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Micro/Macro Translations: The Production of New Social Structures in the Case of DNA Profiling *
Author(s) -
Derksen Linda
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
sociological inquiry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.446
H-Index - 51
eISSN - 1475-682X
pISSN - 0038-0245
DOI - 10.1111/j.1475-682x.2010.00328.x
Subject(s) - profiling (computer programming) , macro , credibility , sociology , social order , social structure , macro level , political science , computer science , law , economics , economic system , politics , programming language , operating system
Examples drawn from the history of DNA profiling in the United States are used to show how knowledge claims about DNA profiling became part of the wider social structure. A crucial aspect of this process was the formation of new social structures at the micro and macro levels. Social order and knowledge formed within a community of practice, the FBI sponsored Technical Working Group on DNA Methods (TWGDAM), was translated and entrenched in new formal social structures, such as the DNA Identification Act of 1994. This in turn gave further stability and credibility to the knowledge about DNA profiling advanced by TWGDAM, as well as their status as a credible professional organization. This article contributes an understanding of the role that new social structures play in linking the micro and the macro levels of social structure.