Scientists, Knowledge, and Coalitions: A Discourse Network Analysis of Offshore Wind Debates
Aerang Nam
What the paper says
What role do scientists play in providing policy knowledge in public debates? Drawing on the Advocacy Coalition Framework, this study examines how scientists express elements of policy knowledge—namely, policy problems, causal explanations, and expected impacts—within a contentious offshore wind policy debate in the United States. Utilizing a combined dataset of 1275 policy statements from news articles and public meeting testimonies, the study applies statistical network analysis, offering a methodological contribution to policy research. The findings show that scientists, though often viewed as neutral actors, tend to align with coalitions, distinguish themselves by emphasizing policy problems and causes supported by evidence, and play a more central role when government policy positions oppose those of their coalition. This study advances understanding of scientists' behavior as coalition members in policy conflicts and highlights the distinctive character of their policy discourse.
Evidence weight
Balanced mode · F 0.40 / M 0.15 / V 0.05 / R 0.40
| F · citation impact | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
| M · momentum | 0.50 × 0.15 = 0.07 |
| V · venue signal | 0.50 × 0.05 = 0.03 |
| R · text relevance † | 0.50 × 0.4 = 0.20 |
† Text relevance is estimated at 0.50 on the detail page — for your query’s actual relevance score, open this paper from a search result.