Security protocol: A theory of protocolarization and its application

Abstract

The purpose of the papers proposed in this panel is to present the assumptions and research achievements within the project "Security protocol: A theory of protocolarization and its application". This project takes up the challenge of building a theory of protocolarization based on a concept of the protocol. The general aim is to make a novel contribution to the social sciences by constructing and refining the concept of protocol as a formula which frames ontology and epistemology of social phenomena as empirical generalizations. The main assumption is that protocol will help overcome cognitive barriers in social sciences and will make a significant contribution to the perspectives on security and safety. Therefore, we aspire to bring about a complete outline of an alternative view of the management of uncertainty being a characteristics of social life. We consolidate this assumption by considering protocol as a hitherto underestimated concept which is loaded with significant explanatory power and has considerable potential for inquiries into security ontology and epistemology. Based on the ambitious and stimulating works of Alexander R. Galloway, we argue that protocol is an overarching concept suitable as an analytical tool for tackling complex processes and phenomena through its simple formula, foundational status, sharp analytical parameters and interdisciplinary reach. The concept of the protocol is proposed as an analytical and cognitive formula which tackles the diagnostic and explanatory deficits of the leading theories in security studies and related disciplines, incorporating insights and lessons learned into an emergent framework for a theory of protocolarization. Protocols are applied to security as a management of uncertainty. The more security depends on protocolarization, the more variegated are categories of protocols enacted and embedded in a security environment through reproduction and maintenance. The stronger a protocol is enmeshed in security-related structures, behavioural patterns and communication platforms, the more robust protocolarization develops The heuristic power of this approach is further evidenced by its ability to relate the characteristics of the protocol to complex adaptive processes which unfold in a heterogeneous space connecting actors/actants, technologies and power/control. The networked apparatus underpinning the protocol is calibrated by parameters which accommodate contingency through the simplified cognitive formula such as standards, codes or heuristics. The theoretical frame of protocolarization will be verified in four case studies: each Presenter is responsible for one case study. These are: (1) rules of engagement as a code of conduct in warfare and their potential application to autonomous weapon systems; (2) the global war on terror and its domestic and international consequences; (3) 5G as and advanced telecommunication technology having repercussions for global security; (4) the COVID-19 pandemic and feasibility of the epidemiological protocol recommended by WHO. Due to the novel contents of the theory of protocolarization we pursue a research strategy which focuses on the conceptualization of the protocol and the explanation of the dynamics present within constructs of the theory. We follow deductive strategy emphasising causal relationships between concepts and variables, which matches best the reductivist and regulatory properties of the protocol as a networked construction.

Title	Details
Rules of Engagement as a Security Protocol and the Challenges posed by Autonomous Weapon Systems	View Paper Details
The global war on terror as a heuristic modality of security protocol	View Paper Details
Technological Standards of 5G Communication in Light of the Theory of Security Protocolarization	View Paper Details
In the search of common ground for global actions: The COVID-19 DDM protocol	View Paper Details