Tracing power relations in the global knowledge structure: two case studies

ABSTRACT

How knowledge is produced, legitimised, controlled and disseminated globally are some of the least understood aspects of the international political economy (IPE), despite the fact that intellectual content has become the major factor in comparative trade advantage. Furthermore, the dynamism inherent in the global knowledge structure is producing (and reproducing) deep cleavages in international interaction in ways that we do not grasp because of our reluctance to introduce the concept of “power” into the discourse on knowledge in general, and science and technology in particular. This article suggests how our understanding of the power dimensions of the global knowledge structure may be enhanced by means of detailed case studies of the power differentials involved in a) the 1980's debate about science and technology indicators, and b) the bargaining concerning intellectual property rights during the recently concluded round of GATT negotiations.