The Journal of Deliberative Mechanisms in Science

List of Reviewers 2014

2016-07-14T19:24:24+02:00

Full Issue July 2016

2016-07-14T18:47:21+02:00

The Little Green Book [Review of the book Participatory Action Research]

2016-07-14T18:26:59+02:00

Public Controversy and Partisan Deliberation

2016-07-14T18:06:11+02:00

Public scientific controversies are often the enemy of deliberation, because debating and winning take precedence over an open-minded examination of options. Nevertheless, forms of deliberation do occur throughout controversies, including what can be called “partisan deliberation” in which campaigners on each side of an issue refine and coordinate their respective positions. As well, there are other opportunities for deliberation created by controversies, though the conditions are far from ideal.

Science Communication in India: An Assessment

2016-07-14T19:13:07+02:00

The paper explores science communication through diverse cultures in pre and post independent India. India is known for her early scientific wisdom and scientific heritage. Several sages and scholars have worked on medicinal, mathematical, agricultural, and other sciences, in Indian subcontinent during ancient and medieval periods. They had composed volumes based on self-earned experiences, using various means of communication, like oral communication, Guru-Shishya-Parampara (teacher-pupil tradition) of learning and dissemination of information through interaction. The tradition of oral communication continued through generations, in addition to knowledge creation. Then the modern science communication emerged. Publication of scientific books started in 1800 AD at Shreerampur in English, Bengali and Hindi. The historical perspective of science communication has remained almost untouched by researchers, except an attempt on scientific terminologies by Sharma (1964) and agricultural journalism by Parasar (1980), besides a few more research articles. The author of this paper worked thoroughly on The Origin and Evolution of Science Communication in India with comparative account in other parts of the world and published a book Hindi Vigyan Patrakarita (Hindi Science Journalism) in 1990, the first book on science communication in India, translated in different Indian languages, paving the way for other academics. The paper emphasizes on pioneering developments in various aspects of early and modern science communication and discusses the relevance and need of science communication by pointing out policy measures taken by the state. Finally, the paper summarizes the role of various individuals India.

Quo Vadis – Citizen Participation in Germany

2016-07-14T18:04:36+02:00

Even though the discourse about citizen participation in Germany is influenced by the international context, it contains some specific German peculiarities. For example, in Germany there is a strong interdependence between the protest culture, the public discourse about democracy, and scientific research activities. This dependence has had a very strong impact on the participative structures in Germany. This article considers how these three social spheres have developed since the 1950s. While some parts of the German society were in favor for more citizen participation, the development of this idea took almost 50 years to spread. Today there is almost a unison demand for it not only within the public but also across all relevant parties. In this context, the article addresses some current discourses about the realization of participative processes in Germany. Finally, promising approaches and currently open questions, which might be important in the future, are discussed.

Implementing the Concept of Public Engagement with Science and Technology: Visions and Reflections on Practice

2016-07-14T18:43:48+02:00

Public engagement with science and technology has been increasingly recognized as desirable for proper management of the social and environmental challenges facing humanity. However, achieving an effective public participation in science and technology has proven to be a quite complex objective and one that is difficult to fully reach. Several bodies have tried to implement public participation, resulting in different proposals on ways to “do engagement”. Identifying differences and similarities between those proposals and examining their assumptions and implications can contribute to rethink and to adjust future actions. This article presents a reflection on the purposes that public engagement with science and technology should serve, who to involve, how, when and which methods to use to assess the impacts of participation, as well as on the limits of participatory processes.