ABS:Courtial, Mapping the dynamics of research on autism

[Gretchen Whitney]

TITLE   :       Mapping the dynamics of research on autism: Or the cultural
logic of science
AUTHOR: Courtial JP, Gourdon L
JOURNAL THEORY & PSYCHOLOGY 9: (5) 579-604 OCT 1999

 Document type: Article    Language: English    Cited References: 56
Times Cited: 0

Abstract:
On the basis of recent research in sociology of science, moral development
theory and cultural psychology, the authors argue that:scientific knowledge
consists of producing new social practices coordinated by scientific texts.
A quantitative means of highlighting this process in a given field of
research consists of calculating associations between centres of interest in
scientific articles, through key words provided by computerized databases.
If the concept of scientific culture is taken into account, the
'sociocognitive' network of associations which is obtained is thus a
structure linking the relationships of the human individual to his or her
culture. Using the PSYCLIT database from 1978 to 1995, this approach
produces a history and a synthesis of contemporary research into autism, and
also describes the emergence of a new 'distributed' paradigm of research.
The sociocognitive network model is thus validated as a system of
representation and simultaneously demonstrates the identity
of the human individual with knowledge of the world through its scientific
and technical culture.

Author Keywords:
autism, cultural psychology, discovery, scientific articles, subject-object
balance theory

KeyWords Plus:
CO-WORD ANALYSIS, PSYCHOLOGY, MODEL

Addresses:
Courtial JP, Univ Nantes, Lab Educ Cognit Dev, BP 1025, F-44036 Nantes,
France.
Univ Nantes, Lab Educ Cognit Dev, F-44036 Nantes, France.
http://www.univ-nantes.fr

Publisher:
SAGE PUBLICATIONS INC, THOUSAND OAKS

IDS Number:
241MK

ISSN:
0959-3543
Copyright © 1999 Institute for Scientific Information; Reprinted with
permission
Please visit their website at www.isinet.com