Diversifying the Deliberative Turn: Toward an Agonistic RRI

In its “deliberative turn,” the field of science and technology studies (STS) has strongly advocated opening up decision-making processes around to more perspectives knowledges. While theory democracy underpinning this is rarely explicitly addressed, language ideas used are often drawn from deliberative democracy. Using case synthetic biology Responsible Research Innovation (RRI), paper looks at challenges public engagement finds parallels in long-standing critiques The suggests that STS scholars explore other theories explores what an RRI grounded agonistic pluralism might entail. An could develop empirical research questions power relations contemporary technology, seek facilitate formation political publics relevant issues, frame different actors’ stances as adversarial positions on a rather than “equally valid” perspectives.