The Body of Knowledge: Fieldwork and Conceptualization in Social Inquiry

This book presents a vivid and close-up view of social science researchers engaged in fieldwork, in discussions with colleagues, and in writing. Adopting an ethnographic approach inspired by ethnomethodology and conversation analysis, the author pursues a praxeological analysis of social inquiry in situ. By conceiving of analytical practices such as observation, shop talk, and conceptualization in experiential terms, the seen but unnoticed structures of knowledge work are exposed and made available for empirical analysis.

In a departure from ethnographic studies of research that focus on the physical sciences, the author uses the example of sociological research to shed new light on the role of self and mind for epistemic cultures, on the elusive materiality of conceptual objects, and on researchers’ experiential ways of seizing, reviewing, and accrediting knowledge.

A rich and pervasive study of elementary sites in the research process, The Body of Knowledge will appeal to scholars of sociology, anthropology, and the humanities with interests in the epistemic practice of their own discipline, as well as those working in fields such as the social study of science, ethnomethodology and conversation analysis, and the sociology of interaction.

Kornelia Engert is Research Associate at the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Germany.