Participation and the construction of social acceptability: fantasy or reality?

Abstract

This article reviews the origins of the notion of social acceptability before describing the participatory strategies associated with it. Some of these strategies are more akin to manipulation than to a desire for co-construction. Through two case studies on the implementation of technological innovations, the article presents ways to avoid this pitfall. In each case, the approaches have made it possible to clarify the debate on a public problem and open up a space of choice in which several technical solutions have become debatable.