ENGAGEMENT OF ENGINEERS IN SCIENCE POLICY

The issues of our time, increasingly laden with science and technology, are generally resolved by elected leaders as matters of public policy. With such decisions, questions arise as to how political leaders deal with complex technical content. All technologies carry side effects, some with such high risks that costs of error are unacceptable. For this and other reasons, a practice has evolved over the past few decades of science policy research, drawing on individuals from the technical professions, but requiring additional capacities to interpret and translate purely factual information in terms of social, economic, legal, political and ecological repercussions. The writer explains the nature of science policy research, the functions of science and technology advisors, and how engineers, if they are to engage in science policy affairs, must reinforce their expertise with a broad understanding of the socio-political process. The paper concludes with a discussion of social responsibilities of engineers as members of a profession to develop both aptitudes and attitudes to enrich their practice by better understanding of the social context.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/07339380
• Corporate Authors:

  American Society of Civil Engineers

  345 East 47th Street
  New York, NY  United States  10017-2398
• Authors:
  • Wenk Jr, E W
• Publication Date: 1986-10

Media Info

• Features: References;
• Pagination: p. 260-268
• Serial:
  • Journal of Professional Issues in Engineering
  • Volume: 112
  • Issue Number: 4
  • Publisher: American Society of Civil Engineers
  • ISSN: 0733-9380

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Engineers; Impact studies; Policy making; Research; Science; Technology; Utilization
• Subject Areas: Administration and Management; Highways; Policy; Research; I10: Economics and Administration;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00458497
• Record Type: Publication
• Report/Paper Numbers: ASCE Paper 20986
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Oct 31 1986 12:00AM