Undone Science: Charting Social Movement and Civil Society Challenges to Research Agenda Setting

Abstract

‘‘Undone science’’ refers to areas of research that are left unfunded, incomplete, or generally ignored but that social movements or civil society organizations often identify as worthy of more research. This study mobilizes four recent studies to further elaborate the concept of undone science as it relates to the political construction of research agendas. Using these cases, we develop the argument that undone science is part of a broader politics of knowledge, wherein multiple and competing groups struggle over the construction and implementation of alternative research agendas. Overall, the study demonstrates the analytic potential of the concept of undone science to deepen understanding of the systematic nonproduction of knowledge in the institutional matrix of state, industry, and social movements that is characteristic of recent calls for a ‘‘new political sociology of science.’’

On the Suppression of Vaccination Dissent

“…Such gaps in research due to the influence of vested interests are called "undone science" (Frickel et al, 2010;Hess, 2006Hess, , 2009. The primary cause of undone science is the unwillingness of funding organizations to support research in the area, because the findings might be unwelcome.…”

Toxic Space and Time: Slow Violence, Necropolitics, and Petrochemical Pollution

“…Just as STS scholars have pushed for a focus on the politics of "undone science" (Frickel et al 2010;Hess 2016), so, too, might we consider the everyday realities of undone environmental justice. Although Cancer Alley is arguably one of the most prominent sites of environmental justice activism and research (Allen 2003;Mah 2015), even here cases of environmental injustice abound, with countless overlooked communities remaining exposed to unfair levels of toxic chemicals and environmental justice being uneven or simply undone.…”

“…By drawing on Berlant's (2007) work on the unremarkable nature of contemporary violence, I highlight how slow observation is a critical means through which polluted communities understand the lived reality of persistent environmental threats. Finally, reflecting on the idea of "undone science" (see Frickel et al 2010;Hess 2016), I suggest that being able to harness slower registers of witnessing pollution could present new possibilities of doing undone environmental justice.…”

Smart Farming: Including Rights Holders for Responsible Agricultural Innovation

“…To many decisionmakers, this area of "undone science" (Frickel et al, 2010) is not controversial but reflects the market, with technological trajectories, for example, following those who can pay. The data scientist quoted above puts it this way:…”