INSTRUMENTAL RATIONALITY AS INSUFFICIENT JUSTIFICATION FOR URBAN CONSERVATION DECISIONS: CASE STUDY OF KNUST

Back to Page Authors: Emmanuel Banahene Owusu, Rexford Assasie Oppong

Keywords: Urban Conservation, Instrumental Rationality, Value Rationality, Hard Choice, Decision

Abstract: Working and making decisions within the urban environment, hence urban conservation most often than not involve having to make a lot of ‘Hard choices’. These ‘Hard choices’ are then resolved and justified with instrumental rationality argumentations and calculations. For instance the use of Cost- Benefit Analysis (CBA); Strength, Weaknesses, Opportunities and Treat (SWOT) analysis; and Logical Reasoning (LR). Unfortunately, this appears not to synchronize well with urban conservation decisions. This is because urban conservation lies within the realm of value rationality as was identified by Max Weber. For this reason choices are best made by considering the inherent value of the object, not how profitable or beneficial it will be. The aim of this research is therefore to prove that certain instrumental rational justifications that led to certain choices, compromised urban conservation values. This will be done by focusing on the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) – Kumasi, Ghana. KNUST is an autonomous institution responsible for most of the decisions that it makes. As a result, the impacts of decisions it has made on certain heritage items in its built environment and justified with instrumental rational arguments will be studied. Interviews will therefore be used to gather qualitative information from stakeholders including the decision takers and users of such heritages. The information will then be interpreted and studied to ascertain the impacts such justification and decisions have made. This study is expected to emphasize that Instrumental rational justifications alone are insufficient to making conservation related decisions which is the main justification method that appears to be in use currently in Ghana. A more rigorous justification will therefore have to be considered.