Advocacy Science: Explaining the Term with Case Studies from Biotechnology

Ksenia Gerasimova

doi:10.1007/s11948-017-9916-0

Abstract

The paper discusses the use of term ‘advocacy science’ which is communication of science which goes beyond simple reporting of scientific findings, using the case study of biotechnology. It argues that advocacy science should be used to distinguish the engagement of modern civil society organizations to interpret scientific knowledge for their lobbying. It illustrates how this new communicative process has changed political discourse in science and general perception of the role of science in contemporary society.

Highlights

With the discovery of DNA and ability to separate and transfer genes from one organism to another, scientists have created a new way of solving many tasks that were unimaginable in the past
This paper generally agrees with the conceptualization of advocacy in science offered by the Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), and suggests discussing the term ‘advocacy science’ as a recent socio-political phenomenon which can be illustrated by the case study of biotechnology, where ‘uncertainty about facts and disagreements about values’ are both present
This paper argues the benefits of using the term ‘‘advocacy science’’ as synonym for activist science

Summary

Introduction

With the discovery of DNA and ability to separate and transfer genes from one organism to another, scientists have created a new way of solving many tasks that were unimaginable in the past. Steve Pierson (2012) from the American Statistical Association argues that there are two categories of science advocacy – policy for science and science for policy which are used to inform policymakers and advocate certain decisions The latter opens a place for political alternatives offered by groups that were previously little involved in policy-making processes, such as social movements (Harries-Jones 1991). This paper generally agrees with the conceptualization of advocacy in science offered by the AAAS, and suggests discussing the term ‘advocacy science’ as a recent socio-political phenomenon which can be illustrated by the case study of biotechnology, where ‘uncertainty about facts and disagreements about values’ are both present. Seralini, which are argued to represent cases of ‘advocacy science’ in biotechnology leading to significant political implications in the banning of GM crops

Science and Changes in the Modern Institutional Context

Different Kinds of Science

Case Studies of Advocacy Science

Conclusions