social epistemology

Social epistemology 1

Social epistemology

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Social epistemology refers to a broad set of approaches to the study of knowledge that construes human knowledgeas a collective achievement. Another way of characterizing social epistemology is as the study of the socialdimensions of knowledge.[1] It is not universally accepted that a subject, activity, or discipline which couldappropriately be called "social epistemology" exists - or could exist. One of the enduring difficulties with defining"social epistemology" is that of determining what the word "knowledge" means in this context. There is also achallenge in arriving at a definition of "social" which satisfies academics from different disciplines.[2] Socialepistemologists may be found working in many of the disciplines of the humanities and social sciences, mostcommonly in philosophy and sociology. In addition to marking a distinct movement in traditional, analyticepistemology, social epistemology is associated with the interdisciplinary field of Science and Technology Studies(STS).

The emergence of social epistemologyThe term "social epistemology" was first used by the library scientists Margaret Egan and Jesse Shera in the 1950s.Steven Shapin also used it in 1979. But its current sense began to emerge in the late 1980s. In 1987, thephilosophical journal Synthese published a special issue on "social epistemology" which included two authors thathave since taken "social epistemology" in two divergent directions: Alvin Goldman and Steve Fuller3. Fullerfounded a journal called Social Epistemology: a journal of knowledge, culture, and policy in 1987 and published hisfirst book, Social Epistemology, in 1988. Goldman's Knowledge in a Social World came out in 1999; he is currentlyeditor of the journal Episteme: a journal of social epistemology, which was founded in 2004. While the aims andscope of these two journals overlap in many respects, Social Epistemology is more open to science studies inaddition to philosophy, while "the principal style [of Episteme] is that of analytical philosophy". Goldman advocatesfor a type of epistemology which is sometimes called "veritistic epistemology" because of its large emphasis ontruth.[3] This type of epistemology is sometimes seen to side with "essentialism" as opposed to "multiculturalism".[4]

But Goldman has argued that this association between veritistic epistemology and essentialism is not necessary.[5]

In 2012, on the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Social Epistemology, Fuller reflected on the history and the prospects of the field, including the need for social epistemology to re-connect with the larger issues of knowledge production first identified by Charles Sanders Peirce as cognitive economy and nowadays often pursued by library and information science. As for the "analytic social epistemology", to which Goldman has been a significant


contributor, Fuller concludes that it has "failed to make significant progress owing, in part, to a minimalunderstanding of actual knowledge practices, a minimised role for philosophers in ongoing inquiry, and a focus onmaintaining the status quo of epistemology as a field."[6]The basic view of knowledge that motivated the emergence of social epistemology can be traced to the work ofThomas Kuhn and Michel Foucault, which gained in prominence at the end of the 1960s. Both brought historicalconcerns directly to bear on problems long associated with the philosophy of science. Perhaps the most notable issuehere was the nature of truth, which both Kuhn and Foucault described as a relative and contingent notion. On thisbackground, ongoing work in the sociology of scientific knowledge (SSK) and the history and philosophy of science(HPS) was able to assert its epistemological consequences, leading most notably to the establishment of the "StrongProgramme" at the University of Edinburgh. In terms of the two strands of social epistemology, Fuller is moresensitive and receptive to this historical trajectory (if not always in agreement) than Goldman, whose self-styled"veritistic" social epistemology can be reasonably read as a systematic rejection of the more extreme claimsassociated with Kuhn and Foucault.

Present and future concernsAt this stage, both varieties of "social epistemology" remain largely "academic" or "theoretical" projects. But bothemphasise the social significance of knowledge and therefore the cultural value of social epistemology itself. Bothjournals, for example, welcome papers that include a policy dimension. More practical applications of socialepistemology can be found in the areas of library science, academic publishing, knowledge policy and debates overthe role over the Internet in knowledge transmission and creation.

Notes1. "What Is Social Epistemology? A Smorgasbord of projects", in Pathways to Knowledge: Private and Public,Oxford University Press, Pg:182-204, ISBN 0-19-517367-82. "Relativism, Rationality and Sociality of Knowledge", Barry Barnes and David Bloor, in Rationality andRelativism, Pg:22 ISBN 0-262-58061-63. A comparison of Goldman and Fuller can be found in Legitimizing Scientific Knowledge: An Introduction to SteveFuller's Social Epistemology, Francis Remedios, Lexington Books, 2003. pp.106 112.http:/ / social-epistemology. com/ 2013/ 07/ 12/ orienting-social-epistemology-francis-remedios/4. Social Epistemology, Steve Fuller, Indiana University Press, p.3.

References[1] http:/ / plato. stanford. edu/ entries/ epistemology-social/[2] http:/ / plato. stanford. edu/ entries/ epistemology-social/[3] http:/ / www. ed. uiuc. edu/ EPS/ PES-Yearbook/ 95_docs/ goldman. html[4] http:/ / www. ed. uiuc. edu/ EPS/ PES-Yearbook/ 95_docs/ goldman. html[5] http:/ / www. ed. uiuc. edu/ EPS/ PES-Yearbook/ 95_docs/ goldman. html[6] http:/ / www. tandfonline. com/ doi/ pdf/ 10. 1080/ 02691728. 2012. 714415

Berlin, James A. Rhetorics, Poetics, and Cultures: Refiguring College English Studies, Indiana: Parlor Press,2003. ISBN 0-9724772-8-4

Egan, Margaret and Jesse Shera. 1952. "Foundations of a Theory of Bibliography." Library Quarterly 44:125-37. Longino, Helen. 1990. Science as Social Knowledge. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-02051-5 Longino, Helen. 2001. The Fate of Knowledge. Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-08876-4 Remedios, Francis. 2003. Legitimizing Scientific Knowledge: An Introduction to Steve Fullers Social

Epistemology. Lexington Books. ISBN 0-7391-0667-8 Schmitt, Frederick F. 1994. Socializing Epistemology. Rowman & Littlefield. ISBN 0-8476-7959-4


Solomon, Miriam. 2001. Social Empricism. Cambridge: MIT Press. ISBN 0-262-19461-9

External links Social epistemology (http:/ / plato. stanford. edu/ entries/ epistemology-social) entry in the Stanford Encyclopedia

of Philosophy Social epistemology (http:/ / philpapers. org/ browse/ social-epistemology) at PhilPapers Social epistemology (https:/ / inpho. cogs. indiana. edu/ taxonomy/ 2379) at the Indiana Philosophy Ontology

Project The journal Social Epistemology (http:/ / www. tandf. co. uk/ journals/ titles/ 02691728. asp) The journal Episteme (http:/ / www. episteme. us. com)

Article Sources and Contributors 5

Article Sources and ContributorsSocial epistemology Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=568030305 Contributors: 65.68.87.xxx, Ahoerstemeier, Baxtalo4, Bender235, Big Bob the Finder, Charles Matthews,Conversion script, Credenza deluxe, Crzer07, D6, Deodar, Deville, Downchuck, ElectricRay, Erebus555, Francisr10, Graham87, Gregbard, Hans Mayer, HarcourtArms, Hiplibrarianship, JK theunwise, James Disambiguation-Smith, JenLouise, John Vandenberg, Jonkerz, Kate Lennox, Kzollman, Larry_Sanger, Lucidish, Lulu of the Lotus-Eaters, Magioladitis, Mark Christensen,Martarius, Meclee, Merodack, Miguel de Servet, Moonlight8888, Mootros, Mu, Peloria, Phronetic, Piotrus, Realitydog, RiskAverse, SlimVirgin, Srich32977, Subsurd, Sunray, Sysdt, Tassedethe,Thomas Basboll, Timothy J Scriven, Tom Morris, Tomsega, Vanished user ikijeirw34iuaeolaseriffic, Zzuuzz, 25 anonymous edits

Image Sources, Licenses and ContributorsImage:SNA segment.png Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:SNA_segment.png License: GNU General Public License Contributors: Screenshot taken byUser:DarwinPeacock

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