The role of narratives in socio-technical transitions—Fukushima and the energy regimes of Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom

Hermwille, Lukas

doi:10.1016/j.erss.2015.11.001

Cited by 173 publications

(91 citation statements)

References 58 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Unclassified

Order By: Relevance

“…18 The accident also hardened negative public attitudes towards nuclear power, leading to an institutionalization of views that had been advanced by an active anti-nuclear movement in preceding years. 19 This discursive 'crack' in the regime was plastered over by successive Conservative-Liberal governments, who continued to support nuclear power.…”

Section: Socio-technical Analysis Of the German Electricity Transitiomentioning

confidence: 99%

The Socio-Technical Dynamics of Low-Carbon Transitions

Geels

Sovacool

Schwanen

et al. 2017

Joule

414

198

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

SummaryEffective mitigation of climate change will require far-reaching transformations of electricity, heat, agricultural, transport and other systems. The energy studies and modelling research that so often dominates academic and policy debates provide valuable insights into these transitions, but remain constrained by their focus on rational decision-making and their neglect of non-linear dynamics and broader social processes. This review paper describes insights from a complementary socio-technical approach that addresses the interdependent social, political, cultural, and technical processes of transitions. Focusing on the 'Multi-Level Perspective' (MLP), transitions are conceptualized as arising from the alignment of processes within and between three analytical levels: niche-innovations, socio-technical regimes and the socio-technical landscape. This analytical framework is illustrated with a case study of the German electricity transition and used to appraise lowcarbon transitions in several other sectors. We end by articulating four lessons for managing lowcarbon transitions.

show abstract

Section: Socio-technical Analysis Of the German Electricity Transitiomentioning

confidence: 99%

The Socio-Technical Dynamics of Low-Carbon Transitions

Geels

Sovacool

Schwanen

et al. 2017

Joule

414

198

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This underscores that although narratives are important policy-making variables, they express both ideas and interests, and that a key motivation for storytelling by policy-makers is to build alliances and undermine sources of opposition (Carstensen & Schmidt, 2016). Additionally, understanding the nature of conflicts in policy debates (which and whose ideas are being legitimated or alienated) aids in identifying narratives for reducing polarisation (Hermwille, 2016). The connection between narratives and the evidential "truth" is questionable within any debate (Roe, 1994), but a narrative must be seen as legitimate by influential actors to gain influence (Czarniawska-Joerges & Jacobsson, 1995).…”

Section: Policy Narratives and Policy Changementioning

confidence: 98%

Changing the record: Narrative policy analysis and the politics of emissions trading in New Zealand

Inderberg

Bailey

2019

Env Pol Gov

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Representations created by the media are a key factor setting the public and policy agenda of energy issues in contemporary societies [23]. They build public discourses and narratives that are vehicles of meaning and intermediation between individual and social spheres [33]. Media representations create shared awareness of landscape-level megatrends and boundary conditions of energy systems.…”

Section: Energy Transitions and Media Representationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy transition looming behind the headlines? Newspaper coverage of biogas production in Finland

et al. 2018

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background: Media coverage can play an important part in energy transitions. It creates awareness of landscapelevel megatrends affecting energy systems. It influences and is influenced by public and policy agendas on a regime level. On a niche level, it can spread or screen out information and motivate or discourage actors to adopt new technologies and practices. However, relatively few studies have specifically addressed the role of media in energy transitions. Newspaper coverage of biogas is studied here as a case of media framing of a potential renewable energy solution.Methods: This article examines the long-term development of newspaper coverage of biogas in Finland. The aim of the quantitative content analysis is to draw an overall picture of the main phases of biogas coverage of a widely read newspaper focusing on agriculture and forestry, actors using discursive power in this coverage and key framings of the discussion. The results are discussed from the perspective of energy transition studies. In particular, future expectations created by the media are explored. Results: The results show a lack of newspaper coverage on biogas in the early 2000s, followed by a rapid increase and stabilisation of the volume of newspaper coverage. Biogas was most often mentioned as a secondary topic of broader discussions related to renewable energy. The core discussion focusing on biogas was characterised by very positive framings of biogas as a preferable energy solution fully compatible with the principle of circular economy. The news stories often had a strong future orientation, and examples of enthusiastic forerunners were frequently presented. However, the coverage also emphasised the poor economic profitability of biogas technologies and a need for considerable public subsidies that are inherently unpredictable.Conclusions: The future of niche-level energy technologies such as biogas can be strongly shaped by information flows, public perceptions and expectations created in part by media coverage. The analysed newspaper coverage in Finland was ambivalent from the perspective of energy transition. On the one hand, biogas production was represented as a preferable, environmentally friendly niche-level energy technology that should be encouraged. On the other hand, by emphasising the economic unviability of biogas technologies, the analysed newspaper coverage did not promote the adoption of biogas.

show abstract

The role of narratives in socio-technical transitions—Fukushima and the energy regimes of Japan, Germany, and the United Kingdom

Cited by 173 publications

References 58 publications

The Socio-Technical Dynamics of Low-Carbon Transitions

The Socio-Technical Dynamics of Low-Carbon Transitions

Changing the record: Narrative policy analysis and the politics of emissions trading in New Zealand

Energy transition looming behind the headlines? Newspaper coverage of biogas production in Finland

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About