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Managing the Environmental Legitimation Crisis
University of Central Florida The authors discuss and extend the crisis theory of Habermas and Offe by adding and arguing for the semiautonomy of a fourth system—the ecological system. Based on Habermas's crisis systems theory and J. O'Connor's fiscal crisis-of-the-state thesis, they develop a crisis systems model (CSM) applicable to late capitalist societies. Within the framework of the CSM, they outline the three crises identified in earlier research— accumulation crisis of overproduction, accumulation crisis of underproduction, and social welfare legitimation—and argue for the relevance of a fourth crisis—the environmental legitimation crisis. They assess the empirical import of the CSM and the cogency of the environmental legitimation crisis by examining the evolving role of citizen participation in natural resource management in the United States. The authors conclude that the democratization of environmental decision making is, in part, an adaptive response by natural resources agencies to avoid an environmental legitimation crisis.
Key Words: systems theory • second contradiction of capitalism • environmental crisis • natural resource management • legitimation crisis • citizen participation
Organization & Environment, Vol. 19, No. 2,
214-232 (2006) This article has been cited by other articles:
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