After briefly examining how expert authority has been constructed through an “associative” perspective, which privileges institutional relationships, I argue for the complimentary adoption of an “enactive” perspective, which centers on how experts demonstrate and earn authority with individual clients and communities. I synthesize scholarship revealing the uses of communication in expert–client relationships to argue that an enactive perspective allows for the study of how experts use “reiterative multivocality” to demonstrate to clients that they possess expert knowledge that is tailored to their interests, stakes, and values. Reiterative multivocality is the process of reaffirming, in different voices and formats, terms and symbols considered centrally important by other experts at the time. It allows experts to communicate authoritativeness through reiterating signs that reflect the collective’s efforts to maintain authority in response to shifts in client expectations. I focus on the case of expert authoritativeness in medicine, examining how it is constructed and maintained. The article argues that authority is not rooted solely in institutions but is developed and maintained by individual experts and clients, and that the language and processes used in the construction of authoritativeness is of central importance to sociologists. I expand upon the implications of both perspectives for method.

在简要研究了如何通过“关联”视角构建专家权威之后，我主张免费采用“生成”视角，该视角以专家如何在个人客户和社区中展示和赢得权威为中心。我综合了揭示交流在专家-客户关系中的用途的学术成果，以论证生成的视角允许研究专家如何使用“反复多声道”向客户证明他们拥有针对他们的兴趣、利益和利益量身定制的专业知识。值。反复多声道是用不同的声音和格式重申当时其他专家认为至关重要的术语和符号的过程。它允许专家通过重申标志来传达权威性，这些标志反映了集体努力维护权威以应对客户期望的变化。我关注医学专家权威的案例，研究它是如何构建和维护的。文章认为，权威不仅仅植根于机构，而是由个别专家和客户发展和维护，并且用于构建权威的语言和过程对社会学家来说至关重要。我扩展了两种观点对方法的影响。文章认为，权威不仅仅植根于机构，而是由个别专家和客户发展和维护，并且用于构建权威的语言和过程对社会学家来说至关重要。我扩展了两种观点对方法的影响。文章认为，权威不仅仅植根于机构，而是由个别专家和客户发展和维护，并且用于构建权威的语言和过程对社会学家来说至关重要。我扩展了两种观点对方法的影响。