation should accomplish. Further, contextual variables affect a process’s character and outcomes. The authors begin with a discussion of theory’s importance to scholars, practitioners, and participants and provide an overview of existing approaches. The authors present findings from two empirical case studies used to further develop their theory of fair and competent public participation. They conclude with some observations about challenges and ways forward.

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 90,593

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

Public Participation Methods: A Framework for Evaluation.Lynn J. Frewer & Gene Rowe - 2000 - Science, Technology, and Human Values 25 (1):3-29.
Genomics and Public Involvement: Giving Justifications Their Due.Gabriele Badano - 2012 - Studies in Ethics, Law, and Technology 6 (1).
Theories and Uses in Common: Responses of Art in the Public Sphere.Catalin Gheorghe - 2010 - Meta: Research in Hermeneutics, Phenomenology, and Practical Philosophy 2 (2):316-327.
Public participation in the making of science policy.Darrin Durant - 2010 - Perspectives on Science 18 (2):pp. 189-225.

Analytics

Added to PP
2020-11-27

Downloads
5 (#1,344,154)

6 months
2 (#668,348)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?