Governmental Rationality Research Articles

Negotiating power: Disputes over electrification in rural India

Abstract How are infrastructures socially appropriated? This article uses my fortuitous presence in a rural locality in eastern India as its residents discussed proposals for its complete electrification, allowing me to reflect on social negotiations around infrastructure prior to its installation. Drawing on a detailed ethnography of electrification in a West Bengal village, I illustrate the nuanced ways in which people inflect infrastructural projects with their collective ideas of what is right and good. As far as they can see, such projects are neither the unalloyed benefit that proponents celebrate nor the unmitigated evil that opponents lament. Rather, they are evaluated in relation to people’s imagination of the collective good, to which such infrastructures may or may not be central. Drawing on the insights offered by my interlocutors as well as recent advances in the literature on the politics of infrastructures, this article interrogates the perspective that infrastructures advance governmental rationalities. Building on well-established insights that technological infrastructures are not socially neutral and that infrastructures are socially appropriated, disputed, and negotiated, this article demonstrates that people’s engagement with infrastructures politicizes, rather than governmentalizes, them.

Using exploratory modeling to challenge narratives of risk governance in Mexico City.

Achieving more sustainable adaptation to social-environmental change demands the transformation of the narratives that provide the rationale for risk governance. These narratives often reflect long-standing beliefs about social and political relationships, ascribe actions and responsibilities, and specify solutions to risk. When such solutions are implemented through material investments in landscapes, these narratives become embedded in physical infrastructure with long legacies. Dominant narratives can mask a range of divergent problem framings. By masking alternatives, narratives can contribute to the persistence of unsustainable governance trajectories. Decision-support tools have begun to represent narratives as drivers of system dynamics; making narratives visible can reveal opportunities for more sustainable governance. We present the results of the project "The Dynamics of Multi-Scalar Adaptation in the Megalopolis", a dynamic, exploratory model of socio-hydrological risks in Mexico City that was designed to both endogenize and simultaneously challenge the dominant narratives that characterize water-risk governance in the city. Qualitative data characterize dominant narratives at city and borough scales. An agent-based model, informed by multicriteria decision analysis and coupled with hydrological, urbanization, and climatic model inputs, permitted the development of exploratory governance scenarios designed to challenge dominant narratives. Scenarios revealed how dominant narratives may contribute to the persistence of vulnerability "hotspots" in the city, despite stated goals of equity and vulnerability alleviation. Participatory workshops with representatives of the city government illustrate how making such narratives visible through exploratory modeling can lead to a questioning of prior assumptions and causal relations, recognition of a need for intersectoral collaboration, and insights into potential management strategies.

Mapping as a collective and southern practice

AbstractThis reflective paper describes a relationship to mapping as a collective and southern practice. Using examples from the author's own involvement in collective map‐making practices based in New Delhi, the paper roots mapping in the context of southern urbanisms, taking examples of informal housing, work, and workplaces to debate the role of mapping vis‐à‐vis the desire for either more or less visibility. It then argues that mapping must reflect prevailing rationalities of governance and power, thinking about both why we make maps and who makes maps. Finally, it suggests that mapping as a process must extend from the making of a map to an active engagement in how it circulates and is read. The paper suggests the author's own experience with collective political formations as a possible institutional form that can hold such an approach to mapping.

Imagining the flood: rationalities of governance in sinking cities

The rise in global sea levels poses a substantial, sometimes existential threat to coastal cities around the world, such as Bangkok, Lagos, or Jakarta. Adaptation projects range from hard infrastructure to nature-based solutions or ‘planned retreat’, often having severe implications in terms of equity and equality. Given the threat of urban flooding and submergence, this paper asks how ‘the future’ for these cities is imagined, and how sociotechnical imaginaries of climate futures inform policymaking. Using insights from poststructuralism and Science and Technology Studies (STS), I argue that the way of ‘seeing’ and ‘knowing’ sea level rise is constitutive of the rationalities that undergird the governing of rising water around the world. I trace the discrete operations of the discursive formations and imaginaries that have evolved globally around the issue of sea level rise, with their own distinctive logics. Analyzing a variety of globally circulating policy documents and local adaptation projects, I show how the governance of sea level rise is based on a very specific ‘expert’ knowledge that allows re-designing sinking cities ‘from above’. This kind of knowledge, provided by a depoliticizing global network of consultants, designers, and development banks, privileges imaginaries of modernity and control using technology and engineering, as well as ideas on how populations in flood-prone areas are expected to govern themselves in the advent of rising sea levels. These imaginaries tend to marginalize alternative local adaptation practices, lead to unintended outcomes, and often discriminate against those who are already vulnerable to climate change impacts.

Repurposing public education: governmental rationality of education export in Finland through public education problematisations

ABSTRACT The Finnish government’s education export (FGEE) programme, which was initiated in 2010, seeks to promote and coordinate education as an export product. Until recently, research on the Finnish education export has focused on individual education sectors, with only passing consideration of the governmental rationality of education export. Drawing on Bacchi’s (2009) post-structural policy analysis, I use the FGEE documents as a material starting point, as ‘practical texts’ (Bacchi 2009, 34; Bacchi and Goodwin 2016, 34) to study how education export discourse problematises public education and produces a contextualised governmental rationality. Contributing to the growing body of knowledge on emerging global, national, and local public – private structures, the paper illustrates how minor policy strands such as the FGEE programme can be seen as production sites in which education practices and their governmental rationalities are constructed.

Spinozas Role in Reshaping the Concepts of Power and Rights of Freedom

This paper examines Spinoza's philosophical contributions to the discussion on democratic governance, emphasising his endorsement of individual autonomy, reason, and natural law, while also criticising authoritarianism. Spinoza's views provide valuable insights into the intricate relationship between human nature, societal structures, and political authority, within the context of historical discussions on freedom and governance. The research seeks to clarify the potential consequences of Spinoza's philosophical framework for modern political thought and practice through analysis. Spinoza argues that persons, being a part of nature, are subject to its laws and have intrinsic entitlements to self-preservation and liberty. He promotes the use of reason in guiding individual behaviour and society organisation, emphasising the significance of rational government. Nevertheless, Spinoza's theory exposes its shortcomings in addressing social disparities and systematic injustices, hence reproducing the biases prevalent throughout his day. Notwithstanding these limitations, his focus on rationality and freedom continues to have a significant impact on current debates over democracy, rights, and social justice. This study enhances our comprehension of the intricacies related to freedom, governance, and societal progress by conducting a thorough examination of Spinoza's works and relevant secondary sources.

Spinozas Role in Reshaping the Concepts of Power and Rights of Freedom

This paper examines Spinoza's philosophical contributions to the discussion on democratic governance, emphasising his endorsement of individual autonomy, reason, and natural law, while also criticising authoritarianism. Spinoza's views provide valuable insights into the intricate relationship between human nature, societal structures, and political authority, within the context of historical discussions on freedom and governance. The research seeks to clarify the potential consequences of Spinoza's philosophical framework for modern political thought and practice through analysis. Spinoza argues that persons, being a part of nature, are subject to its laws and have intrinsic entitlements to self-preservation and liberty. He promotes the use of reason in guiding individual behaviour and society organisation, emphasising the significance of rational government. Nevertheless, Spinoza's theory exposes its shortcomings in addressing social disparities and systematic injustices, hence reproducing the biases prevalent throughout his day. Notwithstanding these limitations, his focus on rationality and freedom continues to have a significant impact on current debates over democracy, rights, and social justice. This study enhances our comprehension of the intricacies related to freedom, governance, and societal progress by conducting a thorough examination of Spinoza's works and relevant secondary sources.

The End of 'Responsible Gambling': Reinvigorating Gambling Studies

This paper argues that gambling research has, since the neoliberal-inspired period of gambling legalisation in the late twentieth century, been dominated by a specific discourse, that of ‘responsible gambling’. This discourse originated in a conjunction of rationalities of government and capital, in the process of which commercial gambling was legitimated. Its liberalisation represented an extension of rationalities and technologies to form a new market from what had previously been an unlawful activity. The problems and harms associated with this liberalisation became subject to claims from some pockets of expertise, notably psy-sciences, and thus became a focus for analysis. As a consequence, gambling research has been characterised by a discourse of individual pathology as the focus of study. The orthodoxy formed from this discourse constitutes a system or apparatus of economic and quasi-medical power, in which reflexive relations between gambling operators, governments, charities, and some researchers, have been significant. These reflexive relations have largely constituted the field of gambling research. This paper contends that the orthodoxy of gambling research has failed to prevent harm arising from gambling and has restricted the expansion of knowledge. A systemic critique of the orthodox discourses and technologies that constitute much of gambling research is required to address these categories. This would also address a lack of diversity in theoretical framings of gambling research priorities. Alternative ways of conceptualising the problem of legalised gambling have emerged, most clearly under the discourse of ‘public health’. The current competition between these two discourses might be categorised as between an orthodoxy (‘responsible gambling’) and a heterodoxy (‘public health’). Extending the heterodoxy into a critical public health discourse may provide a basis for rapid expansion and diversification of the research field, particularly along paths that expand knowledge, facilitate effective regulation of harmful products, and prevent harm to individuals, communities, and populations.

Be strong, be confident: the rise of China and the 2022 Beijing Winter Games

ABSTRACT Drawing on promotional materials in 2007–2008 and in 2021–2022, this article examines both Olympics to explore how the state has evolved in its governmental rationalities, and the related cultural and political implications. The 2022 Winter Games, despite its comparatively low profile and challenges posed by Covid-19, provided the Chinese state with a key moment to advance its confidence doctrine. Three discourses were mobilised pertaining to, first, the CCP’s superb leadership and problem-solving skills; second, China’s mega-infrastructure; and, third, created + made in China. The 2022 Olympics thus mobilised three confidence-driven discourses: leadership confidence, techno-scientific confidence, and creative confidence. In doing so, the 2022 Olympics envisioned, narrated, and materialised the popular discursive signifiers – technology, green and sustainability, and the future – the authorities already actively promoted in its political initiatives and policies. This contributed to the inward-oriented beliefs of self-reliance and self-improvement. Where we witnessed in 2008 a sense of curiosity and openness, within China and the world at large, we now face the complexities, dangers, and cultural essentialism, if not narcissism, of a confident China.

Rendering development investible: The anti-politics machine and the financialisation of development

We critically engage with the so-called ‘Financialisation of Development’ and argue that such is neither automatic nor inexorable. We review and extend a body of recent research that underscores the extensive ‘work’ required by ‘big D’ Development actors to render target contexts legible, attractive, and amenable to private finance and investment. We introduce the framework of ‘rendering (Development) investible’ to help us unpack the attendant governmental rationality of Development institutions and professionals in the current financialised conjuncture. We reveal the drivers and primary characteristics of this rationality and we discuss its significant, yet unintended, consequences for Development thought and practice.

Counter Conduct and Autonomy Politics in the Era of Neoliberal Governmentality

ABSTRACT This study, first, explores the connections between neoliberal governmentality and neo-conservative nationalism, which breeds a global tendency of autocratization, from a Foucauldian perspective. Neoliberal rationality and strategy of governing is increasingly being encapsulated by the social and political hegemony which is under construction by contemporary forms of neo-conservative nationalism. We argue that both neoliberal governmentality and neo-conservative nationalism, as distinct but connected governmental rationalities, operate by way of minoritization. This power mechanism is questioned and opposed by the minoritized in their struggles for their dignity and autonomy. We define these struggles as contemporary forms of counter-conduct and bring cases from contemporary Turkey. Counter-memory practices, counter-archiving, artistic creativity, solidarity networks and collectives outside of market competition are significant here. The minoritized groups of people strive for self-definition, self-invention and self-determination beyond the imposed categorizations and limitations dictated by market competition and neo-conservative nationalism through these practices.

IJCM_48A: Nutritional Challenges in Tribal Infants: The Tragic Link to Beriberi and Mortality

Background: Infant mortality is a critical public health indicator that reflects the well-being of a population. In India, infant mortality remains a poignant challenge, reflecting the nation’s diverse healthcare landscape. Despite commendable strides in recent years, infants continue to face a higher risk of mortality, influenced by a complex interplay of factors such as maternal health, socioeconomic disparities, and limited access to quality healthcare. Currently in India NNMR-24.9, IMR-35.2 (NFHS 5), As the SVYM tribal RCH program was implemented in 3 districts (Mysore, Chamarajanagar & Kodagu Districts), recorded infant mortality in this area IMR- 62.93 (during Jan to Dec 2022), higher than the national average, most of infant deaths falls under are postneonatal deaths. This abstract will spotlight the impact of infant mortality in specific contexts, such as within tribal populations, considering unique socio-cultural aspects that influence health outcomes. Objectives: Identify factors responsible for infant deaths among tribal communities under intervention areas of SVYM Methodology: Identify factors responsible for infant deaths among tribal communities under intervention areas of SVYM Results: 73% of women who experienced infant deaths were aged <25 years, 8% were illiterate and 96% depended on daily wages. 99 % of Pregnant mothers received ANC check-ups. 95 % were institutional deliveries and 5 % were home delivery. Out of 75 infant deaths, 51% were male, and 49% were female, 51(68%) were low birth weight, 22(29%) infant deaths in Hdkote & 56(75%) were in Jenu kuruba, 2(3%) in Betta kuruba & Paniya. Age of infants during death, 46(61%) infant deaths (29 days to 6 months) and 4 deaths (6 to 12 months) were postneonatal, 12(16%) were early neonatal deaths,13 (17%) were Late neonatal death. 68% of infant deaths were at Home, 32% in hospitals. 29% of babies were admitted to NICU due to various reasons like 10(48%) LBW, 4(19%) preterm & Neonatal jaundice,1(3%) breathing difficulties, and 2(10%) not drinking milk and 88% started breastfeeding within 1 hour. As per verbal autopsy before the death Infants had the following symptoms, 55.47% breathing difficulty, 28.40 % fever, and excess crying, 24.30% cold, 18.9% vomiting, 14.90% cough, and change in voice 9.5%. Based on the FGD and personal interviews found that most of the tribes depend on the government rations in these high-risk regions, which results in Poor dietary diversity, food preparation, cooking practices, and traditional post-partum food restrictions. uncertainties surrounding the identification and assessment of thiamine deficiency, due to the broad non-specific clinical manifestations, that overlap with other conditions resulting in frequent misdiagnosis and missed treatment opportunities, and secondly the lack of readily available and agreed upon biomarker analysis. Conclusion: The prevalence of beriberi in tribal populations presents a pressing health concern that demands attention and targeted interventions. Remains an important public health problem where highly polished rice is the major staple food and other primary dietary sources of thiamine are in short supply. The impact of nutritional deficiency on infant mortality within these communities underscores the need for comprehensive strategies addressing both prevention and treatment. Education on nutrition, promotion of diverse and nutrient-rich diets, and accessibility to fortified foods or supplements can play pivotal roles in mitigating the risk of beriberi.

Evaluating the economic sustainability of commercial complex greening based on cost-benefit analysis: A case study of Singapore’s Shaw center

Commercial complex greening is the alternative to leading the greening development of public buildings, reducing the negative impact of buildings on the environment, and achieving sustainable development goals. However, the economic sustainability of commercial complex greening remains underinvestigated. This study investigated traditional building greening economic evaluation indicators and quantitative methods according to the characteristics of commercial complexes in to provide ideas on the economic evaluation of it to fill in the blanks of CBA analysis applied to the economics of greening systems of commercial buildings. Applying cost-benefit analysis, this study evaluated the economic sustainability of vertical greening systems (VGS) and green roof systems (GRS) installed on a commercial complex in Singapore using Net Present Value (NPV), Payback Period (PBP), and sensitivity analysis to quantify and integrate personal and social life cycle costs and benefits. The methodology was based on an extensive literature review in multiple fields and rational assumptions for unavailable data. The key findings were: 1) Commercial complex greening is a feasible investment. 2) VGS has a higher economic return value, whereas GRS can achieve faster payback. 3) Well-designed greening and vitality-boosting ideas bring more economic returns than tax incentives. 4) Property value improvement, maintenance cost, and fire risk reduction were sensitive factors affecting NPV, among which property value played a decisive role, especially for VGS. 5) Extensive construction and tax policies can reduce costs and improve the economy. 6) Personal benefits generated by greening are greater than social benefits. This critical case study of a commercial complex greening project provides greening developers and operators a better understanding of the economic competitiveness of commercial complex greening implementation to promote the market application and a rationale for governments to revise existing or formulate new measures to encourage the development of green industries. Although the conclusion of this study only focuses on the economic sustainability of greening in commercial complexes in Singapore due to sample size limitations, achieving a more significant localized evaluation is potential by collecting and replacing data corresponding to regions based on this research framework. Meanwhile, quantifying more economic indicators, comparing the economy of different greening modes in commercial complexes and arranging an international database about the economic sustainability of commercial complex greening are worth further exploration in the future.

Responsibility and innovation for low waste and circular economy transitions: what roles for households?

ABSTRACT The need for waste policy to embrace CE principles through measures to avoid waste generation and improve recycling rates can be understood within the broader context of sustainability transitions. We analyze three Australian waste policies to understand how households are framed as framing policy actors. Using a governance rationalities framework inspired by Hajer (2005) and Dryzek’s (2013) work on environmental governance, we identified four discursive structures, i.e. four different problem frames with suggested solutions, measures and responsibilities. These problem frames reveal an expanding role for government and industry in waste management, alongside a more passive role for households. While anticipating that households will undertake more sorting and will reduce the amount of waste they generate, the policies lack a coherent conceptualization of the role of households as actors in circular economy transitions in Australia. Our analysis highlights and helps to understand the discrepancy between high-level CE and zero-waste policy ambitions and their implementation in practice. We conclude with suggestions on how waste policy could benefit from deliberative approaches that engage with agency for social innovation and transformation in norms and practices at the household scale.

Exploring the interplay of discourses, jurisdictions and restratification in medicine and the implications for intraprofessional collaboration

This study builds on calls to explore the tensions and dynamics of intraprofessional collaboration and boundary work. It reaches beyond the literature describing the micro-level strategies deployed by physician subgroups to establish legitimacy and defend jurisdictions in the face of health care re-organization. Specifically, it offers a view of how macrosocial imperatives shape intraprofessional boundaries, relations, and the possibilities for collaboration. Drawing on empirical data from a case study of intraprofessional collaboration in caring for patients with diabetes - a clinical context in which patients commonly receive care from family physicians (FPs) and specialist physicians (SPs) – Foucault's concept of governmentality and the sociology of the professions are employed to make visible the sociohistorical construction of intraprofessional collaboration within discourses of evidence-based medicine, and its implications for the [re-]negotiation of professional jurisdictions and restratification of the medical profession. This analysis contributes to the intraprofessional literature through two analytical moves. First, it outlines the discursive mechanisms through which the meso-level deployment of the referral-consultation process provides an arena for SPs to maintain and reinforce their position of influence at both the micro-level of daily clinical work and across broader health care delivery. Second, it provides an understanding of how the transmission of governmental rationality in diabetes occurs through the social relations between SPs and FPs, making the restratification of medicine possible without tension or conflict.

Economic Transition Opportunities for Nigeria in joining the African Continental Free Trade Area.

This article explores the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and its implications for Nigeria. AfCFTA, established in 2018, aims to create a competitive single African market by eliminating tariffs and barriers, fostering economic growth, job creation, and industrialization. The nature of trade in Continental Africa has been more with the rest of other continents than within Africa. Then comes the question of what is standing on the way of inter and intra Africa trade. With trade we can unlock Africa growth and development and by so doing, we can improve per capita income in the continent and by so doing reduce poverty in Africa. The article discusses the objectives and challenges of AfCFTA, emphasizing the importance of infrastructure, regulatory harmonization, and trade facilitation. For Nigeria, Africa's largest economy, joining AfCFTA offers expanded market access, job opportunities, and economic diversification. The government's rationale for participation includes promoting industrialization, increasing export opportunities, and improving trade balance and foreign exchange reserves. The reality is that we all need each other to get the wheel of life going. Keywords: Globalization, AfCFTA, Regional Trade, Trade balance

Rationality and information advantage of the Japanese government’s construction forecasts over economic development

This study examines the rationality of Japanese government construction forecasts between 1960 and 2019 and investigates whether the construction forecasts have an information advantage over other government’s forecasts using a recently developed test under instabilities in forecasting environments. The Japanese government construction forecasts broadly served as a reliable benchmark for most of the economic development process until the 1990s. This finding suggests that those construction forecasts contributed to effective and careful resource allocation planning in the construction and related industries and to the Japanese economy’s post-war growth. There were, however, a few irrational construction forecasts after 2000, indicating that recent construction forecasts can be improved by incorporating information from the government’s macroeconomic forecasts. The results indicate that misleading results demonstrating that all forecasts were rational were obtained if relying on the standard rationality test. These findings also suggest that governmental agencies in various countries may benefit from publishing construction forecasts because those forecasts would contribute to promoting sustainable development and growth in construction industry, not only in advanced but also developing countries.

Governing street trading in post-apartheid Cape Town: neo-colonial or neo-liberal order?

ABSTRACT This article addresses the issue of the temporalities of public action in Cape Town, using the example of the governing of street trading since the early twentieth century. Our main argument lies in a discussion of the current understanding of the governance of street trading as a product of a neo-liberal regime reproducing the colonial order. Using the genealogical method of Foucault and his conceptualisation of neo-liberalism as a rationality of government, we show that although the instruments of control may remain the same (limitation of permits, spatial zoning and identification of traders), their political meaning has changed over time, reflecting a shift from coercion and repression to neo-liberal governmentality. We demonstrate empirically how neo-liberalisation operates through a transformation of the very rationality of these instruments. We conclude by emphasising that using Foucault’s definition of neo-liberalisation and method helps to build a theory of neo-liberal change for post-colonial contexts.

The Rise of the Individual Learner: Sociological Insights on the History of Student-Centred Learning

ABSTRACT Research on student-centred learning lacks analyses of sociohistorical developments. This article contributes to this niche by developing a sociologically designed draft of its major upheavals. Drawing on Foucault’s genesis of governmental rationalities, it links the emergence of educational subjectivations to processes of structural change. Within this scope, the transition from feudal to liberal and neoliberal principles led to problematisations and idealisations of heterogenous grouping in schools. As part of the differentiation of selective and integrative requirements, the school system became the central authority for the realisation of the objectives of different educational requirements. As flexibilisation paradigms gained widespread attention, personalised methods started to function as harmonisation mechanisms of competing demands. Tracing these paths provides important historical insights into the embeddedness of student-centred learning in structural power relations. In addition, these findings can clarify complex dimensions of current potentials of and challenges in individual education.

Utvecklingsarbete som styrteknik

Development work as governance technique - an analysis of how development leaders experience power in Swedish regional support and cooperation structures. In this article, we study the experiences of power carried out by regional development leaders in Swedish regional support and cooperation structures (RSS) within the state’s governance of social services. The article answers two questions regarding: 1) the development leaders’ experiences of power in vertical and horizontal control rationalities in governmental knowledge management, and 2) the significance these experiences have for their understanding and comprehension of governance. The context is the national strategy on the knowledge management of social services. Knowledge management is exercised through interaction between the state, regional structures, government agencies, and RSS, implemented as a partnership. Our analysis is based on a series of recurring group interviews carried out as research circles with six regional development leaders. The analysis model in the article is primarily based on concepts such as control rationality, social technologies, and the relational exercise of power as a manifestation of normative power through subtle forms of control. The analysis reveals that the development leaders’ diverse experiences with power are shaped by the underlying governance rationalities in their operating context. In horizontal governance, they describe feeling a sense of participation and autonomy. In contrast, their experience of vertical governance is characterised by a feeling that someone else is in control. Their understanding of how power is constructed influences how they perform governance. They define governance as development, meaning a governance technique that allows for action and a sense of participation. We argue that development work should be considered a subtle social technology based on relational power, which organisations and professionals should recognise and put into concrete action.