Wangel, Josefin
- Royal Institute of Technology (KTH)
Abstract
This paper examines how social structures and agency have been included in backcasting studies for sustainable development. For this purpose an analytical framework was developed, based on what objects of change (whats), measures (hows) and change agents (whos) are included in the scenario, and to which extent these are approached in an explorative way. Through reviewing a number of backcasting studies it was found that these typically are built upon and elaborated with a predominant focus on the questions of what and how physical/technical aspects could change. Social objects of change and explicit representation or analysis of the question of who could change is rarely included in the analysis. This unbalance brings a number of implications. Firstly, not including social structures and agency obstructs developing socio-technically consistent and comprehensive scenarios. Secondly, through not addressing the questions of how to change and change by whom in an explicit and explorative way, social structures and agency become represented only implicitly and/or are maintained according to the status quo. (C) 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Keywords
Backcasting; Socio-technical; Social; Agency; Change agent
Published in
Technological Forecasting and Social Change
2011, volume: 78, number: 5, pages: 872-882
Publisher: ELSEVIER SCIENCE INC
SLU Authors
UKÄ Subject classification
Other Social Sciences not elsewhere specified
Publication identifier
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.techfore.2011.03.007
Permanent link to this page (URI)
https://res.slu.se/id/publ/84231