Sociology and quantification: economics of convention as an approach to link quantification and public sociology

The sociology of quantification is an emerging field, in which different disciplines are engaged to study the quantification processes in different social realms, their effects and usages, but also the plurality of underlying principles and logics of quantification. The science movement of economics of conventions (in short EC) is one of the most important strands, which contributed to the sociology of quantification. EC has identified, how quantification and measurement is based on measurement conventions. These conventions link numbers, but also categories and data in general to a common good. This way, EC can be conceived of as a link between the sociological analysis of processes of quantification (and categorization) to public issue, debates and concerns. It is for this link that EC can be regarded also as a contribution to public sociology. The contribution presents the plurality of conventions and introduces concepts of EC as quality conventions or data worlds.