Respecifying Lab Ethnography: An Ethnomethodological Study of Experimental Physics

interaction strategies. She reminds us that symbolic interactionism doesn’t concern itself with the morality of being honest or deceptive but rather on what is pragmatic— that is, on what contributes to shared definitions of situations, mutually understood meanings, and collaborative efforts at solving the paradoxes that emerge in interaction. In her chapter on the use of language in the performance of identities, Scott outlines three analytical frameworks: discourse analysis, conversation analysis, and frame analysis. While providing an excellent overview of these frameworks, Scott also addresses semiotics, Mills’s motive talk, and Scott and Lyman’s excuses and justifications. Scott effectively describes how key interactionist concepts help us to better understand both micro-realities (e.g., by employing conversation analysis) and mesoor macrorealities (e.g., through utilizing frame analysis). By redeploying interactionist concepts, Scott demonstrates the perspective’s broad applicability in analyzing social life, dispelling the common myth (and criticism) that symbolic interactionism is applicable only at the micro level. In her chapter on how social organizations and institutions shape identities, Scott revisits Goffman’s work on total institutions. In addition, she presents her own concept of reinventive institutions, characterizing them as structures sought out voluntarily for the purposes of self-improvement, where disciplinary power takes the form of ‘‘performative regulation.’’ Here, members exercise agency while simultaneously experiencing social control based on mutual surveillance. Scott identifies six types of these new sites for identity work, including religious and spiritual communities, military camps, secret societies and fraternities, therapeutic clinics, academic hothouses, and virtual institutions. The fascinating discussion of reinventive institutions is reminiscent of themes prevalent in Charles Edgley and Dennis Brissett’s book, A Nation of Meddlers (2000). Edgley and Brissett focus not only on the meddlers, but also on those who choose to be meddled with. The latter would likely be members in Scott’s reinventive institutions—in particular, in therapeutic clinics. Consideration of a new form of total institution, in the form of Scott’s reinventive institution, provides an important reevaluation of 12-step programs, self-actualization, and belief in the expertise of others. The implications for self (re)-construction are important and worthy of continued study. For the reader familiar with key micro sociological concepts, Scott provides contemporary examples in explaining and describing the concepts in a way that is reinvigorating. For the reader unfamiliar with the concepts, Scott’s excellent writing, featuring thoughtful explanations and provocative examples, sheds light on what is to be gained from micro-level sociological analysis. This book could have multiple uses: For anyone wishing to better understand how identity is negotiated—that is, the processes involved and strategies employed—this book is a must-read. For professors of social psychology classes (especially those emphasizing the symbolic interactionist perspective), this book would be an excellent selection for required reading. Finally, Scott’s book could also serve as a helpful resource for those who simply wish to brush up on old (but still highly relevant) micro sociological concepts. In this latter regard, the book could function as an interactionist reference book.