Society for Social Studies of Science
Encyclopedia
The Society for Social Studies of Science (often abbreviated as 4S) is a non-profit scholarly association devoted to the studies of science
and technology
. It was founded in 1975 and has, in 2008, an international membership of over 1200.
Its charter was drafted in 1975, and its first President was the American sociologist Robert K. Merton
. It is currently based out of the Department of Sociology at Louisiana State University
. It publishes the quarterly academic journal Science, Technology, & Human Values and has a large annual conference attended by hundreds of scholars from a diverse range of fields, including Science and technology studies
, sociology of science, science studies
, history of science
, philosophy of science
, anthropology of science, economics
, political science
, psychology
, as well as science educators and scientists.
It gives out the Ludwig Fleck Prize annually for "best book in the area of science and technology studies", the Rachel Carson Prize
for "a work of social or political relevance", the John Desmond Bernal Prize for an individual who made "a distinguished contribution to the field", and the Nicholas C. Mullins Award for "outstanding scholarship in science and technology studies" by a graduate student.
As of 2010 the current President of the society was Judy Wajcman
, with Michael Lynch
as the most recent past President. 4S is governed by a nine-person council as well as its President.
Science
Science is a systematic enterprise that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe...
and technology
Technology
Technology is the making, usage, and knowledge of tools, machines, techniques, crafts, systems or methods of organization in order to solve a problem or perform a specific function. It can also refer to the collection of such tools, machinery, and procedures. The word technology comes ;...
. It was founded in 1975 and has, in 2008, an international membership of over 1200.
Its charter was drafted in 1975, and its first President was the American sociologist Robert K. Merton
Robert K. Merton
Robert King Merton was a distinguished American sociologist. He spent most of his career teaching at Columbia University, where he attained the rank of University Professor...
. It is currently based out of the Department of Sociology at Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University
Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name...
. It publishes the quarterly academic journal Science, Technology, & Human Values and has a large annual conference attended by hundreds of scholars from a diverse range of fields, including Science and technology studies
Science and technology studies
Science, technology and society is the study of how social, political, and cultural values affect scientific research and technological innovation, and how these, in turn, affect society, politics and culture...
, sociology of science, science studies
Science studies
Science studies is an interdisciplinary research area that seeks to situate scientific expertise in a broad social, historical, and philosophical context. It is concerned with the history of academic disciplines, the interrelationships between science and society, and the alleged covert purposes...
, history of science
History of science
The history of science is the study of the historical development of human understandings of the natural world and the domains of the social sciences....
, philosophy of science
Philosophy of science
The philosophy of science is concerned with the assumptions, foundations, methods and implications of science. It is also concerned with the use and merit of science and sometimes overlaps metaphysics and epistemology by exploring whether scientific results are actually a study of truth...
, anthropology of science, economics
Economics
Economics is the social science that analyzes the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services. The term economics comes from the Ancient Greek from + , hence "rules of the house"...
, political science
Political science
Political Science is a social science discipline concerned with the study of the state, government and politics. Aristotle defined it as the study of the state. It deals extensively with the theory and practice of politics, and the analysis of political systems and political behavior...
, psychology
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, as well as science educators and scientists.
It gives out the Ludwig Fleck Prize annually for "best book in the area of science and technology studies", the Rachel Carson Prize
Rachel Carson Prize (academic book prize)
The Rachel Carson Prize is awarded annually by the Society for Social Studies of Science, an international academic association based in the United States. It is given for a book "of social or political relevance" in the field of science and technology studies. This prize was created in...
for "a work of social or political relevance", the John Desmond Bernal Prize for an individual who made "a distinguished contribution to the field", and the Nicholas C. Mullins Award for "outstanding scholarship in science and technology studies" by a graduate student.
As of 2010 the current President of the society was Judy Wajcman
Judy Wajcman
Judy Wajcman is a Professor of Sociology at the London School of Economics and Political Science.She was formerly a Professor of Sociology in the Research School of Social Sciences, Australian National University. She has been a Visiting Professor at the Lehman Brothers Centre for Women in Business...
, with Michael Lynch
Michael Lynch (ethnomethodologist)
Michael Lynch is a professor at the department of Science and Technology Studies at Cornell University. His works are particularly concerned with ethnomethodological approaches in science studies...
as the most recent past President. 4S is governed by a nine-person council as well as its President.
Some well known members
- Wiebe BijkerWiebe BijkerWiebe E. Bijker is a Dutch professor, chair of the Department of Social Science and Technology at Maastricht University in the Netherlands....
- Michel CallonMichel CallonMichel Callon is a Professor of Sociology at the Ecole des Mines de Paris and member of the Centre de Sociologie de l'Innovation. He is an influential author in the field of Science and Technology Studies and one of the leading proponents of Actor-network theory with Bruno Latour.In recent years ,...
- Harry CollinsHarry CollinsHarry Collins is a British professor at the School of Social Sciences at Cardiff University. While at the University of Bath Professor Collins developed the Bath School approach to the Sociology of Scientific Knowledge...
- Donna HarawayDonna HarawayDonna J. Haraway is currently a Distinguished Professor Emerita in the History of Consciousness Department at the University of California, Santa Cruz, United States...
- Sheila JasanoffSheila JasanoffSheila Jasanoff is an American academic and significant contributor to the field of Science and Technology Studies.-Biography:She is Pforzheimer Professor of Science and Technology Studies at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University, where she directs the Program on Science,...
- Karin Knorr-Cetina
- Bruno LatourBruno LatourBruno Latour is a French sociologist of science and anthropologist and an influential theorist in the field of Science and Technology Studies...
- Michael LynchMichael Lynch (ethnomethodologist)Michael Lynch is a professor at the department of Science and Technology Studies at Cornell University. His works are particularly concerned with ethnomethodological approaches in science studies...
- Trevor PinchTrevor PinchTrevor J. Pinch is a sociologist and former chair of the Science and Technology Studies department at Cornell University.Pinch has a degree in Physics from the Imperial College London and a PhD in Sociology from the University of Bath...
- Arie RipArie RipArie Rip is a Dutch social scientist, active in the field of Science and technology studies. During 1988-1989 he was the President of the international Society for Social Studies of Science....
- Sal RestivoSal RestivoSal Restivo is a leading contributor to science studies and in particular to the sociology of mathematical knowledge. His current work focuses on the sociology and anthropology of mind and brain, and the sociology of god and religion. He has also done work in the sociology of social and sociable...
- Steven ShapinSteven ShapinSteven Shapin is a historian and sociologist of science. He is currently the Franklin L. Ford Professor of the History of Science at Harvard University...
- Steve WoolgarSteve WoolgarStephen Woolgar is a British sociologist. He has worked closely with Bruno Latour, with whom he co-authored Laboratory Life: the Social Construction of Scientific Facts ....