Escaping the technocratic paradigm. Introducing transformative learning to structured deliberation
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2015-08-25
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en
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The role of experts in society and decision-making processes becomes increasingly important. Experts have become so important, that they seem to change the character of democracy. Instead of democratic decision-making, decision-making seem to become technocratic. Moreover, society as a whole seems to be captured by a specific rationale, one that is part of a technocratic paradigm. Notwithstanding the important instrumental value of experts, the increasing importance of and dependence on them carries several disadvantages. These disadvantages are, however, not accounted for in theories of deliberative democracy. This is unfortunate, since deliberative designs could at the same time provide a way to withstand the technocratic paradigm, because they emphasize the importance of including citizens in the decision-making process. In order to assess whether deliberative democracy could withstand the technocratic paradigm, this thesis investigates the role of experts in deliberative democracy. It will show that deliberative democracy has the theoretical potential to counter the technocratic paradigm, but that structured deliberation in its current form sustains the paradigm instead. To overcome this problem, I will argue for including transformative learning, through an explorational dialogue and with a facilitator who guides the structured deliberation process.
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen