Technification and Securitisation: The Mechanism of ‘Rendering Technical’ in Polish Nuclear Energy Politics

Abstract

Technology is changing how we live our lives – of this there is no doubt. But how technology affects political deliberation, through which pathways, and how such processes compare to other forms of social mechanisms at play are less clear. Critical security studies have yet to reflect much on this. While the Copenhagen School outlined the workings of the securitisation mechanism and inspired further research into its dynamic together with analytical enquiries into other grammars, logics and security mechanisms operating in different sectors, the role of ‘the technical’ in the broader political processes remains under-researched. The article conceptualises the social mechanism of technification, outlines three possible forms to be found in practice and illustrates them using the example of the development of the nuclear energy program in Poland.