Worldviews and discursive construction of GMO-related risk perceptions in Turkey

Giuseppe A. Veltri, Ahmet K. Suerdem

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

20 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

This paper analyses the discursive construction of the genetically modified organisms (GMOs) issue in the Turkish political arena following the public debate on the pending legislation on biosecurity. The study proposes an operational approach to semiotic/actor network theory (Latour) applied to public representations of a new technology within the theoretical frameworks of social representation theory and cultural theory of risks. It aims to highlight how different worldviews produce different risk discourses of GMOs in Turkey. Using cluster analysis to inductively extract evaluative categories, we use these to identify themes by human coding. Lastly, we apply formal concept analysis to link themes to actors and their worldviews, establishing their semantic networks. Formal concept analysis revealed four discourse networks reflecting nationalist, Islamist, progressive (left) and neo-liberal worldviews. Finally, these structures will be grounded back in the articles for a richer interpretive analysis.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)137-154
Number of pages18
JournalPublic Understanding of Science
Volume22
Issue number2
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 15 Nov 2013

Keywords

  • actor network theory
  • biotechnology and culture
  • risk perception
  • social representations
  • Turkey

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