"Opening up" and "closing down" power, participation, and pluralism in the social appraisal of technology

摘要: Discursive deference in the governance of science and technology is rebalancing from expert analysis toward participatory deliberation. Linear, scientistic conceptions innovation are giving ground to more plural, socially situated understandings. Yet, growing recognition social agency choice countered by persistently deterministic notions technological progress. This article addresses this increasingly stark disjuncture. Distinguishing between appraisal commitment choice, it highlights contrasting implications normative, instrumental, substantive imperatives appraisal. Focusing on role power, identifies key commonalities transcending analysis/participation dichotomy. Each equally susceptible instrumental framing for variously weak strong forms justification. To address disjuncture, concluded that greater appreciation requiredin both analytic appraisalto facilitating opening up (rather than closing down) commitments technology.