Mapping the Social Structure of Philosophy of Science Through Large-Scale Acknowledgments Analysis

The acknowledgments in scientific publications offer a unique perspective on the complex web of socio-cognitive relationships underlying the production of knowledge. Acknowledgment analysis enables us to highlight the role of funding institutions, reconstruct informal collaboration patterns invisible to co-authorship analysis, and measure a distinct form of prestige beyond authorships and citations. This study leverages acknowledgment analysis to investigate the fine-grained social structure of philosophy of science, a research field whose social dimension has thus far remained unexplored. Specifically, we aim to: 1) identify the scholars who receive the most acknowledgments in the field and examine their roles in professional associations; 2) analyze how acknowledgments are distributed across the community and the factors affecting the number of mentions received; and 3) map the social communities within philosophy of science, exploring whether they a re organized around topics, methodological approaches, or professional associations. Our findings reveal that acknowledgments are prevalent in philosophy of science, with 79% of articles including them, and that the average acknowledgment mentions 5.3 individuals—significantly higher than the average number of co-authors per article (1.3). Most acknowledged individuals are prominent philosophers of science who play key roles in professional associations. In terms of distribution, mentions are highly concentrated among a few individuals, with the top 10% of acknowledged scholars receiving nearly half of all mentions. Mentions are most strongly predicted by academic awards, productivity in philosophy of science journals, leadership roles in professional associations, and affiliation with English-speaking institutions, with smaller effects for gender and general publication metrics. Finally, the co-acknowledgment network shows that clusters of frequently co-mentioned individuals are organized around both topics (e.g., philosophies of specific sciences) and methodological approaches (e.g., formal vs. historical philosophy of science).