Boudon has distinguished between the primary and secondary effects of socialization as a cause of social disparities in education. His explanation of secondary effects, which rests on an analysis of decision-making within opportunity cost constraints, has attracted support from realist sociologists. The empirical evidence, however, suggests that…

In his recent historical-philosophical offering, "The Enormous Flywheel of Society: Pragmatism's Habitual Conception of Action and Social Theory," Finnish scholar Erkki Kilpinen explores the historical development of pragmatism as a philosophy and describes its varying influence on the development of the social sciences in the United States.…

Does the language one speaks influence the way he thinks? Does it help define his world view? Anyone who has tried to master a foreign tongue has at least considered the possibility. Little linguistic peculiarities, though amusing, don't change the objective world people are describing. So how can they alter the way they think? Scientists and…

The paper draws on communitarian theory to suggest that the traditional strength and stability of academic identities are strongly associated with membership of communities, primarily the discipline and the university, that together constitute a coherent, bounded world. It analyses how science policies have helped to weaken these boundaries over…

This paper argues that the dominant form of science education that is common across the world rests on a set of values that have no merit. Moreover, such practice has a negative impact on students' attitudes to science. It makes the case that the primary goal of any science education should be to develop scientific literacy and explores what that…

In death-averse American society, the field of thanatology is often socially and academically isolating. The purpose of this article is to describe the experiences of a group of death scholars and share insights gained as members of an interdisciplinary team. They discuss the ways in which they have created a special "safe" space for death study…

Textbooks for GCE Advanced Level Biology have provided over-simplified and inaccurate accounts of Charles Darwin's contribution to the study of evolution over a period of many decades. They have credited him with field skills and insight that he did not possess, and repeated several historical inaccuracies. Darwin's strength was as a synthesiser…

Public "upstream engagement" and other approaches to the social control of technology are currently receiving international attention in policy discourses around emerging technologies such as nanotechnology. To the extent that such approaches hold implications for research and development (R&D) activities, the distinct participation of scientists…

Philosophers of biology have long argued that Darwin's theory of evolution was qualitatively different from all earlier theories of evolution. Whereas Darwin's predecessors and contemporaries explained adaptation as the transformation of a species' ''essence,'' Darwin explained adaptation as the selective propagation of randomly occurring…

Deficits theory posits that women scientists have not yet achieved parity with men scientists because of structural aspects of the scientific environment that provide them with fewer opportunities and more obstacles than men. The current study of 208 faculty women scientists tested this theory by examining the effect of personal negative…

Following an integrative model that shows the complex connections of recruitment, retention, and placement, this final paper in a three-part series explores the demanding endeavor of placing geography graduates into rewarding professional careers. Employment markets will continue to be robust for geography graduates, particularly for those with…

The core argument is that social science must re-examine its mission and praxis in order to be a significant player in future higher education. This article reviews the results and prospects arising from a four-year international project. Originating in Greenwood and Levin's concern about the social sciences, the project, funded by the Ford…

This manual, published by the Triangle Coalition for Science and Technology Education, is intended to serve as a resource for those wanting to bring the human and material resources of the scientific and engineering communities into beneficial and sustainable relationships with schools through volunteer programs that are locally designed and…

This booklet provides 43 graphs and tables organized into broad topics such as research and development funding patterns, academic research and development, research and development in United States industry, education of scientists and engineers, working scientists and engineers, public attitudes toward science and technology, and international…

The studies of the librarian's profession included in this book focus on recruitment of versatile, creative, and intelligent people to the profession. The book has four sections, each containing relevant papers. Section 1 presents an overview and recent studies of vocational inventories. Section 2 describes a national study on updating the…