Critical Elitism
Deliberation, Democracy, and the Problem of Expertise
Published on 23. January 2020
Book
Paperback/Softback
224 pages
978-1-316-64625-0 (ISBN)
Description
Democracies have a problem with expertise. Expert knowledge both mediates and facilitates public apprehension of problems, yet it also threatens to exclude the public from consequential judgments and decisions located in technical domains. This book asks: how can we have inclusion without collapsing the very concept of expertise? How can public judgment be engaged in expert practices in a way that does not reduce to populism? Drawing on deliberative democratic theory and social studies of science, Critical Elitism argues that expert authority depends ultimately on the exercise of public judgment in a context in which there are live possibilities for protest, opposition and scrutiny. This account points to new ways of looking at the role of civil society, expert institutions, and democratic innovations in the constitution of expert authority within democratic systems. Using the example of climate science, Critical Elitism highlights not only the risks but also the benefits of contesting expertise.
Reviews / Votes
'In this illuminating book, Alfred Moore argues persuasively that democracy requires not only active participation, but also reflective judgments about expert authority by those who choose not to participate. Critical Elitism offers a nuanced and important contribution to the study of expertise and democracy.' Mark B. Brown, California State University, SacramentoMore details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Cambridge
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Product notice
Paperback (trade)
Illustrations
Worked examples or Exercises; 1 Line drawings, black and white
Dimensions
Height: 229 mm
Width: 152 mm
Thickness: 12 mm
Weight
304 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-316-64625-0 (9781316646250)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
06/2017
Cambridge University Press
€122.50
Shipment within 15-20 days
Person
Alfred Moore is a research fellow at Cambridge University, at the Centre for Research in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. He has published in a wide range of journals, including Political Studies, Critical Review, the Journal of Political Philosophy, Episteme, Economy and Society, and Public Understanding of Science, among others.
Content
Acknowledgements; Introduction; 1. Two faces of epistemic democracy; 2. Democracy and problem of expertise; 3. Political and epistemic authority; 4. The problem of judgment; 5. Contestation; 6. Consensus; 7. Institutional innovations; Conclusion; References; Index.