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Merton’s Contribution to the Sociology of Science

State University of New York at Stony Brook, scole{at}notes.cc.sunysb.edu

This paper is reminiscence and a critique of Robert K. Merton’s work in the sociology of science. The author got to know Merton very well as he served as his student, assistant, and colleague for 15 years from 1960. Merton’s works which are most discussed are his doctoral dissertation on Puritanism and science, his paper on scientific norms, and his paper ‘The Matthew Effect’. He is criticized for not generalizing far enough from his work on the Puritan thesis and for not paying close enough attention to the empirical data, which cast doubt on the validity of his theory of the Matthew Effect.

Key Words: Matthew Effect • Merton • Puritan thesis • scientific norms

Social Studies of Science, Vol. 34, No. 6, 829-844 (2004)
DOI: 10.1177/0306312704048600


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