Penser la démocratisation de la gouvernance des sciences. Analyse critique de l’idéal de « science bien ordonnée » développé par Philip Kitcher dans son ouvrage Science, vérité et démocratie et formulation d’une proposition alternative

The strong tensions that develop between modern science as practiced in our rich countries and the underlying democratic ideals of these societies create a series of political dilemmas that are to be regulated and addressed by the philosopher of science. In Science, Truth and Democracy, Philip Kitcher thus proposes to investigate the role of sciences in a democratic society. Elaborating a new conception of the notion of scientific significance allows him to expose the mixed nature of research. This point, underlining the necessity to consider ethical and social values embedded in the scientific practice, is pivotal: if science is chasing multiple objectives dictated by the contingency of human interests and capacities, then society can legitimately contribute to the definition of these objectives. Trying to design an ideal way of regulating free inquiry leads Kitcher to propose a model of science governance based on a form of enlightened democracy: the ideal of “well-ordered science”. However, this ideal can be criticized. Kitcher indeed focuses on the value of science, and neglects the influence of values on science. Taking a substantive rather than procedural model as a basis leads him to design an unachievable ideal ultimately threatening the democratic ideals he wishes to promote. We then try to extend his thinking by aiming at determining in which way to order sciences so as to democratically identify and promote the collective good, according to the ambition of developing a political philosophy of science more deeply rooted in concrete facts. As a way to achieve this goal, we design a viable deliberative system of science governance that integrates a set of measures aimed at regulating the scientific practice, maximizes the democratic values of deliberation and political equality, and thinks through the role and position of experts. ; Les fortes tensions qui se créent entre la science moderne telle qu’elle est pratiquée dans nos pays riches et les idéaux démocratiques sous-jacents de ces sociétés sont à ...