The dramaturgy of experts in Brazilian regulatory science: the case of the National Technical Commission for Biosecurity

Abstract This article investigates the Brazilian National Technical Commission on Biosecurity, an agency empowered to regulate genetically modified organisms in the country, and presents an analysis of its performance based on Goffman’s interactionist approach. The commission is analyzed as if it were a theater in which different experts perform and act on stage, with an audience, a backstage area, and conflicts related to the roles represented. These strategies make it possible to understand the process of consolidating and stabilizing this commission as a decision-making body on genetically modified organisms in Brazil. The stabilization of the commission is associated with stage management that takes conflicts out of the public view and moves them behind the scenes, presenting decisions as free from political interference or personal interests.