Enforced Innovation: Science of Science Policy and Federal Technology Policy

Abstract

Perhaps nothing is so vexing for contemporary governing (or the theorizing that underpins it) than the convoluted relation of scientific knowledge to political judgment, and the reverse pathway of the value and esteem the commonweal places in having and gaining such knowledge – all involving difficult knots of philosophy, ideology and scientific disciplines. The recent emergence of a of science (SOSP) campaign out of key federal government science agencies – well funded and dedicated to certain pre-determined outcomes – is one entry to the fray. In our opinion, the animating premises behind the SOSP hearken back to an outmoded theoretical/epistemological worldview of positivism and strict fact-value separation, which fits hand-in-glove to ideological presuppositions of capitalist and possessive-individualist political-economic doctrines. This paper describes: 1) the rise of such an ideologically-driven doctrine of science and technology policy in the United States post WWII, particularly in the international/security policy sphere – the so-called social contract model of public policy for science, 2) the dissatisfactions with this model, that set the stage for the emergence of the SOSP, and 3) the emergence and features of the new vision of applying scientific principles back onto the management and promotion of scientific research. The paper presents a brief evaluation of the prospects of this approach and closes with suggestions of an alternative perspective that might be more successful in coming to grips with the conceptual convolutions involved.