Knowledge and social problems -- Volitions -- Probing -- Inquiry, imposition, and partisanship -- Impaired probing -- Elite and other advantaged sources of impairing influences -- Contemporary elites -- Convergences as evidence of impairment -- What can social scientists do? -- Professional dependence on lay probing -- Professional help for lay probing -- Professional impairment -- Scientific society and self-guiding society -- Multiplism, pluralism, and mutual adjustment -- Some questions about professional inquiry for a self-guiding society -- Reducing impairment.