Science

Abstract

Science is frequently defined by the types of empirical methods and knowledge production practices employed, all with the goal to better understand the natural world. Nature is the “stuff” or subject of science. It is perceived as the domain of natural scientists since they receive extensive training to discover what exists “out there.” Yet social scientists have long been interested in the institution of science—how science is produced, practiced, and understood as an institution by the broader public. Throughout this chapter, I review general trends within social science literature centered on the interaction between religion and science. Rather than regard secularization as inevitable, I discuss how increasingly scholars are able empirically to trace the ways in which individuals (both the general public and those in the academy) interact with institutional sources of authority (both religious and scientific) in light of variation in beliefs, knowledge, and practices.