Actor Network Theory and Social Science: possibilities and implications

Abstract

This paper explores the possibilities and implications of Actor-network theory (ANT). ANT has at its central analysis a set of negotiations that describes the progressive constitution of a network in which both human and non-human actors assume identities according to prevailing strategies of interaction. Actors' identities and qualities are defined during negotiations between representatives of human and non-human actants. In this perspective, representation is understood in its political dimension, as a process of delegation. This paper highlights that the most important of these negotiations is "translation," a multifaceted interaction in which actors (1) construct common definitions and meanings, (2) define representatives, and (3) co-opt each other in the pursuit of individual and collective objectives. The paper further shows that in actor-network theory, both actors and actants share the scene in the reconstruction of the network of interactions leading to the stabilization of the system. But the crucial difference between them is that only actors are able to put actants in circulation in the system. This paper develops this via cogent analysis and draws from anti-reductionist social science to illustrate both the problems and possibilities of actor network for theory, policy and practice.