Retfærdiggørelse, ideologi, kritik

Denne artikel har tre formål. For det første er det hensigten at udrede forbindelserne mellem begreberne retfærdiggørelse, ideologi og kritik, som de foreligger hos Luc Boltanski og Ève Chiapello i Le Nouvel Esprit du capitalisme (1999) (NEC i det følgende) og denne bogs forudsætninger. For det andet skal forholdet mellem kritisk sociologi og kritiksociologi afklares. Boltanski markerer sig i 1980-90erne med en tese om, at sociologien om de sociale aktørers kritiske kompetencer bør erstatte en sociologi, som selv vil være kritisk. I NEC vender imidlertid en idé om kritisk sociologi tilbage. Her skal de to tilgange integreres, som det hedder i forordet til den engelske udgave af NEC (Boltanski & Chiapello 2005:xii). Hvordan hænger dette sammen? For det tredje skal Boltanski og Chiapellos (B&C i det følgende) begrebs- og teoridannelse præciseres gennem konfrontation med dels en marxistisk forståelse af ideologi og kritik, dels aktør-netværksteorien i Bruno Latours udgave, ifølge hvilken kritisk sociologi er noget af det værste og mest skadelige, der er hændt samfundsvidenskaben. Et kort blik på den anerkendelsesteoretiske fornyelse af kritisk teori (Axel Honneth) bidrager til præciseringen. ENGELSK ABSTRACT: Niels Albertsen: Justification, Ideology, Critique The aim of this article is threefold. The first task is to explicate the connections between the concepts of justification, ideology and critique in Luc Boltanski’s and Ève Chiapello’s magnum opus, The New Spirit of Capitalism. The second is to elucidate the relationship between sociology of critique and critical sociology. In the1980-90s Boltanski argued that critical sociology, which approaches social actors critically in search of “hidden“ explanations “behind their backs“, should be replaced by sociology of critique, which investigates the critical competencies of the social actors themselves. In The New Spirit of Capitalism, however, critical sociology shows up again. How consistent is this move? The third aim is to clarify Boltanski’s and Chiapello’s theoretical position by confronting it with Marxist conceptions of ideology and critique (Karl Marx and Slavoj Žižek) and with actor-network theory (Bruno Latour). A quick look at Axel Honneth’s recognition-oriented renewal of critical theory further contributes to the clarification. The main conclusion is that sociology of critique has helped reformulate critical sociology as pragmatic critique, as critical sociology of critique that does not operate with deep, transcendent foundations. Key words: Justification, ideology, critique, Boltanski, Latour, Žižek

Risk Factors for Congenital Cryptorchidism in a Prospective Birth Cohort Study

Background: Risk factors for congenital cryptorchidism were investigated in a prospective birth cohort study in Denmark and Finland from 1997 to 2001. Methodology and Principal Findings: In total, 2,496 boys were examined for cryptorchidism at birth (cryptorchid/healthy: 128/2,368) and three months old (33/2,215). Information on risk factors was obtained antenatally (questionnaire/interview) or at birth from birth records. Use of nicotine substitutes during pregnancy (n = 40) and infertility treatment by intrauterine insemination (n = 49) were associated with an increased risk for cryptorchidism, adjusted odds ratio (95 % confidence interval) (OR (95%CI)) 3.04 (95%CI 1.00–9.27) and 3.01 (95%CI 1.27–7.15), respectively. No association was seen for mothers (n = 79) who had infertility treatment in form of intracytoplasmic sperm injection (ICSI) or in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment (OR 0.71 95%CI 0.21–2.38). In total, 728 (29%) reported to have smoked during pregnancy, however, no increased risk among maternal smokers was found. Furthermore, we found statistically significant associations between cryptorchidism and low birth weight, prematurity, being small for gestational age, substantial vaginal bleeding, and breech presentation, which are in accordance with other studies. Conclusions and Significance: Our study revealed two novel risk factors for cryptorchidism: intrauterine insemination and the use of nicotine substitutes in pregnancy. This suggests that cryptorchidism may not only be associated to geneti