Journal Article

Negotiating Community Engagement and Science in the Federal Environmental Public Health Sector

Little, Peter C.

2009

Overview

In this case study, I use ethnographic data to explore how community engagement and science are deployed at the U.S. Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, with the goal of formulating an understanding of the personalized meanings of science-community relations for key environmental public health experts. In focus is the cultural discourse circulating in the agency that exposes the real concerns, beliefs, and attitudes of these scientists and experts vis-à-vis their community engagement experiences. Finally, I propose that critical attention to the place of power relations, knowledge politics, and environmental justice are fundamental to studies of toxic contamination where commitments to community engagement and quality science are joined to form a positive research goal and where attempts are made to improve the conditions of quality environmental public health service.

• Publisher: Blackwell Publishing Inc,Blackwell Publishing,Blackwell Publishing Ltd
• Subject: Ambiguity / Anthropology, Cultural / Attitude to Health / Attitudes / Beliefs / Case studies / Communities / Community / Community action / Community engagement / Community health / Community Involvement / Community Participation / Community relations / community-institutional relations / Culture / Data Collection / Discourse / Diseases / Environment / Environmental health / Environmental justice / environmental public health / Epidemiology / Ethnographic research / Ethnography / ethnography of science and expertise / Experts / Federal Government / Federal states / Government agencies / Health services / Humans / Medical anthropology / Narration / Negotiation / Politics / Power / Public Health / Public Policy / Public Sector / Science / Science Society Relationship / science studies / Scientists / Social justice / Toxic Substances / Toxicity / U.S.A