Foundations of Sociology

Foundations of Sociology PDF

Author: Richard Jenkins

Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing

Published: 2018-02-08

Total Pages: 179

ISBN-13: 1349878359

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This book argues that the foundations of sociology - key concepts which are necessary to all sociology, from whatever perspective - have become taken-for-granted and require re-assessment. Focusing on society, culture, the individual, and collectivity, the author builds a powerful case for an overhaul of these basic concepts, offering a unified model of the subject matter of sociology as 'the human world' - understood as individual, interactional and institutional orders - which is part of the 'natural world'. Written in a straightforward and accessible style, this is a powerful restatement of the value of sociological sense as a necessary critique of common sense, and its relevance to an audience far beyond academia.

Foundations of Sociology

Foundations of Sociology PDF

Author: Instructor of Sociology Liberal Arts and Sciences Department John Steckley

Publisher:

Published: 2014-01-06

Total Pages: 686

ISBN-13: 9780195443226

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This vibrant, engaging introduction to society and social life promises to be the book sociology students will want to read. Through his inimitable narrative style, author John Steckley explores the theories, structures, and relationships that make up our social world while encouraging students to think critically about their role in society. Cutting-edge and comprehensive, Foundations of Sociology lays the groundwork students need to succeed in introductory sociology courses and beyond.

Foundations and Futures in the Sociology of Religion

Foundations and Futures in the Sociology of Religion PDF

Author: Luke Doggett

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2017-12-14

Total Pages: 330

ISBN-13: 1351607383

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Since the sociology of religion became recognised as a distinct sub-discipline over the last century, the dominance of approaches taking their inspiration from the sociological classics has increasingly been challenged. Empirical findings have brought the notion of secularisation into question; and theorists have sought to deconstruct how we think of ‘religion.’ This collection appraises the continuing influence of the foundational approaches and places these in relation to newly emerging directions in the field. The book is divided into four sections, each section containing one ‘foundational’ chapter written by an established academic followed by two ‘futures’ chapters contributed by emerging scholars in the sub-discipline. These chapters complement one another by placing the overview of future directions in the context of a survey of the development of the sociology of religion over the last century. Topics discussed in these chapters include lived religion, sexuality, ritual, religion and the media. Combining erudite examinations of the British Sociological Association Sociology of Religion Study Group’s work so far with explorations of the future directions its research might take, this book is vital reading for any scholar whose work combines religious studies and sociology.

Foundations of Political Sociology

Foundations of Political Sociology PDF

Author: Irving Louis Horowitz

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2018-01-18

Total Pages: 590

ISBN-13: 1351310860

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When initially published in 1972, Foundations of Political Sociology was acknowledged to be the first unified study of the field. It still provides a cross-fertilization of knowledge concerning the interrelation of social class and political power. Taking into account new specializations in social theory, the book covers all major social systems on a comparative international basis. The opening remarks prepared for this new printing provide an estimate of how the field has changed during the past quarter century, and what unexpected challenges have arisen in areas of public trust and personal privacy. This book examines fascism, communism, anarchism, conservatism, and liberalism as systems of rule as well as domains of theory. It is thus a unique effort at linking problems of history with problems of policy. The six sections of the book detail the historical and theoretical antecedents of this relatively new hybrid area in social research: policy coordinates of political sociology, types of social systems, forms of political ideologies, polarities of revolution and counter-revolution, civil-military relations, mass vs. elite contradictions, and threads of consensus and conflict running through these themes. "Horowitz presents as his central thesis that in today's world no economic determinism can do justice to social reality. Foundations is the work of a politically sensitive and knowledgeable scholar."Louis Schneider, Social Forces "Foundations of Political Sociology reflects extensive teaching and research in the area of political sociology. The book combines analytical insight with a provocative cutting edge and represents the best of Professor Horowitz."Thomas R. McFaul, The Annals "Horowitz's political stance is interesting. Though he knows the radical literature, he distances himself from it. He sympathizes with everyone and strives to be provocative and yet elusivea personal voice in a dogmatic discipline."W.J.M. Mackenzie, Political Studies

Classical Sociological Theory

Classical Sociological Theory PDF

Author: Craig Calhoun

Publisher: John Wiley & Sons

Published: 2012-01-17

Total Pages: 578

ISBN-13: 0470655674

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This comprehensive collection of classical sociological theory is a definitive guide to the roots of sociology from its undisciplined beginnings to its current influence on contemporary sociological debate. Explores influential works of Marx, Durkheim, Weber, Mead, Simmel, Freud, Du Bois, Adorno, Marcuse, Parsons, and Merton Editorial introductions lend historical and intellectual perspective to the substantial readings Includes a new section with new readings on the immediate "pre-history" of sociological theory, including the Enlightenment and de Tocqueville Individual reading selections are updated throughout

Philosophical Foundations of the Three Sociologies (RLE Social Theory)

Philosophical Foundations of the Three Sociologies (RLE Social Theory) PDF

Author: Ted Benton

Publisher: Routledge

Published: 2014-09-19

Total Pages: 239

ISBN-13: 1317651413

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An extended historical and philosophical argument, this book will be a valuable text for all students of the philosophy of the social sciences. It discusses the serious alternatives to positivist and empiricist accounts of the physical sciences, and poses the debate between naturalism and anti-naturalism in the social sciences in new terms. Recent materialist and realist philosophies of science make possible a defence of naturalism which does not make concessions to positivism and which recognizes the force of several of the anti-positivist arguments from the main anti-naturalist (neo-Kantian) tradition. The author presents a critical evaluation of empiricist and positivist theories of knowledge, and investigates some classic attempts at using them to provide the philosophical foundation for a scientific sociology. He takes the Kantian critique of empiricism as the starting point for the main anti-positivist and anti-naturalist philosophical approaches to the social studies. He goes on to investigate the inadequacy of post-Kantian arguments from Rickert, Weber, Winch and others, both against non-positivist forms of naturalism and as the possible source of a distinctive philosophical foundation for the social studies. The book concludes with a critical investigation of the Marxian tradition and an attempt to establish the possibility of a materialist and realist defence of the project of a natural science of history, which escapes the fundamental flaws of both positivist and neo-Kantian attempts at philosophical foundation.

The Oxford Handbook of Sociology and Organization Studies

The Oxford Handbook of Sociology and Organization Studies PDF

Author: Paul S. Adler

Publisher: Oxford Handbooks

Published: 2009

Total Pages: 700

ISBN-13: 019953523X

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We live in a society of organisations, organisations which have profound and pervasive effects on our lives at work and beyond. Contemporary society and its organisations are in a period of accelerated, profound change. In this book, leading sociology and organsational scholars consider how 'classic' sociologists can help make sense of change.

Concepts and Categories

Concepts and Categories PDF

Author: Michael T. Hannan

Publisher: Columbia University Press

Published: 2019-08-13

Total Pages: 334

ISBN-13: 0231549938

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Why do people like books, music, or movies that adhere consistently to genre conventions? Why is it hard for politicians to take positions that cross ideological boundaries? Why do we have dramatically different expectations of companies that are categorized as social media platforms as opposed to news media sites? The answers to these questions require an understanding of how people use basic concepts in their everyday lives to give meaning to objects, other people, and social situations and actions. In this book, a team of sociologists presents a groundbreaking model of concepts and categorization that can guide sociological and cultural analysis of a wide variety of social situations. Drawing on research in various fields, including cognitive science, computational linguistics, and psychology, the book develops an innovative view of concepts. It argues that concepts have meanings that are probabilistic rather than sharp, occupying fuzzy, overlapping positions in a “conceptual space.” Measurements of distances in this space reveal our mental representations of categories. Using this model, important yet commonplace phenomena such as our routine buying decisions can be quantified in terms of the cognitive distance between concepts. Concepts and Categories provides an essential set of formal theoretical tools and illustrates their application using an eclectic set of methodologies, from micro-level controlled experiments to macro-level language processing. It illuminates how explicit attention to concepts and categories can give us a new understanding of everyday situations and interactions.

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