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Ecological Theory and Pest Control Practice: A Study of the Institutional and Conceptual Dimensions of a Scientific Debate

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Ecological Theory and Pest Control Practice: A Study of the Institutional and Conceptual Dimensions of a Scientific Debate. / Palladino, Paolo.
In: Social Studies of Science, Vol. 20, No. 2, 05.1990, p. 255-281.

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@article{e7acd3545e1e4066b99f24eaa935f41a,
title = "Ecological Theory and Pest Control Practice: A Study of the Institutional and Conceptual Dimensions of a Scientific Debate",
abstract = "During the 1960s, the relationship between ecological theory and pest control practice was the subject of controversy between two groups of entomologists, one based in California and the other in Canada. Both groups were committed to the development of an `ecological' pest control strategy based on the integration of `biological control' — the use of predators and parasites to control pest populations — and the dominant chemical approach. Yet, they disagreed on the precise details of the relationship between ecological theory and the formulation of guidelines for the development of this integrated strategy. Consideration of institutional and conceptual problems shows that these different perspectives were shaped, but not necessarily determined, by the institutional context within which they were articulated. Attention is therefore drawn to the complexity of the relationship between ideas and institutions, and to the need for a broader approach to historiographical practice.",
author = "Paolo Palladino",
year = "1990",
month = may,
doi = "10.1177/030631290020002003",
language = "English",
volume = "20",
pages = "255--281",
journal = "Social Studies of Science",
issn = "0306-3127",
publisher = "SAGE Publications Ltd",
number = "2",

}

RIS

TY - JOUR

T1 - Ecological Theory and Pest Control Practice

T2 - A Study of the Institutional and Conceptual Dimensions of a Scientific Debate

AU - Palladino, Paolo

PY - 1990/5

Y1 - 1990/5

N2 - During the 1960s, the relationship between ecological theory and pest control practice was the subject of controversy between two groups of entomologists, one based in California and the other in Canada. Both groups were committed to the development of an `ecological' pest control strategy based on the integration of `biological control' — the use of predators and parasites to control pest populations — and the dominant chemical approach. Yet, they disagreed on the precise details of the relationship between ecological theory and the formulation of guidelines for the development of this integrated strategy. Consideration of institutional and conceptual problems shows that these different perspectives were shaped, but not necessarily determined, by the institutional context within which they were articulated. Attention is therefore drawn to the complexity of the relationship between ideas and institutions, and to the need for a broader approach to historiographical practice.

AB - During the 1960s, the relationship between ecological theory and pest control practice was the subject of controversy between two groups of entomologists, one based in California and the other in Canada. Both groups were committed to the development of an `ecological' pest control strategy based on the integration of `biological control' — the use of predators and parasites to control pest populations — and the dominant chemical approach. Yet, they disagreed on the precise details of the relationship between ecological theory and the formulation of guidelines for the development of this integrated strategy. Consideration of institutional and conceptual problems shows that these different perspectives were shaped, but not necessarily determined, by the institutional context within which they were articulated. Attention is therefore drawn to the complexity of the relationship between ideas and institutions, and to the need for a broader approach to historiographical practice.

U2 - 10.1177/030631290020002003

DO - 10.1177/030631290020002003

M3 - Journal article

VL - 20

SP - 255

EP - 281

JO - Social Studies of Science

JF - Social Studies of Science

SN - 0306-3127

IS - 2

ER -