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JournalISSN: 0306-3127

Social Studies of Science 

SAGE Publishing
About: Social Studies of Science is an academic journal published by SAGE Publishing. The journal publishes majorly in the area(s): Sociology of scientific knowledge & Medicine. It has an ISSN identifier of 0306-3127. Over the lifetime, 1874 publications have been published receiving 105617 citations. The journal is also known as: SSS.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present a model of how one group of actors managed the tension between divergent viewpoints and the need for generalizable findings in scientific work, and distinguish four types of boundary objects: repositories, ideal types, coincident boundaries and standardized forms.
Abstract: Scientific work is heterogeneous, requiring many different actors and viewpoints. It also requires cooperation. The two create tension between divergent viewpoints and the need for generalizable findings. We present a model of how one group of actors managed this tension. It draws on the work of amateurs, professionals, administrators and others connected to the Museum of Vertebrate Zoology at the University of California, Berkeley, during its early years. Extending the Latour-Callon model of interessement, two major activities are central for translating between viewpoints: standardization of methods, and the development of `boundary objects'. Boundary objects are both adaptable to different viewpoints and robust enough to maintain identity across them. We distinguish four types of boundary objects: repositories, ideal types, coincident boundaries and standardized forms.

7,634 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The need for an integrated social constructivist approach towards the study of science and technology is outlined in this article, where both scientific facts and technological artefacts are to be understood as social constructs.
Abstract: The need for an integrated social constructivist approach towards the study of science and technology is outlined. Within such a programme both scientific facts and technological artefacts are to be understood as social constructs. Literature on the sociology of science, the science-technology relationship, and technology studies is reviewed. The empirical programme of relativism within the sociology of scientific knowledge and a recent study of the social construction of technological artefacts are combined to produce the new approach. The concepts of `interpretative flexibility' and `closure mechanism', and the notion of `social group' are developed and illustrated by reference to a study of solar physics and a study of the development of the bicycle. The paper concludes by setting out some of the terrain to be explored in future studies.

2,707 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The web of human relations which originates, nurtures, and transforms technologies has long deserved attention Computers, bicycles, natural gas pipelines, and condoms live and have their being in the midst of enormously complicated human networks of production, distribution, and evaluation as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: The web of human relations which originates, nurtures, and transforms technologies has long deserved attention Computers, bicycles, natural gas pipelines, and condoms live and have their being in the midst of enormously complicated human networks of production, distribution, and evaluation We need to know about the kinds of social institutions that do this work This book, a report on a conference, goes far in opening this vast area for public inspection

2,453 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: A Third Wave of Science Studies of Expertise and Experience (SEE) is proposed in this article to disentangle expertise from political rights in technical decision-making in the public domain.
Abstract: Science studies has shown us why science and technology cannot always solve technical problems in the public domain. In particular, the speed of political decision-making is faster than the speed of scientific consensus formation. A predominant motif over recent years has been the need to extend the domain of technical decision-making beyond the technically qualified elite, so as to enhance political legitimacy. We argue, however, that the `Problem of Legitimacy' has been replaced by the `Problem of Extension' - that is, by a tendency to dissolve the boundary between experts and the public so that there are no longer any grounds for limiting the indefinite extension of technical decision-making rights. We argue that a Third Wave of Science Studies - Studies of Expertise and Experience (SEE) - is needed to solve the Problem of Extension. SEE will include a normative theory of expertise, and will disentangle expertise from political rights in technical decision-making. The theory builds categories of expertise, starting with the key distinction between interactive expertise and contributory expertise. A new categorization of types of science is also needed. We illustrate the potential of the approach by re-examining existing case studies, including Brian Wynne's study of Cumbrian sheep farmers. Sometimes the new theory argues for more public involvement, sometimes for less. An Appendix describes existing contributions to the problem of technical decision-making in the public domain.

1,850 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Based on the curricula vitae and survey responses of 443 academic scientists affiliated with university research centers in the USA, the authors examined the longstanding assumption that research collaborati cation is collaborative.
Abstract: Based on the curricula vitae and survey responses of 443 academic scientists affiliated with university research centers in the USA, we examine the longstanding assumption that research collaborati...

1,399 citations

Performance
Metrics
No. of papers from the Journal in previous years
YearPapers
202327
202251
202150
202042
201942
201838