Re: Merton and the norms of science

[sgt3@psu.edu]

Indeed, I would urge you all to take a look at Mitroff's book, 
"The Subjective Side of Science:  A Philosophical Inquiry into 
the Psychology of the Apollo Moon Scientists" (Elsevier, 1974), 
which is a wide-ranging critique of the standard idealized model 
of scientific inquiry. It's available through Amazon.

Sandy Thatcher
Penn State Press


> Robert Merton's norms of science (Universalism, Communality,
> Disinterestedness, and Organized Scepticism) are alive and well in
> scientific communities and should not be written off as ignoring
> scholarly behavior, as per Michael Mabe's response.  A further
> reading of Merton's later works describe the personal nature of
> science and the conflicts between impersonal norms (e.g.
> universalism) with personal norms (e.g. secrecy). Ian Mitroff puts
> these norms and counter-norms together in a wonderful piece that
> interviews lunar scientists during the course of the Apollo
> missions.  Its a must-read for anyone studying the sociology of
> science (including scientometrics) and helps place scientific
> communication in perspective.
>
> "For if science were also exclusively founded on the norms of
> disinterestedness, universalism, and community, I doubt science
> could have arisen as we know it. The point is that each norm is
> restrained and if any were unrestrained, science would probably
> collapse." (p.593)
>
> Mitroff, I. I. (1974). Norms and Counter-Norms in a Select Group of
> the Apollo Moon Scientists: A Case Study of the Ambivalence of
> Scientists. American Sociological Review, 39, 579-595.
>
> --Phil Davis