Feelings of Discontent and the Promise of Middle Range Theory for STS: Examples from Technology Dynamics
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This article critically discusses the state of STS, expressing feelings of discontent regarding four aspects: policy relevance, conceptual language, too much focus on complexity, theoretical styles. Middle range theory is proposed as an alternative, promising avenue. Middle range theories focus on delimited topics, make explicit efforts to combine concepts, and search for abstracted patterns and explanatory mechanisms. The article presents achievements in that direction for technology dynamics, particularly with regard to the role of expectations, niche theory and radical innovation, and the multi-level perspective on sociotechnical transitions.
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NPT's explanatory focus and emphasis on human agency sets it apart from sociological theories of actor-networks.
“The explanatory focus of the theory, and its emphasis on human agency, sets it apart from sociological theories of actor-networks [12] that take ethnographic case studies at their primary method [13], wrongly attribute agency to things as well as people, and explicitly reject explanation in favour of description [11].”
From Development of a theory of implementation and integration: Normalization Process Theory (2009) · cites this paper as [13]
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- Authors
- Geels, F. W.
- Affiliations
- Eindhoven University of Technology (NL)
- Corresponding author
- Geels, Frank W.
- ORCID
- Geels, Frank W.
- Venue
- Science, Technology, & Human Values
- Publisher
- SAGE Publications
- Published
- 2007-11
- Volume
- 32
- Issue
- 6
- Pages
- 627-651
- ISSN
- 0162-2439 (ISSN-L)
- 1552-8251
- OpenAlex
- W2111912601
- Cited by
- 130
- References
- 56
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 8 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 8 · 2021: 9 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 9 · 2018: 5 · 2017: 9 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 3 · 2014: 15 · 2013: 11 · 2012: 5
- FWCI
- 8.93
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- Licence
- Locations
- Science Technology & Human Values (publishedVersion)
- TU/e Research Portal (publishedVersion)
- Research Explorer (The University of Manchester) (submittedVersion, public-domain)
- TU/e Research Portal (submittedVersion)
- Brunel University Research Archive (BURA) (Brunel University London) (submittedVersion)
- Figshare (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Innovation, Technology, and Society
- Physical Sciences › Environmental Science › Global and Planetary Change › Sustainability and Climate Change Governance
- Social Sciences › Decision Sciences › Management Science and Operations Research › Innovation Diffusion and Forecasting
- Keywords
- middle-range theory, science and technology studies, policy relevance, conceptual language, complexity, technological dynamics, expectations, niche theory, radical innovation, multi-level perspective, socio-technical transitions, explanatory mechanisms
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