Habermas, empowerment, and professional discourse

Technical Communication Quarterly Mar 1994

Habermas, empowerment, and professional discourse

Nancy Roundy Blyler Iowa State University

Abstract

This essay uses Jürgen Habermas' theory of communicative action to explore the issue of empowerment. The essay first describes a communicative situation now common in public life, where scientific and technological forces are arrayed against citizenry over concerns with public import. Next, the essay discusses Habermas' critique of communicative practices and his vision of the way in which the technocratic consciousness has usurped communicative action in social life. Third, the essay applies Habermas' theory to the situation previously described, supporting the claim that in such situations empowerment may remain only a communicative ideal.

Journal: Technical Communication Quarterly
Published: 1994-03-01
DOI: 10.1080/10572259409364562
Open Access: Closed
Topics: professional writing

Citation Context

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Cites in this index (3)

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Aristotle's Rhetoric, Hitler's Program, and the Ideological Problem of Praxis, …

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