Epistemic Governance: Social Change In The Modern World

195 Pages·2019·2.568 MB·English

by  Pertti Alasuutari, Ali Qadir

Epistemic Governance
SOCIAL CHANGE IN THE MODERN WORLD
Pertti Alasuutari and Ali Qadir
Epistemic Governance
Pertti Alasuutari · Ali Qadir
Epistemic Governance
Social Change in the Modern World
Pertti Alasuutari Ali Qadir
Tampere University Tampere University
Tampere, Finland Tampere, Finland
ISBN 978-3-030-19149-8 ISBN 978-3-030-19150-4 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19150-4
© The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s) 2019
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Preface
This book is based on our research over more than ten years on governance and
social change. Inspired by Michel Foucault’s work and later by the world society
theory tradition, our theorizing first focused on the domestication of global trends
but went much further in proposing a way to understand change processes more
broadly. Related to that, we started using the term “epistemic governance” in 2012
when working on a research project application. A theory paper on the concept was
eventually published in two separate articles, the first one laying out the foundations
for the framework and discussing objects of epistemic work (Alasuutari & Qadir,
2014) and the second one focusing on imageries of the social world in epistemic
governance (Alasuutari & Qadir, 2018). This groundwork then led to a view of
authority as epistemic capital, elaborated in a theory article (Alasuutari, 2018). The
first chapters of this book draw from these three articles, but readers who are inter-
ested in a more elaborate discussion of the theoretical framework introduced here
are asked to consult the original texts.
The basic point of the epistemic governance framework is that all governance
functions by taking into account the way in which people think about the world,
and then acting upon it. It turns out to be a remarkably effective point in open-
ing up the dynamics of social change and governance. In the course of empirical
applications, we quickly realized that the framework does not just lay out a theory
of social change; it is also a methodological guide to designing unique and reveal-
ing social research. Rooted in our shared inspiration from Michel Foucault’s stud-
ies into power and knowledge, the methodology is based on discourse analysis to
open up processes of change.
The formulation, application, and methodological evolution have been greatly
enriched by our work over the past decade in the Tampere Research Group for
Cultural and Political Sociology (TCuPS). Members of that research group have
used epistemic governance in a dizzying range of cases and have contributed to
v
vi Preface
the theoretical rigor as well as research design tips. Doctoral research supervised
in the group has, likewise, been very important in making the framework robust.
The group also runs a Master’s Degree Program in Global and Transnational
Studies at Tampere University, where students have been applying epistemic gov-
ernance in an array of theses.
Pulling all of these developments together and reflecting on them, we realized
that we had more than enough reason to share our excitement about this frame-
work with colleagues in the research community. Our intention in this book is to
present the theory of epistemic governance to the community in one, consolidated
version for the first time. Drawing together the theoretical architecture and illus-
trating it with new analyses, this book also spells out the methodological path-
ways for guiding future research using the framework.
We have accumulated a number of intellectual debts over the past four plus
years since epistemic governance first appeared as a provisional theory of social
change. Of course, our research group, TCuPS, is very much a part of refining
the theory and methodology. In addition, the group’s members have given gen-
erously of their time and commitment to reviewing the chapters of this book. It
is no exaggeration to say that this book would not have been possible without
the generosity and insightful contribution of all TCuPS members. Additionally,
we are grateful for input from a number of engaged scholars, including Lisa
Adkins, Ricca Edmondson, Selina Gallo-Cruz, Gili Drori, Mark Haugaard, Risto
Heiskala, Ann Hironaka, Risto Kunelius, John Meyer, Francisco Ramirez, Isaac
Reed, Evan Schofer, and George Thomas. Institutionally, our university—Tam-
pere University—has provided all the facilities, space, and encouragement we
could have hoped for when writing this book. Our work specifically on this book
has been enabled by an Academy of Finland Professorship and a research project
grant to Pertti Alasuutari, as well as an Academy of Finland research grant to Ali
Qadir: We gratefully acknowledge this support.
Tampere, Finland Pertti Alasuutari
Ali Qadir
References
1. Alasuutari, P. (2018). Authority as Epistemic Capital. Journal of Political Power, 11(2),
165–190. https://doi.org/10.1080/2158379X.2018.1468151.
2. Alasuutari, P., & Qadir, A. (2014a). Epistemic Governance: An Approach to the Politics
of Policy-making. European Journal of Cultural and Political Sociology, 1(1), 67–84.
https://doi.org/10.1080/23254823.2014.887986.
Preface vii
3. Alasuutari, P., & Qadir, A. (2014b). Introduction. In P. Alasuutari & A. Qadir (Eds.),
National Policy-Making: Domestication of Global Trends (pp. 1–22). London: Rout-
ledge.
4. Alasuutari, P., & Qadir, A. (Eds.). (2014c). National Policy-Making: Domestication of
Global Trends. London: Routledge.
Contents
1 Introduction ............................................... 1
The Epistemic Governance Approach ............................ 4
Scope of the Epistemic Governance Approach ..................... 9
But, Is Governance “Just” Epistemic? ........................... 11
Structure of the Book ........................................ 14
References ................................................. 16
2 Epistemic Work ............................................ 21
Objects of Epistemic Work .................................... 22
Objects of Epistemic Work … at Work ........................... 30
References ................................................. 34
3 Imageries of the Social World ................................ 37
Metaphors to Imageries: A Cultural Approach to Social Change
in World Society ............................................ 40
Imageries .................................................. 42
Imageries and Governance .................................... 51
References ................................................. 53
4 Authority as Epistemic Capital ............................... 59
Four Types of Authority ...................................... 61
Amassing and Institutionalizing Authority ........................ 71
Discussion ................................................. 73
References ................................................. 75
5 International Organizations .................................. 79
Previous Research on the Role of IGOs in Global Governance ........ 81
The Epistemic Governance Approach to IGOs ..................... 86
ix
x Contents
Accumulation of Authority .................................... 94
Conclusion ................................................ 97
References ................................................. 100
6 Parliaments ............................................... 105
“Us”-Talk: Building the Nation ................................ 109
Identifications, Knowledge Production, and Values ................. 118
Conclusion ................................................ 121
References ................................................. 122
7 Social Movements and NGOs ................................. 125
The Occupation of Wall Street ................................. 125
So … Nothing Happened? .................................... 127
Social Change and Cycles of Protest ............................ 129
Norms and Ideals in Social Movements: An Epistemic
Governance Perspective ...................................... 133
Social Movements as Moral Authorities .......................... 143
References ................................................. 145
8 Epistemic Governance as a Methodological Tool Kit ............. 149
Situating Epistemic Governance Methodology in Foucauldian
Discourse Analysis .......................................... 151
Sites of Change ............................................. 154
Methods and Data ........................................... 158
Objects of Epistemic Work and Imageries ........................ 161
What Next? ................................................ 164
References ................................................. 166
References ................................................... 169
Index ........................................................ 189
1
Introduction
In the months leading up to the invasion of Normandy, a turning point in World
War II, the Allies conducted a substantial military deception. In the carefully
planned Operation Bodyguard, the Allied forces deceived the Germans into think-
ing Normandy is a diversion and that the Pas de Calais is the main invasion target.
To create this illusion, a fictitious First US Army Group was invented, suppos-
edly located in Kent and Sussex. The Allies constructed dummy tanks, trucks, and
landing craft, and positioned them near the coast. Several real military units also
moved into the area. In addition to the broadcast of fake radio traffic, genuine
radio messages were first routed to Kent via landline and then broadcast, to give
the Germans the impression that most of the Allied troops were stationed there.
The deception suggesting that the Normandy landings were a diversion led Hitler
to delay sending reinforcements from the Pas de Calais region for nearly seven
weeks.
The story of Operation Bodyguard (see, e.g., Barbier, 2007; Holt, 2010) is a
good example of the role of deception in warfare. To affect the enemy’s expecta-
tions, moves, and counterstrategies, military leaders try to hide their real aims and
tactics: They produce fake objects and information and camouflage real material
to appear fake or decoy. But such signaling games are not just about deception.
Acts of violence are also a means to send a signal in several ways. A military
operation or a military exercise is a way to demonstrate an army’s strength and
capability and to issue a warning. Before a combat, soldiers also paint their faces
to look frightening, and armies employ many tactics to cause panic among the
objects of an attack.
The reason for the importance of signaling in all manner of battles and
struggles is that actors’ expectations of and responses to the other party’s moves
depend on their conception of the situation at hand. Consider the i nteraction
© The Author(s) 2019 1
P. Alasuutari and A. Qadir, Epistemic Governance,
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-19150-4_1