300452 Expertise in Transition. Knowing and Governing in an Uncertain World (MA: Politische Soziologie) (S) (WiSe 2026/2027)

Expertise plays a significant role in shaping how societies respond to sustainability crises such as climate change, biodiversity loss, and plastic pollution. The seminar explores expertise from two different angles: Some emphasize the tense relationships between expertise and politics, the struggles for credibility and authority in modern democracies and, ultimately, the ‘crisis of expertise’ (Eyal 2019) within an increasingly uncertain society. Confronted with such transitions of expertise, scholars highlight the societal demand for more collaborative forms of knowledge production, and call for shifts towards participatory, inter- and transdisciplinary formats. Conversely, the possibilities of transition by expertise are emphasized when societies are confronted with global challenges and call urgently for knowledge provided by ‘expertise for social transformation’ (Lidskog et al. 2022). These partially conflicting, partially intersecting discussions mirror the fundamental ‘authority paradox’ (Bijker et al. 2009) of expertise in an uncertain world: especially in areas in which expert advice is demanded most urgently, its authority is questioned most severely. In the seminar, we will discuss the most recent literature on transitions of and by expertise. We will also explore these tensions by developing case studies within areas of socio-ecological transformation such as environmental and sustainability policy. The seminar also offers opportunities for methodological discussions on the design of single and comparative case studies.

Bibliography

Introductory literature:
Bijker, W. E., Bal, R., & Hendriks, R. (2009). The Paradox of Scientific Authority. The Role of Scientific Advice in Democracies. MIT Press.
Eyal, G. (2019). The Crisis of Expertise. Polity Press.
Lidskog, R., Standring, A., & White, J. M. (2022). Environmental expertise for social transformation: roles and responsibilities for social science. Environmental Sociology, 8(3), 255-266. https://doi.org/10.1080/23251042.2022.2048237