Ecological Metaphors as Scientific Boundary Work: Innovation and Authority in Interwar Sociology and Biology

Abstract

The development of human ecology during the interwar period was a significant scientific innovation enabled by the sociological use of biological concepts as tropes for social organization. This examination of the connections between biology and sociology illuminates a process whereby new scientific knowledge is generated, new scientific communities are formed, and individuals become scientists. These relationships were arranged around the negotiable boundaries between the social and the natural in 20th-century science. This process is examined through an analysis of scientific texts, metaphor transaction in science, and mentoring practices that reveal the transmission and bounding of knowledge and authority.

How ‘we’ are different from ‘them’: occupational boundary maintenance in the treatment of musculo‐skeletal problems

“…Britton (1990), Whyte (1986)). Gaziano (1996) and Gieryn (1983) look at boundary maintenance in the context of professions. They suggest that constructing boundaries is used by professionals for the pursuit of professional goals.…”

Ellen Swallow Richards: Mother of Human Ecology?

“…The metaphorical extension of "economy" to nature implied that the way nature orders and distributes resources to its animal population could be understood as being like the way households acquire and distribute resources to their members (Gaziano, 1996). In 1866, Haeckel suggested a science for the study of nature's economy that would focus on the interrelationship between organisms and their environments.…”

Non-governmental organizations, strategic bridge building, and the “scientization” of organic agriculture in Kenya

“…Some scholars see the science/non-science boundary as a site of perpetual contestation and strategic negotiation between scientists and non-scientists. I include ''boundary-work'' theorists in this group of scholars (e.g., Gieryn, 1983Gieryn, , 1995Gieryn, , 1999Fisher, 1990;Gaziano, 1996;Kinchy and Kleinman, 2003;Mellor, 2003). In contrast, other social scientists conceptualize boundaries as interfaces that facilitate communication, knowledge production, and information circulation across multiple social worlds.…”