Controversy

One way to analyze the political values and beliefs that underlie decisions about science and technology is through the study of controversies, since it is during the course of disputes that vital concerns and hidden assumptions are clearly revealed.



Details of controversies can illustrate the reasoning and motivation behind public agencies, government officials, scientists and protest groups. They provide an understanding of science and technology policy, its social and political context and its public impact. They can also highlight social contradictions inherent in many decisions about science and technology, and the problems of developing public policies. In the second edition, the case material, originally written in 1978, is brought up to date and shows that the study of controversies is relevant today, since in each case the controversies have persisted or reemerged with new dimensions in the 1980s. They reflect fundamental moral and political dilemmas that are difficult to resolve in any lasting way.