Abstract
This thesis has drawn inspiration from science and technology studies to explore the dynamic relationship between science and policy with a specific case study of seismic risk management in China’s ‘fragmented authoritarian’ state. This thesis examines the specific contexts shaping the production, communication, and use of risk information products by focusing on three science-based policy instruments for earthquake management: earthquake forecasts and prediction cards; seismic ground motion parameter zonation maps; site seismic safety assessments.This thesis identifies a series of challenges to earthquake risk management including well-discussed interaction problems between science and policy and specific challenges stemming from the fragmented structure of authorities in China and its matrix model of governance, which involves extensive inter-departmental and inter-personal negotiation of both vertical (tiao) and horizontal (kuai) relationships within the Chinese party-state. This thesis also uncovers how earthquake scientific knowledge shapes, and is shaped by, power relationships that are negotiated through the policy implementation process and cadre accountability systems. The thesis concludes that effective earthquake risk reduction and management in China depend not simply on enhancing the scientific capacity to assess, quantify, and predict the risk of earthquakes and other disasters but also on the capacity to overcome barriers to interdepartmental communication and cooperation. This study provides an important case for exploring wider concerns about interactions of science and policy in disaster risk reduction. By doing do, it not only broadens our understanding of science and policy, but also improves our understanding of the development and application of science in and for disaster risk reduction.
| Date of Award | 1 Mar 2024 |
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| Original language | English |
| Awarding Institution |
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| Supervisor | David Demeritt (Supervisor) |