THE POLITICS OF RESPONSIBILITY - A THEORY OF PROGRAM-PLANNING PRACTICE FOR ADULT-EDUCATION

This article proposes a theory of program planning practice that takes power and interests as central to action and asks what educators can do to plan responsibly. Program planning is defined as a social activi ty in which educators negotiate interests in organizational contexts s tructured by power relations. We explain four central concepts on whic h the theory is based: power, interests, negotiation, and responsibili ty. By tying these four concepts together, the theory urges planners t o nurture a substantively democratic planning process in the face of p ower relations that either support or threaten this vision. We argue t hat this theory meets the criteria for any social theory to be empiric ally fitting, practically appropriate, and ethically illuminating.