Science and Technology Studies: Exploring the Knowledge Base
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Date:
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2011-09
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By:
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Martin, Ben
Nightingale, P. Yegros-Yegros, A. |
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URL:
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Science and Technology Studies (STS) is one of a number of new
research fields to emerge over the last four or five decades. This paper
attempts to identify its core academic contributions using the methodology
developed by Fagerberg et al. (2011) in their parallel study of Innovation
Studies. The paper uses the references cited by the authors of chapters in a
number of authoritative 'handbooks', based on the assumption that those
authors will collectively have been reasonably comprehensive in identifying
the core contributions to the field. The study analyses the publications most
highly cited by the handbook authors, in particular examining their content
and what they reveal about the various phases in the development of STS. The
second part of the study analyses the 'users' of the STS core contributions
who have cited these contributions in their own work, exploring their
research fields, journals, and geographical loc ation. The paper concludes with
some comparisons between STS and the fields of Innovation Studies and
Entrepreneurship, in particular with regard to the role of 'institution
builders' in helping to develop a new research field.
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Keywords:
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science studies, STS, knowledge base, core contributions,
institution builders
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JEL:
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N01
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