The Broken Boundaries between Science and Technology Studies and Cultural Sociology: Introduction to an Interview with Trevor Pinch

Abstract

The article introduces and comments upon the themes developed in the interview with the sociologist of science and technology Trevor Pinch in this issue of Cultural Sociology. The paper outlines the trajectory of his work since the late 1970s, from the birth of Science and Technology Studies (STS), until his current interest in the relationship between music, technologies, and society. The paper focuses on the growth of the field of STS, pointing out the many interconnections between STS and the wide intellectual universe involving cultural studies, cultural sociology and symbolic interactionism. The paper also considers the leading role Trevor Pinch has played in the shaping of the field of ‘sound studies’, an interdisciplinary field focused on the study of the sonic dimensions of societies, tracing the initial development of this area and how it represents a new set of interconnections between STS and the sociological study of culture.