Uncertain and under Quarantine: Toward a Sociology of Medical Ignorance

Item Type

Language

English

Abstract

At the center of the COVID-19 pandemic lies a ubiquitous feature of medicine. Medicine is permeated with ignorance. Seizing this moment to assess the current state of medical sociology, this article articulates a sociology of medical ignorance. We join insights from earlier medical sociological scholarship on uncertainty with emerging research in the sociology of ignorance to help make sense of the omnipresent but sometimes invisible dynamics related to the unknowns in medicine. Then we examine two streams of inquiry with a focus on uncertainty and ignorance—(1) research on the interconnections between technology, medical authority, and ignorance and (2) research on lay expertise within the context of ever-present uncertainties. For decades, and to good effect, medical sociologists have asked, “What does medicine know, and what are the consequences of such knowing?” Going forward, we encourage medical sociologists to examine the unknown in medicine and the consequences of not knowing. © American Sociological Association 2021.

Subject

Ignorance
Uncertainty
Lay expertise
Medical authority
Medical technology

Publication Year

2021

Publication Date

2021

Source

Scopus

License

ISSN

0022-1465

Physical Description

vol. 62, n. 3, pp. 271-285

Short Title

Uncertain and under Quarantine

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Uncertain and under Quarantine: Toward a Sociology of Medical Ignorance, dans Science & Ignorance, consulté le 21 Novembre 2024, https://ignorancestudies.inist.fr/s/science-ignorance/item/4841

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