Science Communication in the Soviet Union: Science as Vocation and Profession

ABSTRACT

This study reconsiders scientists’ identity in terms of vocation vs. profession, proceeding from Max Weber’s differentiation between science as profession and science as an inner calling for the truth, by considering the context of science communication in the Soviet Union. We substantiate the thesis that if somewhat reviewed, the idea of science popularization as a vocation and profession could find a partial application to the Soviet context. The conceptual framework of the study includes the concept of ‘trading zones’ developed by Collins and Evans. Here, we reinterpret this concept in terms of communications between science and society. We employ the notion of a cultural-ideological ‘dispositif’ to characterize the Soviet specifics of science communication. The cases studied include the most influential Soviet scientific society – the ‘Znanie’ (Knowledge) – and scientific events for schoolchildren, school competitions, and technical groups as major forms of recruiting younger generations into the scientific endeavor. The illustrations given serve to substantiate our major argument concerning the attempt, though only partially successful, by the Soviet state to establish a harmonious unity between vocation and profession.

KEYWORDS:

• Trading zone
• cultural-ideological dispositif
• Soviet science popularization
• vocation

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Notes

1. The interconnections between science development and the Soviet ideology, as well as science popularization and science policy in the Soviet Union, were studied by Loren R. Graham (1972, 1993), Michael Froggatt (2005), Paul M. Cocks (1980), Alexei Kojevnikov (2008), Zemliansky and St. Amant (2016), etc. Notable among the secondary works on science development and the Soviet ideology is M. Froggatt’s (2005) study, which provides the first archive-based analysis of the lecturing organization ‘Znanie’ that was crucial to the dissemination of Soviet propaganda in the post-war period. The thesis also refers to a variety of published sources, such as popular science publications and journals, as well as a number of Soviet films from the Khrushchev period. Besides, there is quite a good number of literature published in Russian, such as a paper by the famous Soviet science fiction writer Ivan A. Yefremov on the ways he saw science popularization had to proceed (Yefremov 1953). The multi-author essay collection ‘Vremya, vpered! Kulturnaya politika v SSSR’ (Time, Go Ahead! 2013) examines the Soviet science popularization policy in a broader context of the Soviet cultural policy.

2. As for its current life, in 2010 the government ordered the development of a new concept of the Museum aiming to attract a new audience – ‘from preschoolers and students to tourists and innovators’ – and encourage ‘new generations to choose sci-tech knowledge and occupation’ (New Concept of the Museum. The Polytechnic Museum website).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the Russian Science Foundation under Grant no. 19-18-00494 ‘The Mission of the Scientist in the Modern World: Science as Profession and Vocation.’

Notes on contributors

Svetlana V. Shibarshina

Svetlana V. Shibarshina is Project Researcher at Russian Society for History and Philosophy of Science and Associate Professor at National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod. She received her PhD from Lobachevsky State University. She works mainly on topics in the history and philosophy of science, with a focus on social dimensions of scientific knowledge, including STS.

Evgeny V. Maslanov

Evgeny V. Maslanov is Project Researcher at Russian Society for History and Philosophy of Science; Research Fellow at RAS Institute of Philosophy (Moscow) and Research Fellow at National Research Lobachevsky State University of Nizhny Novgorod. He received his PhD from State Pedagogical University Kozma Minin University. He works mainly on topics in Science and Technology Studies.