Barbara Hoenig

Ignorance, History of Concept

The term ‘ignorance’ designates nonknowledge, what is unknown, or absent in empirically valid knowledge. Starting from a distinction of kindred concepts in different scientific disciplines, particularly the concepts role in theories of social action, in theories of knowledge, and in organizational studies are considered. Finally, current developments in agnotology and in the sociology of ignorance are discussed.

Reference Group, History of

A persons reference group can be considered either as a source of normative orientation or as a group of social comparison in making a judgment, irrespective of ones group membership. The concept has mainly been applied in two theoretical traditions of research: While symbolic interactionists and social psychologists outlined the normative importance of reference groups for the development of the self, structural functionalist sociologists analyzed how material deprivation is estimated relative and with reference to other groups of comparison in the social structure. The concept has also played an important role in developing the disciplines methodology of social research.

Gatekeepers in Social Science

A gatekeeper is an individual or collective actor who is in a position to control access to resources and rewards relevant in a particular social system. The terms usage in the sociology of science goes back to Robert K. Merton, who defines gatekeeping as one of the four complementary roles in the role set of scientists and scholars. Gate-keeping activities are relevant in different arenas of scholarship such as between scientific masters and apprentices, in collective mentoring programs, in publishing and in research funding.