Publication Type
Journal Article
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
8-2022
Abstract
The Fukushima nuclear disaster was profoundly a man-made one, resulting from the organiza-tional failure of nuclear emergency preparedness. To fully understand the cause of this disaster, I propose to extend an organizational perspective on disasters into a macro-institutional perspec-tive on disaster preparedness. To this end, I borrow from science and technology studies the concepts of "sociotechnical imaginary" and "civic epistemology" to probe the deepest layers of meaning-making constitutive of disaster preparedness. I then apply these concepts to the history of nuclear energy in postwar Japan that was centered on the developmental state pursuing in-dustrial transformation. Specifically, I illustrate how the "pacifist imaginary" emphasized positive contributions of "the peaceful use of nuclear energy," legitimating a priori the promotion of nu-clear power as a means of economic development; and how the "technocratic epistemology" invoked the superior competencies of state bureaucrats and expert advisers, legitimating post hoc their disregard for the possibility of a severe accident. The imaginary and epistemology thus enabled the developmental state to pursue pro-nuclear policy by securing acquiescence from the majority of citizens and discrediting the minority of antinuclear activists - until the earthquake and tsunami exposed the preparedness failure in March 2011.
Keywords
Developmental state;Disaster governance;Organizational failure;Political economy;Regulatory capture;Science and technology studies
Discipline
Asian Studies | Emergency and Disaster Management | Political Economy | Politics and Social Change
Research Areas
Sociology
Publication
Poetics
Volume
93
First Page
1
Last Page
13
ISSN
0304-422X
Identifier
10.1016/j.poetic.2021.101594
Publisher
Elsevier: 24 months
Citation
SAITO, Hiro.(2022). The imaginary and epistemology of disaster preparedness: The case of Japan's nuclear safety failure. Poetics, 93, 1-13.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/soss_research/3788
Copyright Owner and License
Authors
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International License.
Additional URL
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.poetic.2021.101594
Included in
Asian Studies Commons, Emergency and Disaster Management Commons, Political Economy Commons, Politics and Social Change Commons