@article {24286,
title = {The Benefits of Acquiring Interactional Expertise: Why (Some) Philosophers of Science Should Engage Scientific Communities},
journal = {Studies in History and Philosophy of Science},
volume = {83},
year = {2020},
pages = {53-62},
abstract = {Philosophers of science are increasingly arguing for and addressing the need to do work that is socially and scientifically engaged. However, we currently lack well-developed frameworks for thinking about how we should engage other expert communities and what the epistemic benefits are of doing so. In this paper, I draw on Collins and Evans{\textquoteright} concept of {\textquoteleft}interactional expertise{\textquoteright} {\textendash} the ability to speak the language of a discipline in the absence of an ability to practice {\textendash} to consider the epistemic benefits that can arise when philosophers engage scientific communities. As Collins and Evans argue, becoming an interactional expert requires that one {\textquoteleft}hang out{\textquoteright} with members of the relevant expert community in order to learn crucial tacit knowledge needed to speak the language. Building on this work, I argue that acquiring interactional expertise not only leads to linguistic fluency, but it also confers several {\textquoteleft}socio-epistemic{\textquoteright} benefits such as the opportunity to cultivate trust with scientific communities. These benefits can improve philosophical work\ and\ facilitate the broader uptake of philosophers{\textquoteright} ideas, enabling philosophers to meet a variety of epistemic goals. As a result, having at least some philosophers of science acquire interactional expertise via engagement will likely enhance the diversity of epistemic capacities for philosophy of science as a whole. For some philosophers of science, moreover, the socio-epistemic benefits identified here may be\ more\ important than the ability to speak the language of a discipline, suggesting the need for a broader analysis of interactional expertise, which this paper also advances.},
author = {Kathryn S. Plaisance}
}