Problematizing the distinction between expert and lay knowledge

W. Kinsella
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引用次数: 25

Abstract

Public policy issues with technical dimensions present a special problem for democracy. As public issues they should receive the attention of all affected stakeholders, but as technical issues they are typically addressed through the narrow perspective of expertise. This essay argues that a reified distinction between “expert” and “lay” knowledge contributes to this problem, with implications both for democracy and for the quality of technical decisions. Integrating perspectives from communication theory with work in sociology and policy studies, the essay reexamines the expert/lay distinction and suggests a more dialogical, rather than dichotomous, model for the relationship between expert and lay knowledge. Two brief empirical examples, drawn from settings where lay citizens and technical specialists have collaborated closely, illustrate and ground the theoretical argument.
专家知识和非专业知识的区分问题
具有技术层面的公共政策问题给民主带来了一个特殊的问题。作为公共问题,它们应该得到所有受影响的利益相关者的关注,但作为技术问题,它们通常是通过狭隘的专业知识来解决的。本文认为,"专家 "知识和 "非专业 "知识之间的再区分造成了这一问题,对民主和技术决策的质量都有影响。文章综合了传播理论、社会学和政策研究的观点,重新审视了专家/外行的区别,并为专家和外行知识之间的关系提出了一个更具对话性而非二分法的模式。从非专业公民和技术专家密切合作的环境中选取的两个简短的经验案例,说明了理论论点并为其奠定了基础。
本文章由计算机程序翻译,如有差异,请以英文原文为准。
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