ABSTRACT
This chapter presents a case study of 'knowledge' and decision-taking in the city, and then deals with the general sociological background of these interests. The case study is concerned with the creation of slum-clearance data in Millfield, an area of single-storey cottages in terraced streets built in the 1870s. The specialized officer in the collection of slum-clearance data is the environmental health officer. The chapter talks about how one hundred properties were improved and another ninety sought grant approval. The social action frame of reference is one specification among many of how observations may be limited, organized, understood, interpreted and communicated. The study of an actor in his social role; of the physical, social, cultural and personality situations he typically confronts; of his personal values and knowledge and his mode of distinguishing between what is certain, dubious and erroneous; and of the results of his actions – these are the research topics within the actor's frame of reference.
