Abstract

ELSDON-BAKER, Fern  and  MASON-WILKES, Will. The Sociological Study of Science and Religion in Context. Soc. relig. [online]. 2021, vol.31, n.57, pp.55-55. ISSN 0326-9795.

This paper reflects on some of the cross-disciplinary, historical and philosophical issues that are need to consider in order to conduct research into science and religion in their historical, social and cultural contexts. First, it is argued in favor of moving away from an assumption of implicit conflict between science and religion and towards a complexity thesis that allows us to be cognizant of the nuance of how these two concepts interact as part of individuals’ lived experience, or as social, group or cultural identities. Next, the need for a meta-reflexivity is pointed out to make aware the limitations and the assumptions of the disciplines of the social sciences or humanities that can distort the understanding of the public attitudes towards science and religion. Finally, the limitations of quantitative methods, that have dominated the social study of the relationships between science and religion are noted. The need for qualitative, more contextual models about the positions of individuals or groups within of the geopolitical, cultural and social contexts that lead scientific issues to act as an identity marker across a spectrum of religious, spiritual, non-religious and atheistic publics are also pointed out in this paper.

Keywords : science; religion; knowledge; secularization; sociology.