Sociology

classies Sociology as a STEM Field.[7][8]

For the journal, see Sociology (journal).

Sociology is the scientic study of social behavior, its origins, development, organization, and institutions.[1] It is a 2 History
social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation[2] and critical analysis[3] to develop a body of
Main articles: History of sociology, List of sociologists
knowledge about social order, social disorder and social
and Timeline of sociology
change. A goal for many sociologists is to conduct research which may be applied directly to social policy and
welfare, while others focus primarily on rening the theoretical understanding of social processes. Subject matter ranges from the micro level of individual agency and 2.1 Origins
interaction to the macro level of systems and the social
structure.[4]
The traditional focuses of sociology include social
stratication, social class, social mobility, religion,
secularization, law, sexuality and deviance. As all spheres
of human activity are aected by the interplay between
social structure and individual agency, sociology has
gradually expanded its focus to further subjects, such as
health, medical, military and penal institutions, the Internet, education, and the role of social activity in the development of scientic knowledge.
The range of social scientic methods has also expanded.
Social researchers draw upon a variety of qualitative
and quantitative techniques. The linguistic and cultural
turns of the mid-twentieth century led to increasingly
interpretative, hermeneutic, and philosophic approaches
to the analysis of society. Conversely, recent decades
have seen the rise of new analytically, mathematically and
computationally rigorous techniques, such as agent-based
modelling and social network analysis.[5][6]
Social research informs politicians and policy makers, educators, planners, lawmakers, administrators,
developers, business magnates, managers, social workers, non-governmental organizations, non-prot organizations, and people interested in resolving social issues
in general. There is often a great deal of crossover between social research, market research, and other statistical elds.

Ibn Khaldun (1332-1406)

Classication

Sociological reasoning predates the foundation of the discipline. Social analysis has origins in the common stock
of Western knowledge and philosophy, and has been carried out from as far back as the time of ancient Greek
philosopher Plato if not before. The origin of the survey,

Sociology should not be confused with various general social studies courses which bear little relation to sociological theory or social science research
methodology. The US National Science Foundation,
1

HISTORY

i.e., the collection of information from a sample of individuals, can be traced back to at least the Domesday
Book in 1086,[9][10] while ancient philosophers such
as Confucius wrote on the importance of social roles.
There is evidence of early sociology in medieval Islam.
Some consider Ibn Khaldun, a 14th-century Arab Islamic
scholar from North Africa, to have been the rst sociologist and father of sociology;[11] his Muqaddimah was perhaps the rst work to advance social-scientic reasoning
on social cohesion and social conict.[12][13][14][15][16][17]
The word sociology (or sociologie) is derived from
both Latin and Greek origins. The Latin word: socius,
companion"; the sux -logy, the study of from
Greek - from , lgos, word, knowledge.
It was rst coined in 1780 by the French essayist
Emmanuel-Joseph Sieys (17481836) in an unpublished manuscript.[18] Sociology was later dened independently by the French philosopher of science, Auguste
Comte (17981857), in 1838.[19] Comte used this term
to describe a new way of looking at society.[20] Comte
had earlier used the term social physics, but that had
subsequently been appropriated by others, most notably
the Belgian statistician Adolphe Quetelet. Comte endeavored to unify history, psychology and economics through
the scientic understanding of the social realm. Writing
shortly after the malaise of the French Revolution, he Auguste Comte (1798-1857)
proposed that social ills could be remedied through sociological positivism, an epistemological approach outof the fact that Durkheim did not accept the
lined in The Course in Positive Philosophy [18301842]
idea of the three states and criticized Comtes
and A General View of Positivism (1848). Comte believed
approach to sociology.[23]
a positivist stage would mark the nal era, after conjecFrederick Copleston, A History of Philosotural theological and metaphysical phases, in the progres[21]
phy: IX Modern Philosophy 1974
sion of human understanding. In observing the circular dependence of theory and observation in science, and
having classied the sciences, Comte may be regarded as
the rst philosopher of science in the modern sense of the
term.[22]
Comte gave a powerful impetus to the
development of sociology, an impetus which
bore fruit in the later decades of the nineteenth century. To say this is certainly not
to claim that French sociologists such as
Durkheim were devoted disciples of the high
priest of positivism. But by insisting on the
irreducibility of each of his basic sciences to
the particular science of sciences which it presupposed in the hierarchy and by emphasizing
the nature of sociology as the scientic study
of social phenomena Comte put sociology
on the map. To be sure, [its] beginnings can
be traced back well beyond Montesquieu, for
example, and to Condorcet, not to speak of
Saint-Simon, Comtes immediate predecessor.
But Comtes clear recognition of sociology
as a particular science, with a character of its
own, justied Durkheim in regarding him as
the father or founder of this science, in spite

Karl Marx (1818-1883)

2.2

Foundations of the academic discipline

Both Auguste Comte and Karl Marx (1818-1883) set out

to develop scientically justied systems in the wake of
European industrialization and secularization, informed
by various key movements in the philosophies of history
and science. Marx rejected Comtean positivism but in attempting to develop a science of society nevertheless came
to be recognized as a founder of sociology as the word
gained wider meaning. For Isaiah Berlin, Marx may be
regarded as the true father of modern sociology, in so
far as anyone can claim the title.[24]
To have given clear and unied answers in
familiar empirical terms to those theoretical
questions which most occupied mens minds
at the time, and to have deduced from them
clear practical directives without creating
obviously articial links between the two, was
the principle achievement of Marxs theory.
The sociological treatment of historical and
moral problems, which Comte and after
him, Spencer and Taine, had discussed and
mapped, became a precise and concrete study
only when the attack of militant Marxism
made its conclusions a burning issue, and so
made the search for evidence more zealous
and the attention to method more intense.[25]
Isaiah Berlin, Karl Marx: His Life and
Environment 1937

3
19th century thinkers, including mile Durkheim, dened their ideas in relation to his. Durkheims Division of
Labour in Society is to a large extent an extended debate
with Spencer from whose sociology, many commentators now agree, Durkheim borrowed extensively.[26] Also
a notable biologist, Spencer coined the term "survival of
the ttest". Whilst Marxian ideas dened one strand of
sociology, Spencer was a critic of socialism as well as
strong advocate for a laissez-faire style of government.
His ideas were highly observed by conservative political
circles, especially in the United States and England.[27]

2.2 Foundations of the academic discipline

Main articles: Emile Durkheim and Social facts
Formal academic sociology was established by mile

mile Durkheim

Herbert Spencer (1820-1903)

Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 8 December 1903)

was one of the most popular and inuential 19th century sociologists. It is estimated that he sold one million
books in his lifetime, far more than any other sociologist
at the time. So strong was his inuence that many other

Durkheim (18581917), who developed positivism as a

foundation to practical social research. While Durkheim
rejected much of the detail of Comtes philosophy, he
retained and rened its method, maintaining that the social sciences are a logical continuation of the natural ones
into the realm of human activity, and insisting that they
may retain the same objectivity, rationalism, and approach to causality.[28] Durkheim set up the rst European department of sociology at the University of Bordeaux in 1895, publishing his Rules of the Sociological
Method (1895).[29] For Durkheim, sociology could be described as the science of institutions, their genesis and
their functioning.[30]

HISTORY

Durkheims monograph, Suicide (1897) is considered

suggest what Giddens has recently described
a seminal work in statistical analysis by contemporary
as 'a multidimensional view of institutions of
sociologists. Suicide is a case study of variations in
modernity' and which emphasizes not only
suicide rates amongst Catholic and Protestant populacapitalism and industrialism as key institutions
tions, and served to distinguish sociological analysis from
of modernity, but also 'surveillance' (meaning
psychology or philosophy. It also marked a major contri'control of information and social supervision')
bution to the theoretical concept of structural functionand 'military power' (control of the means of
alism. By carefully examining suicide statistics in difviolence in the context of the industrialization
ferent police districts, he attempted to demonstrate that
of war).[33]
Catholic communities have a lower suicide rate than that
John Harriss, The Second Great Transforof Protestants, something he attributed to social (as opmation? Capitalism at the End of the Twentieth
posed to individual or psychological) causes. He develCentury 1992
oped the notion of objective sui generis social facts to
delineate a unique empirical object for the science of sociology to study.[28] Through such studies he posited that
sociology would be able to determine whether any given 2.3 Positivism and anti-positivism
society is 'healthy' or 'pathological', and seek social re2.3.1 Positivism
form to negate organic breakdown or social anomie".
Sociology quickly evolved as an academic response
to the perceived challenges of modernity, such as
industrialization, urbanization, secularization, and the
process of "rationalization".[31] The eld predominated
in continental Europe, with British anthropology and
statistics generally following on a separate trajectory. By
the turn of the 20th century, however, many theorists
were active in the Anglo-Saxon world. Few early sociologists were conned strictly to the subject, interacting also with economics, jurisprudence, psychology and
philosophy, with theories being appropriated in a variety
of dierent elds. Since its inception, sociological epistemologies, methods, and frames of inquiry, have significantly expanded and diverged.[4]
Durkheim, Marx, and the German theorist Max Weber (1864-1920) are typically cited as the three principal architects of sociology.[32] Herbert Spencer, William
Graham Sumner, Lester F. Ward, W. E. B. Du Bois,
Vilfredo Pareto, Alexis de Tocqueville, Werner Sombart,
Thorstein Veblen, Ferdinand Tnnies, Georg Simmel and
Karl Mannheim are occasionally included on academic
curricula as founding theorists. Curricula also may include Charlotte Perkins Gilman, Marianne Weber and
Friedrich Engels as founders of the feminist tradition in
sociology. Each key gure is associated with a particular
theoretical perspective and orientation.[33]
Marx and Engels associated the emergence
of modern society above all with the development of capitalism; for Durkheim it was
connected in particular with industrialization
and the new social division of labor which this
brought about; for Weber it had to do with the
emergence of a distinctive way of thinking, the
rational calculation which he associated with
the Protestant Ethic (more or less what Marx
and Engels speak of in terms of those 'icy
waves of egotistical calculation'). Together
the works of these great classical sociologists

Main article: Positivism

The overarching methodological principle of positivism
is to conduct sociology in broadly the same manner as
natural science. An emphasis on empiricism and the
scientic method is sought to provide a tested foundation for sociological research based on the assumption
that the only authentic knowledge is scientic knowledge,
and that such knowledge can only arrive by positive armation through scientic methodology.
Our main goal is to extend scientic rationalism to human conduct... What has been
called our positivism is but a consequence of
this rationalism.[34]
mile Durkheim, The Rules of Sociological
Method (1895)

The term has long since ceased to carry this meaning;

there are no fewer than twelve distinct epistemologies
that are referred to as positivism.[28][35] Many of these
approaches do not self-identify as positivist, some because they themselves arose in opposition to older forms
of positivism, and some because the label has over time
become a term of abuse[28] by being mistakenly linked
with a theoretical empiricism. The extent of antipositivist criticism has also diverged, with many rejecting the
scientic method and others only seeking to amend it to
reect 20th century developments in the philosophy of
science. However, positivism (broadly understood as a
scientic approach to the study of society) remains dominant in contemporary sociology, especially in the United
States.[28]
Loc Wacquant distinguishes three major strains of positivism: Durkheimian, Logical, and Instrumental.[28]
None of these are the same as that set forth by Comte,
who was unique in advocating such a rigid (and perhaps optimistic) version.[36][37] While mile Durkheim

2.3

Positivism and anti-positivism

complex social phenomena.[43] As a non-positivist, however, Weber sought relationships that are not as historical, invariant, or generalizable[44] as those pursued by
natural scientists. Fellow German sociologist, Ferdinand
Tnnies, theorized on two crucial abstract concepts with
his work on "Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft" (lit. community and society). Tnnies marked a sharp line between
the realm of concepts and the reality of social action: the
rst must be treated axiomatically and in a deductive way
The variety of positivism that remains dominant today is
empirically and
termed instrumental positivism. This approach eschews (pure sociology), whereas the second
inductively (applied sociology).[45]
epistemological and metaphysical concerns (such as the
nature of social facts) in favor of methodological clarity, replicability, reliability and validity.[38] This positivism is more or less synonymous with quantitative research, and so only resembles older positivism in practice.
Since it carries no explicit philosophical commitment, its
practitioners may not belong to any particular school of
thought. Modern sociology of this type is often credited
to Paul Lazarsfeld,[28] who pioneered large-scale survey
studies and developed statistical techniques for analyzing
them. This approach lends itself to what Robert K. Merton called middle-range theory: abstract statements that
generalize from segregated hypotheses and empirical regularities rather than starting with an abstract idea of a social whole.[39]

rejected much of the detail of Comtes philosophy, he

retained and rened its method. Durkheim maintained
that the social sciences are a logical continuation of the
natural ones into the realm of human activity, and insisted
that they should retain the same objectivity, rationalism,
and approach to causality.[28] He developed the notion of
objective sui generis social facts to delineate a unique
empirical object for the science of sociology to study.[28]

2.3.2

Anti-positivism

Main article: Anti-positivism

Reactions against social empiricism began when German philosopher Hegel voiced opposition to both empiricism, which he rejected as uncritical, and determinism, which he viewed as overly mechanistic.[40] Karl
Marx's methodology borrowed from Hegelian dialecti- Max Weber
cism but also a rejection of positivism in favour of critical analysis, seeking to supplement the empirical acqui[Sociology is] ... the science whose object
sition of facts with the elimination of illusions.[41] He
is to interpret the meaning of social action and
maintained that appearances need to be critiqued rather
thereby give a causal explanation of the way
than simply documented. Early hermeneuticians such as
in which the action proceeds and the eects
Wilhelm Dilthey pioneered the distinction between natwhich it produces. By 'action' in this denition
ural and social science ('Geisteswissenschaft'). Various
is meant the human behavior when and to
neo-Kantian philosophers, phenomenologists and human
the extent that the agent or agents see it as
scientists further theorized how the analysis of the social
subjectively meaningful ... the meaning to
world diers to that of the natural world due to the irrewhich we refer may be either (a) the meaning
ducibly complex aspects of human society, culture, and
actually intended either by an individual agent
being.[42]
on a particular historical occasion or by a
At the turn of the 20th century the rst generation of
number of agents on an approximate average
German sociologists formally introduced methodologiin a given set of cases, or (b) the meaning
cal anti-positivism, proposing that research should conattributed to the agent or agents, as types, in
centrate on human cultural norms, values, symbols, and
a pure type constructed in the abstract. In
social processes viewed from a resolutely subjective perneither case is the 'meaning' to be thought
spective. Max Weber argued that sociology may be
of as somehow objectively 'correct' or 'true'
loosely described as a science as it is able to identify
by some metaphysical criterion. This is the
causal relationships of human "social action"especially
dierence between the empirical sciences of
among "ideal types", or hypothetical simplications of
action, such as sociology and history, and any

2
kind of prior discipline, such as jurisprudence,
logic, ethics, or aesthetics whose aim is to
extract from their subject-matter 'correct' or
'valid' meaning.[46]
Max Weber, The Nature of Social Action
1922

Both Weber and Georg Simmel pioneered the

"Verstehen" (or 'interpretative') method in social
science; a systematic process by which an outside
observer attempts to relate to a particular cultural group,
or indigenous people, on their own terms and from their
own point of view.[47] Through the work of Simmel,
in particular, sociology acquired a possible character
beyond positivist data-collection or grand, deterministic
systems of structural law. Relatively isolated from the
sociological academy throughout his lifetime, Simmel
presented idiosyncratic analyses of modernity more
reminiscent of the phenomenological and existential
writers than of Comte or Durkheim, paying particular
concern to the forms of, and possibilities for, social
individuality.[48] His sociology engaged in a neo-Kantian
inquiry into the limits of perception, asking 'What is
society?' in a direct allusion to Kants question 'What is
nature?'[49]

HISTORY

of society, against the weight of the historical

heritage and the external culture and technique
of life. The antagonism represents the most
modern form of the conict which primitive
man must carry on with nature for his own
bodily existence. The eighteenth century
may have called for liberation from all the
ties which grew up historically in politics,
in religion, in morality and in economics in
order to permit the original natural virtue of
man, which is equal in everyone, to develop
without inhibition; the nineteenth century
may have sought to promote, in addition to
mans freedom, his individuality (which is
connected with the division of labor) and his
achievements which make him unique and
indispensable but which at the same time
make him so much the more dependent on the
complementary activity of others; Nietzsche
may have seen the relentless struggle of the
individual as the prerequisite for his full
development, while socialism found the same
thing in the suppression of all competition
but in each of these the same fundamental
motive was at work, namely the resistance of
the individual to being leveled, swallowed up
in the social-technological mechanism.[50]
Georg Simmel, The Metropolis and Mental
Life 1903

2.4 Other developments

Georg Simmel

The deepest problems of modern life

ow from the attempt of the individual to
maintain the independence and individuality
of his existence against the sovereign powers

Bust of Ferdinand Tnnies in Husum, Germany

The rst college course entitled Sociology was taught

7
in the United States at Yale in 1875 by William Graham Sumner.[51] In 1883 Lester F. Ward, the rst president of the American Sociological Association, published Dynamic SociologyOr Applied social science as
based upon statical sociology and the less complex sciences and attacked the laissez-faire sociology of Herbert
Spencer and Sumner.[27] Wards 1200 page book was
used as core material in many early American sociology courses. In 1890, the oldest continuing American
course in the modern tradition began at the University
of Kansas, lectured by Frank W. Blackmar.[52] The Department of Sociology at the University of Chicago was
established in 1892 by Albion Small, who also published the rst sociology textbook: An introduction to
the study of society 1894.[53] George Herbert Mead and
Charles Cooley, who had met at the University of Michigan in 1891 (along with John Dewey), would move to
Chicago in 1894.[54] Their inuence gave rise to social
psychology and the symbolic interactionism of the modern Chicago School.[55] The American Journal of Sociology was founded in 1895, followed by the American Sociological Association (ASA) in 1905.[53] The sociological
canon of classics with Durkheim and Max Weber at the
top owes in part to Talcott Parsons, who is largely credited
with introducing both to American audiences.[56] Parsons consolidated the sociological tradition and set the
agenda for American sociology at the point of its fastest
disciplinary growth. Sociology in the United States was
less historically inuenced by Marxism than its European
counterpart, and to this day broadly remains more statistical in its approach.[57]

3 Theoretical traditions
Main article: Sociological theory

3.1 Classical theory

The contemporary discipline of sociology is theoretically

multi-paradigmatic[65] as a result of the contentions of
classical social theory. In Randall Collins' well-cited
survey of sociological theory[66] he retroactively labels
various theorists as belonging to four theoretical traditions: Functionalism, Conict, Symbolic Interactionism, and Utilitarianism.[67] Modern sociological theory
descends predominately from functionalist (Durkheim)
and conict-centered (Marx and Weber) accounts of social structure, as well as the symbolic interactionist tradition consisting of micro-scale structural (Simmel) and
pragmatist (Mead, Cooley) theories of social interaction.
Utilitarianism, also known as Rational Choice or Social
Exchange, although often associated with economics, is
an established tradition within sociological theory.[68][69]
Lastly, as argued by Raewyn Connell, a tradition that is
often forgotten is that of Social Darwinism, which brings
the logic of Darwinian biological evolution and applies
it to people and societies.[70] This tradition often aligns
with classical functionalism. It was the dominant theoretical stance in American sociology from around 1881
to 1915[71] and is associated with several founders of sociology, primarily Herbert Spencer, Lester F. Ward and
The rst sociology department to be established in the William Graham Sumner. Contemporary sociological
United Kingdom was at the London School of Economics theory retains traces of each these traditions and they are
and Political Science (home of the British Journal of So- by no means mutually exclusive.
ciology) in 1904.[58] Leonard Trelawny Hobhouse and
Edvard Westermarck became the lecturers in the discipline at the University of London in 1907.[59][60] Harriet 3.1.1 Functionalism
Martineau, an English translator of Comte, has been cited
as the rst female sociologist.[61] In 1909 the Deutsche Main article: Structural functionalism
Gesellschaft fr Soziologie (German Sociological Association) was founded by Ferdinand Tnnies and Max We- A broad historical paradigm in both sociology and
ber, among others. Weber established the rst depart- anthropology, functionalism addresses the social strucment in Germany at the Ludwig Maximilian University ture, referred to as social organization in among the clasof Munich in 1919, having presented an inuential new sical theorists, as a whole and in terms of the necessary
antipositivist sociology.[62] In 1920, Florian Znaniecki set function of its constituent elements. A common analup the rst department in Poland. The Institute for Social ogy (popularized by Herbert Spencer) is to regard norms
Research at the University of Frankfurt (later to become and institutions as 'organs that work toward the properthe Frankfurt School of critical theory) was founded in functioning of the entire 'body' of society.[72] The per1923.[63] International co-operation in sociology began spective was implicit in the original sociological posiin 1893, when Ren Worms founded the Institut Inter- tivism of Comte, but was theorized in full by Durkheim,
national de Sociologie, an institution later eclipsed by again with respect to observable, structural laws. Functhe much larger International Sociological Association tionalism also has an anthropological basis in the work of
(ISA), founded in 1949.[64]
theorists such as Marcel Mauss, Bronisaw Malinowski
and Radclie-Brown. It is in Radclie-Browns specic usage that the prex 'structural' emerged.[73] Classical functionalist theory is generally united by its tendency towards biological analogy and notions of social
evolutionism, in that the basic form of society would in-

crease in complexity and those forms of social organization that promoted solidarity would eventually overcome
social disorganization. As Giddens states: Functionalist thought, from Comte onwards, has looked particularly towards biology as the science providing the closest
and most compatible model for social science. Biology
has been taken to provide a guide to conceptualizing the
structure and the function of social systems and to analyzing processes of evolution via mechanisms of adaptation
... functionalism strongly emphasizes the pre-eminence
of the social world over its individual parts (i.e. its constituent actors, human subjects).[74]
3.1.2

Conict theory

Main article: Conict theory

Functionalist theories emphasize cohesive systems and
are often contrasted with conict theories which critique the overarching socio-political system or emphasize
the inequality between particular groups. The following
quotes from Durkheim and Marx epitomize the political,
as well as theoretical, disparities, between functionalist
and conict thought respectively:
To aim for a civilization beyond that made
possible by the nexus of the surrounding environment will result in unloosing sickness into
the very society we live in. Collective activity cannot be encouraged beyond the point set
by the condition of the social organism without
undermining health.[75]
mile Durkheim, 'The Division of Labor in Society 1893
The history of all hitherto existing society
is the history of class struggles.
Freeman and slave, patrician and plebeian,
lord and serf, guild-master and journeyman, in
a word, oppressor and oppressed, stood in constant opposition to one another, carried on an
uninterrupted, now hidden, now open ght, a
ght that each time ended, either in a revolutionary re-constitution of society at large, or in
the common ruin of the contending classes.[76]
Karl Marx & Friedrich Engels, 'The
Communist Manifesto 1848
3.1.3

Symbolic Interactionism

THEORETICAL TRADITIONS

Dramaturgy, Interpretivism, is a sociological tradition that places emphasis on subjective meanings and
the empirical unfolding of social processes, generally
accessed through micro-analysis.[77] This tradition
emerged in the Chicago School of the 1920s and 1930s,
which prior to World War II had been the center
of sociological research and graduate study.[78] The
approach focuses on creating a framework for building a
theory that sees society as the product of the everyday
interactions of individuals. Society is nothing more
than the shared reality that people construct as they
interact with one another. This approach sees people
interacting in countless settings using symbolic communications to accomplish the tasks at hand. Therefore,
society is a complex, ever-changing mosaic of subjective
meanings.[79] Some critics of this approach argue that
it only looks at what is happening in a particular social
situation, and disregards the eects that culture, race
or gender (i.e. social-historical structures) may have in
that situation.[80] Some important sociologists associated
with this approach include Max Weber, George Herbert
Mead, Erving Goman, George Homans and Peter
Blau. It is also in this tradition that the radical-empirical
approach of Ethnomethodology emerges from the work
of Harold Garnkel.

3.1.4 Utilitarianism
Main articles: Utilitarianism, Rational choice theory and
Exchange theory
Utilitarianism is often referred to as exchange theory or
rational choice theory in the context of sociology. This
tradition tends to privilege the agency of individual rational actors and assumes that within interactions individuals always seek to maximize their own self-interest. As
argued by Josh Whitford, rational actors are assumed to
have four basic elements, the individual has (1) a knowledge of alternatives, (2) a knowledge of, or beliefs
about the consequences of the various alternatives, (3)
an ordering of preferences over outcomes, (4) A decision rule, to select amongst the possible alternatives[81]
Exchange theory is specically attributed to the work of
George C. Homans, Peter Blau and Richard Emerson.[82]
Organizational sociologists James G. March and Herbert
A. Simon noted that an individuals rationality is bounded
by the context or organizational setting. The utilitarian
perspective in sociology was, most notably, revitalized in
the late 20th century by the work of former ASA president James Coleman.

Main articles: Symbolic interactionism, Dramaturgy (sociology), Interpretive sociology and Phenomenological 3.2
sociology

20th century social theory

Following the decline of theories of sociocultural evoSymbolic interaction;

often associated with lution, in the United States, the interactionism of the
Interactionism,
Phenomenological
sociology, Chicago School dominated American sociology. As

3.2

20th century social theory

Anselm Strauss describes, We didn't think symbolic in- 3.2.2 Structuralism

teraction was a perspective in sociology; we thought it
was sociology.[78] After World War II, mainstream sociology shifted to the survey-research of Paul Lazarsfeld at
Columbia University and the general theorizing of Pitirim
Sorokin, followed by Talcott Parsons at Harvard University. Ultimately, the failure of the Chicago, Columbia,
and Wisconsin [sociology] departments to produce a signicant number of graduate students interested in and
committed to general theory in the years 1936-45 was
to the advantage of the Harvard department.[83] As Parsons began to dominate general theory, his work predominately referenced European sociology - almost entirely omitting citations of both the American tradition
of sociocultural-evolution as well as pragmatism. In addition to Parsons revision of the sociological canon (which
included Marshall, Pareto, Weber and Durkheim), the
lack of theoretical challenges from other departments
nurtured the rise of the Parsonian structural-functionalist
movement, which reached its crescendo in the 1950s, but
by the 1960s was in rapid decline.[84]
By the 1980s, most functionalisms in Europe had broadly
been replaced by conict-oriented approaches[85] and to
many in the discipline, functionalism was considered as
dead as a dodo.[86] According to Giddens, the orthodox
consensus terminated in the late 1960s and 1970s as the
middle ground shared by otherwise competing perspectives gave way and was replaced by a baing variety of
competing perspectives. This third 'generation' of social
theory includes phenomenologically inspired approaches,
critical theory, ethnomethodology, symbolic interactionism, structuralism, post-structuralism, and theories written in the tradition of hermeneutics and ordinary language
philosophy.[87]

3.2.1

Pax Wisconsana

While some conict approaches also gained popularity in

the United States, the mainstream of the discipline instead shifted to a variety of empirically oriented middlerange theories with no single overarching, or grand,
theoretical orientation. John Levi Martin refers to this
golden age of methodological unity and theoretical
calm as the Pax Wisconsana,[88] as it reected the composition of the sociology department at the University of
Wisconsin-Madison: numerous scholars working on separate projects with little contention.[89] Omar Lizardo describes the Pax Wisconsana as: a Midwestern avored,
Mertonian resolution of the theory/method wars in which
[sociologists] all agreed on at least two working hypotheses: (1) grand theory is a waste of time; (2) [and]
good theory has to be good to think with or goes in the
trash bin.[90] Despite the aversion to grand theory in the
later half of the 20th century, several new traditions have
emerged which propose various syntheses: structuralism,
post-structuralism, cultural sociology and systems theory.

Anthony Giddens

The structuralist movement originated primarily from the

work of Durkheim as interpreted by two European anthropologists. Anthony Giddens' theory of structuration
draws on the linguistic theory of Ferdinand de Saussure and the French anthropologist Claude Lvi-Strauss.
In this context, 'structure' refers not to 'social structure' but to the semiotic understanding of human culture as a system of signs. One may delineate four central tenets of structuralism: First, structure is what determines the structure of a whole. Second, structuralists
believe that every system has a structure. Third, structuralists are interested in 'structural' laws that deal with
coexistence rather than changes. Finally, structures are
the 'real things beneath the surface or the appearance of
meaning.[91]
The second tradition of structuralist thought, contemporaneous with Giddens, emerges out of the American
school of social network analysis,[92] spearheaded by the
Harvard Department of Social Relations led by Harrison
White and his students in the 1970s and 1980s. This
tradition of structuralist thought argues that, rather than
semiotics, social structure is networks of patterned social relations. And, rather than Levi-Strauss, this school
of thought draws on the notions of structure as theorized
by Levi-Strauss contemporary anthropologist, RadclieBrown.[93] Some[94] refer to this as network structuralism, and equate it to British structuralism as opposed
to the French structuralism of Levi-Strauss.

10
3.2.3

4
Post-structuralism

Post-structuralist thought has tended to reject 'humanist'

assumptions in the conduct of social theory.[95] Michel
Foucault provides a potent critique in his Archaeology of
the Human Sciences, though Habermas and Rorty have
both argued that Foucault merely replaces one such system of thought with another.[96][97] The dialogue between these intellectuals highlights a trend in recent years
for certain schools of sociology and philosophy to intersect. The anti-humanist position has been associated with
"postmodernism, a term used in specic contexts to describe an era or phenomena, but occasionally construed
as a method.

CENTRAL THEORETICAL PROBLEMS

How can the sociologist eect in practice

this radical doubting which is indispensable
for bracketing all the presuppositions inherent
in the fact that she is a social being, that she
is therefore socialized and led to feel like a
sh in water within that social world whose
structures she has internalized? How can she
prevent the social world itself from carrying
out the construction of the object, in a sense,
through her, through these unself-conscious
operations or operations unaware of themselves of which she is the apparent subject
Pierre Bourdieu, The Problem of Reexive Sociology in An Invitation to Reexive
Sociology,1992, pg 235

Central theoretical problems

4.2 Structure and agency

Overall, there is a strong consensus regarding the central

problems of sociological theory, which are largely inherited from the classical theoretical traditions. This consensus is: how to link, transcend or cope with the following
big three dichotomies:[98] subjectivity and objectivity,
structure and agency, and synchrony and diachrony. The
rst deals with knowledge, the second with action, and the
last with time. Lastly, sociological theory often grapples
with the problem of integrating or transcending the divide
between micro, meso and macro-scale social phenomena,
which is a subset of all three central problems.

Main article: Structure and agency

Structure and agency, sometimes referred to as determinism versus voluntarism,[99] form an enduring ontological
debate in social theory: Do social structures determine
an individuals behaviour or does human agency?" In this
context 'agency' refers to the capacity of individuals to act
independently and make free choices, whereas 'structure'
relates to factors which limit or aect the choices and actions of individuals (such as social class, religion, gender, ethnicity, and so on). Discussions over the primacy of either structure and agency relate to the core
of sociological epistemology (What is the social world
4.1 Subjectivity and objectivity
made of?", What is a cause in the social world, and
[100]
A perennial question within this
Main articles: Objectivity (science), Objectivity (philos- what is an eect?").
debate
is
that
of
"social
reproduction": how are strucophy) and Subjectivity
tures (specically, structures producing inequality) reproduced through the choices of individuals?
The problem of subjectivity and objectivity can be divided into a concern over the general possibilities of social actions, and, on the other hand the specic problem 4.3 Synchrony and Diachrony
of social scientic knowledge. In the former, the subjective is often equated (though not necessarily) with the Synchrony and diachrony, or statics and dynamics, within
individual, and the individuals intentions and interpreta- social theory are terms that refer to a distinction emerging
tions of the objective. The objective is often considered out of the work of Levi-Strauss who inherited it from the
any public or external action or outcome, on up to soci- linguistics of Ferdinand de Saussure.[93] The latter slices
ety writ large. A primary question for social theorists, is moments of time for analysis, thus it is an analysis of
how knowledge reproduces along the chain of subjective- static social reality. Diachrony, on the other hand, atobjective-subjective, that is to say: how is intersubjectivity tempts to analyze dynamic sequences. Following Sausachieved? While, historically, qualitative methods have sure, synchrony would refer to social phenomena as a
attempted to tease out subjective interpretations, quanti- static concept like a language, while diachrony would retative survey methods also attempt to capture individual fer to unfolding processes like actual speech. In Anthony
subjectivities. Also, some qualitative methods take a rad- Giddens introduction to Central Problems in Social Theical approach to objective description in situ.
ory, he states that, in order to show the interdependence
The latter concern with scientic knowledge results from
the fact that a sociologist is part of the very object they
seek to explain. Bourdieu puts this problem rather succinct:

of action and structure...we must grasp the time space

relations inherent in the constitution of all social interaction. And like structure and agency, time is integral
to discussion of social reproduction. In terms of soci-

5.1

Sampling

ology, historical sociology is often better positioned to

analyze social life as diachronic, while survey research
takes a snapshot of social life and is thus better equipped
to understand social life as synchronic. Some argue that
the synchrony of social structure is a methodological perspective rather than an ontological claim.[93] Nonetheless,
the problem for theory is how to integrate the two manners of recording and thinking about social data.

11
choose ethnographic participant observation or openended interviews. Studies will commonly combine, or
'triangulate', quantitative and qualitative methods as part
of a 'multi-strategy' design. For instance, a quantitative
study may be performed to gain statistical patterns or a
target sample, and then combined with a qualitative interview to determine the play of agency.[101]

5.1 Sampling

Research methodology

Main article: Social research

Sociological research methods may be divided into two
broad categories:
Quantitative designs approach social phenomena
through quantiable evidence, and often rely on statistical analysis of many cases (or across intentionally designed treatments in an experiment) to create
valid and reliable general claims
Qualitative designs emphasize understanding of social phenomena through direct observation, communication with participants, or analysis of texts, and
may stress contextual and subjective accuracy over The bean machine, designed by early social research methodologist Sir Francis Galton to demonstrate the normal distribution,
generality
which is important to much quantitative hypothesis testing.

Sociologists are divided into camps of support for particular research techniques. These disputes relate to
the epistemological debates at the historical core of social theory. While very dierent in many aspects, both
qualitative and quantitative approaches involve a systematic interaction between theory and data.[101] Quantitative methodologies hold the dominant position in sociology, especially in the United States.[28] In the disciplines two most cited journals, quantitative articles have
historically outnumbered qualitative ones by a factor of
two.[102] (Most articles published in the largest British
journal, on the other hand, are qualitative.) Most textbooks on the methodology of social research are written from the quantitative perspective,[103] and the very
term methodology is often used synonymously with
"statistics. Practically all sociology PhD program in
the United States require training in statistical methods.
The work produced by quantitative researchers is also
deemed more 'trustworthy' and 'unbiased' by the greater
public,[104] though this judgment continues to be challenged by antipositivists.[104]
The choice of method often depends largely on what
the researcher intends to investigate. For example, a
researcher concerned with drawing a statistical generalization across an entire population may administer a
survey questionnaire to a representative sample population. By contrast, a researcher who seeks full contextual understanding of an individuals social actions may

Quantitative methods are often used to ask questions

about a population that is very large, making a census or
a complete enumeration of all the members in that population infeasible. A 'sample' then forms a manageable
subset of a population. In quantitative research, statistics
are used to draw inferences from this sample regarding
the population as a whole. The process of selecting a sample is referred to as 'sampling'. While it is usually best to
sample randomly, concern with dierences between specic subpopulations sometimes calls for stratied sampling. Conversely, the impossibility of random sampling
sometimes necessitates nonprobability sampling, such as
convenience sampling or snowball sampling.[101]

5.2 Methods
The following list of research methods is neither exclusive
nor exhaustive:
Archival research or the Historical method: draws
upon the secondary data located in historical
archives and records, such as biographies, memoirs,
journals, and so on.
Content analysis: The content of interviews and
other texts is systematically analyzed. Often data is
'coded' as a part of the 'grounded theory' approach

12

SCOPE AND TOPICS

using qualitative data analysis (QDA) software, such

as NVivo,[105] Atlas.ti, or QDA Miner.
Experimental research: The researcher isolates a
single social process and reproduces it in a laboratory (for example, by creating a situation where
unconscious sexist judgments are possible), seeking
to determine whether or not certain social variables
can cause, or depend upon, other variables (for instance, seeing if peoples feelings about traditional
gender roles can be manipulated by the activation
of contrasting gender stereotypes).[106] Participants
are randomly assigned to dierent groups which either serve as controlsacting as reference points
because they are tested with regard to the dependent variable, albeit without having been exposed
to any independent variables of interestor receive
one or more treatments. Randomization allows the
researcher to be sure that any resulting dierences
between groups are the result of the treatment.
Longitudinal study: An extensive examination of a
specic person or group over a long period of time. A social network diagram: individuals (or 'nodes) connected by
Observation: Using data from the senses, the
researcher records information about social phenomenon or behavior. Observation techniques may
or may not feature participation. In participant observation, the researcher goes into the eld (such as
a community or a place of work), and participates
in the activities of the eld for a prolonged period
of time in order to acquire a deep understanding of
it.[107] Data acquired through these techniques may
be analyzed either quantitatively or qualitatively.
Survey research: The researcher gathers data using
interviews, questionnaires, or similar feedback from
a set of people sampled from a particular population
of interest. Survey items from an interview or questionnaire may be open-ended or closed-ended.[108]
Data from surveys is usually analyzed statistically on
a computer.

5.3

Computational sociology

Main article: Computational sociology

Sociologists increasingly draw upon computationally intensive methods to analyze and model social
phenomena.[109] Using computer simulations, articial
intelligence, text mining, complex statistical methods,
and new analytic approaches like social network analysis
and social sequence analysis, computational sociology
develops and tests theories of complex social processes
through bottom-up modeling of social interactions.[110]

relationships

social simulation originated from elds such as physics

and articial intelligence.[111][112] By the same token,
some of the approaches that originated in computational
sociology have been imported into the natural sciences,
such as measures of network centrality from the elds
of social network analysis and network science. In relevant literature, computational sociology is often related to the study of social complexity.[113] Social complexity concepts such as complex systems, non-linear
interconnection among macro and micro process, and
emergence, have entered the vocabulary of computational
sociology.[114] A practical and well-known example is the
construction of a computational model in the form of an
"articial society", by which researchers can analyze the
structure of a social system.[115][116]

6 Scope and topics

Main article: Outline of sociology

6.1 Culture
Main articles: Sociology of culture and Cultural studies

Sociologists approach to culture can be divided into a

sociology of culture and cultural sociology - the terms
Although the subject matter and methodologies in social are similar, though not entirely interchangeable.[117] The
science dier from those in natural science or computer sociology of culture is an older term, and considers some
science, several of the approaches used in contemporary topics and objects as more-or-less cultural than others.

6.2

Criminality, deviance, law and punishment

13

Gense et Structure du Champ Littraire, translated by Susan Emanuel as Rules of Art: Genesis and Structure of the
Literary Field (1996). None of the founding fathers of
sociology produced a detailed study of art, but they did
develop ideas that were subsequently applied to literature
by others. Marxs theory of ideology was directed at literature by Pierre Macherey, Terry Eagleton and Fredric
Jameson. Webers theory of modernity as cultural rationalisation, which he applied to music, was later applied to
all the arts, literature included, by Frankfurt School writers such as Adorno and Jrgen Habermas. Durkheims
view of sociology as the study of externally dened soMax Horkheimer (left, front), Theodor Adorno (right, front), cial facts was redirected towards literature by Robert Escarpit. Bourdieus own work is clearly indebted to Marx,
and Jrgen Habermas (right, back) 1965
Weber and Durkheim.
While, cultural sociology sees all social phenomena as inherently cultural.[118] Sociology of culture often attempts
to explain certain cultural phenomena as a product of so- 6.2
cial processes, while cultural sociology sees culture as a
potential explanation of social phenomena.[119]
For Simmel, culture referred to the cultivation of individuals through the agency of external forms which have
been objectied in the course of history.[48] Whilst early
theorists such as Durkheim and Mauss were inuential
in cultural anthropology, sociologists of culture are generally distinguished by their concern for modern (rather
than primitive or ancient) society. Cultural sociology
often involves the hermeneutic analysis of words, artifacts and symbols, or ethnographic interviews. However,
some sociologists employ historical-comparative or quantitative techniques in the analysis of culture, Weber and
Bourdieu for instance. The subeld is sometimes allied
with critical theory in the vein of Theodor W. Adorno,
Walter Benjamin, and other members of the Frankfurt
School. Loosely distinct from the sociology of culture is
the eld of cultural studies. Birmingham School theorists
such as Richard Hoggart and Stuart Hall questioned the
division between producers and consumers evident in
earlier theory, emphasizing the reciprocity in the production of texts. Cultural Studies aims to examine its subject matter in terms of cultural practices and their relation
to power. For example, a study of a subculture (such as
white working class youth in London) would consider the
social practices of the group as they relate to the dominant class. The "cultural turn" of the 1960s ultimately
placed culture much higher on the sociological agenda.
6.1.1

Art, music and literature

Main articles: Sociology of literature, Sociology of art,

Sociology of lm and Sociology of music
Sociology of literature, lm, and art is a subset of the sociology of culture. This eld studies the social production
of artistic objects and its social implications. A notable
example is Pierre Bourdieus 1992 Les Rgles de L'Art:

Criminality, deviance, law and punishment

Main articles: Criminology, Sociology of law, Sociology

of punishment, Deviance (sociology) and Social disorganization theory
Criminologists analyze the nature, causes, and control of
criminal activity, drawing upon methods across sociology, psychology, and the behavioural sciences. The sociology of deviance focuses on actions or behaviors that violate norms, including both formally enacted rules (e.g.,
crime) and informal violations of cultural norms. It is
the remit of sociologists to study why these norms exist;
how they change over time; and how they are enforced.
The concept of social disorganization is when the broader
social systems leads to violations of norms. For instance,
Robert K. Merton produced a typology of deviance which
includes both individual and system level causal explanations of deviance.[120]

6.2.1 Sociology of law

The study of law played a signicant role in the formation of classical sociology. Durkheim famously described
law as the visible symbol of social solidarity.[121] The
sociology of law refers to both a sub-discipline of sociology and an approach within the eld of legal studies.
Sociology of law is a diverse eld of study which examines the interaction of law with other aspects of society,
such as the development of legal institutions and the effect of laws on social change and vice versa. For example, an inuential recent work in the eld relies on statistical analyses to argue that the increase in incarceration in the US over the last 30 years is due to changes
in law and policing and not to an increase in crime; and
that this increase signicantly contributes to maintaining
racial stratication.[122]

14

6.3

Communications
technologies

and

information of Durkheim, Weber and Simmel between 1890 and

The sociology of communications and information technologies includes the social aspects of computing, the
Internet, new media, computer networks, and other communication and information technologies.[123]
6.3.1

Internet and digital media

Main articles: Sociology of the Internet and Digital

sociology
The Internet is of interest to sociologists in various ways;
most practically as a tool for research and as a discussion platform.[124] The sociology of the Internet in the
broad sense regards the analysis of online communities
(e.g. newsgroups, social networking sites) and virtual
worlds, thus there is often overlap with community sociology. Online communities may be studied statistically through network analysis or interpreted qualitatively through virtual ethnography. Moreover, organizational change is catalyzed through new media, thereby
inuencing social change at-large, perhaps forming the
framework for a transformation from an industrial to
an informational society. One notable text is Manuel
Castells' The Internet Galaxythe title of which forms
an inter-textual reference to Marshall McLuhan's The
Gutenberg Galaxy.[125] Closely related to the sociology
of the Internet, is digital sociology, which expands the
scope of study to address not only the internet but also
the impact of the other digital media and devices that have
emerged since the rst decade of the twenty-rst century.
6.3.2

SCOPE AND TOPICS

Media

Main article: Media studies

As with cultural studies, media study is a distinct discipline which owes to the convergence of sociology
and other social sciences and humanities, in particular,
literary criticism and critical theory. Though the production process or the critique of aesthetic forms is not in the
remit of sociologists, analyses of socialising factors, such
as ideological eects and audience reception, stem from
sociological theory and method. Thus the 'sociology of
the media' is not a subdiscipline per se, but the media is
a common and often-indispensable topic.

1920.[126] Economic sociology arose as a new approach to

the analysis of economic phenomena, emphasizing class
relations and modernity as a philosophical concept. The
relationship between capitalism and modernity is a salient
issue, perhaps best demonstrated in Webers The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism (1905) and Simmels The Philosophy of Money (1900). The contemporary period of economic sociology, also known as new
economic sociology, was consolidated by the 1985 work
of Mark Granovetter titled Economic Action and Social
Structure: The Problem of Embeddedness. This work
elaborated the concept of embeddedness, which states
that economic relations between individuals or rms take
place within existing social relations (and are thus structured by these relations as well as the greater social structures of which those relations are a part). Social network
analysis has been the primary methodology for studying
this phenomenon. Granovetters theory of the strength of
weak ties and Ronald Burt's concept of structural holes
are two best known theoretical contributions of this eld.
6.4.1 Work, employment, and industry
Main articles: Industrial sociology, sociology of work
and Industrial relations
The sociology of work, or industrial sociology, examines
the direction and implications of trends in technological
change, globalization, labour markets, work organization,
managerial practices and employment relations to the extent to which these trends are intimately related to changing patterns of inequality in modern societies and to the
changing experiences of individuals and families the ways
in which workers challenge, resist and make their own
contributions to the patterning of work and shaping of
work institutions.[127]

6.5 Education
Main article: Sociology of education

The sociology of education is the study of how educational institutions determine social structures, experiences, and other outcomes. It is particularly concerned with the schooling systems of modern industrial
societies.[128] A classic 1966 study in this eld by James
Coleman, known as the Coleman Report, analyzed the
performance of over 150,000 students and found that
student background and socioeconomic status are much
6.4 Economic sociology
more important in determining educational outcomes
than are measured dierences in school resources (i.e.
Main article: Economic sociology
per pupil spending).[129] The controversy over school effects ignited by that study has continued to this day.
The term economic sociology was rst used by William The study also found that socially disadvantaged black
Stanley Jevons in 1879, later to be coined in the works students proted from schooling in racially mixed class-

6.8

Health, illness, and the body

15

rooms, and thus served as a catalyst for desegregation busing in American public schools.

6.6

Environment

Main articles: Environmental sociology and Sociology

of disaster
Environmental sociology is the study of human interactions with the natural environment, typically emphasizing human dimensions of environmental problems, social
impacts of those problems, and eorts to resolve them.
As with other subelds of sociology, scholarship in environmental sociology may be at one or multiple levels of
analysis, from global (e.g. world-systems) to local, societal to individual. Attention is paid also to the processes
by which environmental problems become dened and
known to humans. As argued by notable environmental sociologist John Bellamy Foster, the predecessor to
modern environmental sociology is Marxs analysis of the
metabolic rift, which inuenced contemporary thought on
sustainability. Environmental sociology is often interdisciplinary and overlaps with the sociology of risk, rural
sociology and the sociology of disaster.
6.6.1

Human ecology

Main articles: Human ecology, Architectural sociology,

Visual sociology and Sociology of space

"Rosie the Riveter" was an iconic symbol of the American

homefront and a departure from gender roles due to wartime
necessity.

ductory academic curricula. Feminist sociology, on the

other hand, is a normative subeld that observes and critiques the cultural categories of gender and sexuality, particularly with respect to power and inequality. The primary concern of feminist theory is the patriarchy and the
systematic oppression of women apparent in many societies, both at the level of small-scale interaction and in
terms of the broader social structure. Feminist sociology
also analyses how gender interlocks with race and class
to produce and perpetuate social inequalities.[130] How
to account for the dierences in denitions of femininity
and masculinity and in sex role across dierent societies
and historical periods is also a concern.[131] Social psychology of gender, on the other hand, uses experimental
methods to uncover the microprocesses of gender stratication. For example, one recent study has shown that
resume evaluators penalize women for motherhood while
giving a boost to men for fatherhood.[132] \

Human ecology deals with interdisplinary study of the relationship between humans and their natural, social, and
built environments. In addition to Environmental sociology, this eld overlaps with architectural sociology, urban
sociology, and to some extent visual sociology. In turn,
visual sociology - which is concerned with all visual dimensions of social life - overlaps with media studies in
6.8 Health, illness, and the body
that it utilizes photography, lm and other technologies
of media.
Main articles: Sociology of health and illness and
Medical sociology

6.7

Family, gender, and sexuality

The sociology of health and illness focuses on the social

Main articles: Sociology of the family, Sociology of eects of, and public attitudes toward, illnesses, diseases,
childhood, Sociology of gender, Feminist sociology, mental health and disabilities. This subeld also overFeminist theory and Queer theory
laps with gerentology and the study of the aging process. Medical sociology, by contrast, focuses on the
Family, gender and sexuality form a broad area of inquiry inner-workings of medical organizations and clinical instudied in many subelds of sociology. The sociology of stitutions. In Britain, sociology was introduced into the
curriculum following the Goodenough Report
the family examines the family, as an institution and unit medical[133]
(1944).
of socialization, with special concern for the comparatively modern historical emergence of the nuclear family
and its distinct gender roles. The notion of "childhood"
is also signicant. As one of the more basic institutions
to which one may apply sociological perspectives, the sociology of the family is a common component on intro-

The sociology of the body and embodiment[134] takes

a broad perspective on the idea of the body and includes a wide range of embodied dynamics including
human and non-human bodies, morphology, human reproduction, anatomy, body uids, biotechnology, genet-

16

SCOPE AND TOPICS

ics. This often intersects with health and illness, but also
theories of bodies as political, social, cultural, economic
and ideological productions.[135] The ISA maintains a Research Committee devoted to The Body in the Social
Sciences.[136]

Sociology of leisure is the study of how humans organize

their free time. Leisure includes a broad array of activities, such as sport, tourism, and the playing of games.
The sociology of leisure is closely tied to the sociology
of work, as each explores a dierent side of the workleisure relationship. More recent studies in the eld move
away from the work-leisure relationship and focus on the
relation between leisure and culture. This area of sociol6.8.1 Death, dying, bereavement
ogy began with Thorstein Veblen's Theory of the Leisure
[142]
A subeld of the sociology of health and illness that over- Class.
laps with cultural sociology is the study of death, dying
and bereavement,[137] sometimes referred to broadly as
the sociology of death. This topic is exemplifed by the 6.11 Peace, war, and conict
work of Douglas Davies and Michael C. Kearl.
Main articles: Peace and conict studies, Military
sociology and Sociology of terrorism

6.9

Knowledge and science

This subeld of sociology studies, broadly, the dynamMain articles: Sociology of knowledge, Sociology of ics of war, conict resolution, peace movements, war
scientic knowledge, Sociology of the history of science refugees, conict resolution and military institutions.[143]
and Sociology of science
As a subset of this subeld, military sociology aims toward the systematic study of the military as a social group
The sociology of knowledge is the study of the relation- rather than as an organization. It is a highly specialship between human thought and the social context within ized subeld which examines issues related to service perwhich it arises, and of the eects prevailing ideas have sonnel as a distinct group with coerced collective action
on societies. The term rst came into widespread use in based on shared interests linked to survival in vocation
the 1920s, when a number of German-speaking theorists, and combat, with purposes and values that are more demost notably Max Scheler, and Karl Mannheim, wrote ned and narrow than within civil society. Military sociextensively on it. With the dominance of functionalism ology also concerns civilian-military relations and interthrough the middle years of the 20th century, the soci- actions between other groups or governmental agencies.
ology of knowledge tended to remain on the periphery Topics include the dominant assumptions held by those
of mainstream sociological thought. It was largely rein- in the military, changes in military members willingvented and applied much more closely to everyday life in ness to ght, military unionization, military professionthe 1960s, particularly by Peter L. Berger and Thomas alism, the increased utilization of women, the military
Luckmann in The Social Construction of Reality (1966) industrial-academic complex, the militarys dependence
the institutional and organizational strucand is still central for methods dealing with qualitative on research, and[144]
ture
of
military.
understanding of human society (compare socially constructed reality). The archaeological and genealogical
studies of Michel Foucault are of considerable contempo6.12
rary inuence.

Political sociology

The sociology of science involves the study of science as Main article: Political sociology
a social activity, especially dealing with the social con- Historically political sociology concerned the relations
ditions and eects of science, and with the social structures and processes of scientic activity.[138] Important
theorists in the sociology of science include Robert K.
Merton and Bruno Latour. These branches of sociology have contributed to the formation of science and
technology studies. Both the ASA and the BSA have
sections devoted to the subeld of Science, Knowledge
and Technology.[139][140] The ISA maintains a Research
Committee on Science and Technology[141]

6.10 Leisure
Main articles: Sociology of leisure and Sociology of sport
Jrgen Habermas

6.15

Race and ethnic relations

between political organization and society. A typical research question in this area might be: Why do so few
American citizens choose to vote?"[145] In this respect
questions of political opinion formation brought about
some of the pioneering uses of statistical survey research
by Paul Lazarsfeld. A major subeld of political sociology developed in relation to such questions, which draws
on comparative history to analyze socio-political trends.
The eld developed from the work of Max Weber and
Moisey Ostrogorsky.[146]
Contemporary political sociology includes these areas
of research, but it has been opened up to wider questions of power and politics.[147] Today political sociologists are as likely to be concerned with how identities are
formed that contribute to structural domination by one
group over another; the politics of who knows how and
with what authority; and questions of how power is contested in social interactions in such a way as to bring about
widespread cultural and social change. Such questions are
more likely to be studied qualitatively. The study of social
movements and their eects has been especially important in relation to these wider denitions of politics and
power.[148]
Political sociology has also moved beyond
methodological nationalism and analyzed the role
of non-governmental organizations, the diusion of the
nation-state throughout the Earth as a social construct,
and the role of stateless entities in the modern world
society. Contemporary political sociologists also study
inter-state interactions and human rights.

6.13 Population and demography

Main articles:
Mobilities

17
Public sociology refers to an approach to the discipline
which seeks to transcend the academy in order to engage
with wider audiences. It is perhaps best understood as a
style of sociology rather than a particular method, theory, or set of political values. This approach is primarily associated with Michael Burawoy who contrasted it
with professional sociology, a form of academic sociology that is concerned primarily with addressing other professional sociologists. Public sociology is also part of the
broader eld of science communication or science journalism. A subeld of public sociology is applied sociology, also known as clinical sociology or sociological practice, which applies knowledge derived from sociological
research to solve societal problems.

6.15 Race and ethnic relations

Main articles: Sociology of race and ethnic relations and
Sociology of immigration
The sociology of race and of ethnic relations is the area
of the discipline that studies the social, political, and economic relations between races and ethnicities at all levels
of society. This area encompasses the study of racism,
residential segregation, and other complex social processes between dierent racial and ethnic groups. This
research frequently interacts with other areas of sociology
such as stratication and social psychology, as well as with
postcolonial theory. At the level of political policy, ethnic
relations are discussed in terms of either assimilationism
or multiculturalism.[149] Anti-racism forms another style
of policy, particularly popular in the 1960s and 70s.

Demography, Human ecology and 6.16

Religion

Main article: Sociology of religion

Demographers or sociologists of population study the
size, composition and change over time of a given population. Demographers study how these characteristics
impact, or are impacted by, various social, economic
or political systems. The study of population is also
closely related to human ecology and environmental sociology, which studies a populations relationship with the
surrounding environment and often overlaps with urban
or rural sociology. Researchers in this eld may study
the movement of populations: transportation, migrations,
diaspora, etc., which falls into the subeld known as
Mobilities studies and is closely related to human geography. Demographers may also study spread of disease
within a given population or epidemiology.

6.14 Public sociology

Main article: Public sociology

The sociology of religion concerns the practices, historical backgrounds, developments, universal themes and
roles of religion in society.[150] There is particular emphasis on the recurring role of religion in all societies and
throughout recorded history. The sociology of religion is
distinguished from the philosophy of religion in that sociologists do not set out to assess the validity of religious
truth-claims, instead assuming what Peter L. Berger has
described as a position of methodological atheism.[151]
It may be said that the modern formal discipline of sociology began with the analysis of religion in Durkheims
1897 study of suicide rates amongst Roman Catholic and
Protestant populations. Max Weber published four major
texts on religion in a context of economic sociology and
social stratication: The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit
of Capitalism (1905), The Religion of China: Confucianism and Taoism (1915), The Religion of India: The Sociology of Hinduism and Buddhism (1915), and Ancient
Judaism (1920). Contemporary debates often center on

18

SCOPE AND TOPICS

topics such as secularization, civil religion, the intersection of religion and economics and the role of religion in
a context of globalization and multiculturalism.

6.17 Social change and development

Main articles: Social change, Development studies,
Community development and International development
The sociology of change and development attempts
to understand how societies develop and how they
can be changed. Within this eld, sociologists often
use macrosociological methods or historical-comparative
methods. In contemporary studies of social change, there
is overlaps with international development or community
development. However, most of the founders of sociology had theories of social change based on their study of
history. For instance, Marx contended that the material
circumstances of society ultimately caused the ideal or
cultural aspects of society, while Weber argued that it was
in fact the cultural mores of Protestantism that ushered in
a transformation of material circumstances. In contrast to
both, Durkheim argued that societies moved from simple to complex through a process of sociocultural evolution. Sociologists in this eld also study processes of
globalization and imperialism. Most notably, Immanuel
Wallerstein extends Marxs theoretical frame to include
large spans of time and the entire globe in what is known
as world systems theory. Development sociology is also
heavily inuenced by post-colonialism. In recent years,
Raewyn Connell issued a critique of the bias in sociological research toward countries in the Global North. She
argues that this bias blinds sociologists to the lived experiences of the Global South, specically, so-called, Northern Theory lacks an adequate theory of imperialism and
colonialism.

Harrison White

systems, from non-local communities to networks of exchange. Drawing theoretically from relational sociology,
social network analysis avoids treating individuals (persons, organizations, states) as discrete units of analysis,
it focuses instead on how the structure of ties aects and
constitutes individuals and their relationships. In contrast
to analyses that assume that socialization into norms determines behavior, network analysis looks to see the extent to which the structure and composition of ties affect norms. On the other hand, recent research by Omar
Lizardo also demonstrates that network ties are shaped
and created by previously existing cultural tastes.[152] Social network theory is usually dened in formal mathe6.18 Social networks
matics and may include integration of geographical data
Main articles: Social network, Social network analy- into Sociomapping.
sis, Figurational Sociology, Relational sociology and
Sociomapping

6.19 Social psychology

A social network is a social structure composed of individuals (or organizations) called nodes, which are
tied (connected) by one or more specic types of
interdependency, such as friendship, kinship, nancial exchange, dislike, sexual relationships, or relationships of
beliefs, knowledge or prestige. Social networks operate
on many levels, from families up to the level of nations,
and play a critical role in determining the way problems
are solved, organizations are run, and the degree to which
individuals succeed in achieving their goals. An underlying theoretical assumption of social network analysis is
that groups are not necessarily the building blocks of society: the approach is open to studying less-bounded social

Main articles: Social psychology (sociology) and

Psychoanalytic sociology
Sociological social psychology focuses on micro-scale
social actions. This area may be described as adhering to sociological miniaturism, examining whole societies through the study of individual thoughts and emotions as well as behavior of small groups.[153] Of special
concern to psychological sociologists is how to explain
a variety of demographic, social, and cultural facts in
terms of human social interaction. Some of the major
topics in this eld are social inequality, group dynam-

6.21

Urban and rural sociology

ics, prejudice, aggression, social perception, group behavior, social change, nonverbal behavior, socialization,
conformity, leadership, and social identity. Social psychology may be taught with psychological emphasis.[154]
In sociology, researchers in this eld are the most prominent users of the experimental method (however, unlike
their psychological counterparts, they also frequently employ other methodologies). Social psychology looks at
social inuences, as well as social perception and social
interaction.[154]

19
the tendency toward an enlarged middle-class in modern
Western societies, particularly in relation to the necessity
of an educated work force in technological or servicebased economies.[159] Perspectives concerning globalization, such as dependency theory, suggest this eect owes
to the shift of workers to the developing countries.[160]

6.21 Urban and rural sociology

Main articles: Urban sociology and Rural sociology

6.20 Stratication, poverty and inequality

Main articles: Social stratication, Social inequality,
Social mobility and Social class
Social stratication is the hierarchical arrangement of individuals into social classes, castes, and divisions within
a society.[155] Modern Western societies stratication traditionally relates to cultural and economic classes arranged in three main layers: upper class, middle class,
and lower class, but each class may be further subdivided
into smaller classes (e.g. occupational).[156] Social stratication is interpreted in radically dierent ways within
sociology. Proponents of structural functionalism suggest
that, since the stratication of classes and castes is evident
in all societies, hierarchy must be benecial in stabilizing
their existence. Conict theorists, by contrast, critique
the inaccessibility of resources and lack of social mobility in stratied societies.
Karl Marx distinguished social classes by their connection to the means of production in the capitalist system:
the bourgeoisie own the means, but this eectively includes the proletariat itself as the workers can only sell
their own labour power (forming the material base of the
cultural superstructure). Max Weber critiqued Marxist
economic determinism, arguing that social stratication
is not based purely on economic inequalities, but on other
status and power dierentials (e.g. patriarchy). According to Weber, stratication may occur amongst at least
three complex variables: (1) Property (class): A persons
economic position in a society, based on birth and individual achievement.[157] Weber diers from Marx in that
he does not see this as the supreme factor in stratication.
Weber noted how managers of corporations or industries
control rms they do not own; Marx would have placed
such a person in the proletariat. (2) Prestige (status): A
persons prestige, or popularity in a society. This could be
determined by the kind of job this person does or wealth.
and (3) Power (political party): A persons ability to get
their way despite the resistance of others. For example,
individuals in state jobs, such as an employee of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, or a member of the United
States Congress, may hold little property or status but they
still hold immense power[158] Pierre Bourdieu provides a
modern example in the concepts of cultural and symbolic
capital. Theorists such as Ralf Dahrendorf have noted

Urban sociology involves the analysis of social life and

human interaction in metropolitan areas. It is a discipline
seeking to provide advice for planning and policy making. After the industrial revolution, works such as Georg
Simmel's The Metropolis and Mental Life (1903) focused
on urbanization and the eect it had on alienation and
anonymity. In the 1920s and 1930s The Chicago School
produced a major body of theory on the nature of the
city, important to both urban sociology and criminology,
utilising symbolic interactionism as a method of eld research. Contemporary research is commonly placed in a
context of globalization, for instance, in Saskia Sassen's
study of the "Global city".[161] Rural sociology, by contrast, is the analysis of non-metropolitan areas. As agriculture and wilderness tend to be a more prominent social
fact in rural regions, rural sociologists often overlap with
environmental sociologists.
6.21.1 Community sociology
Often grouped with urban and rural sociology is that of
community sociology or the sociology of community.[162]
Taking various communities - including online communities - as the unit of analysis, community sociologists
study the origin and eects of dierent associations of
people. For instance, German sociologist Ferdinand Tnnies distinguished between two types of human association: Gemeinschaft (usually translated as community)
and Gesellschaft (society or association). In his 1887
work, Gemeinschaft und Gesellschaft, Tnnies argued that
Gemeinschaft is perceived to be a tighter and more cohesive social entity, due to the presence of a unity of
will.[163] The 'development' or 'health' of a community
is also a central concern of community sociologists also
engage in development sociology, exemplied by the literature surrounding the concept of social capital.

7 Sociology and the other academic

disciplines
Sociology overlaps with a variety of disciplines that study
society, in particular anthropology, political science,
economics, social work and social philosophy. Many

20
comparatively new elds such as communication studies,
cultural studies, demography and literary theory, draw
upon methods that originated in sociology. The terms
"social science" and "social research" have both gained a
degree of autonomy since their origination in classical sociology. The distinct eld of social psychology emerged
from the many intersections of sociological and psychological interests, and is further distinguished in terms of
sociological or psychological emphasis.[164]

9 SEE ALSO
riving from a distinguished lineage and tradition, is
in decline due to deeply ideological theory and a lack
of relevance to policy making: The decomposition of
sociology began when this great tradition became subject to ideological thinking, and an inferior tradition surfaced in the wake of totalitarian triumphs.[172] Furthermore: A problem yet unmentioned is that sociologys
malaise has left all the social sciences vulnerable to pure
positivismto an empiricism lacking any theoretical basis. Talented individuals who might, in an earlier time,
have gone into sociology are seeking intellectual stimulation in business, law, the natural sciences, and even
creative writing; this drains sociology of much needed
potential.[172] Horowitz cites the lack of a 'core discipline' as exacerbating the problem. Randall Collins, the
Dorothy Swaine Thomas Professor in Sociology at the
University of Pennsylvania and a member of the Advisory Editors Council of the Social Evolution & History
journal, has voiced similar sentiments: we have lost all
coherence as a discipline, we are breaking up into a conglomerate of specialities, each going on its own way and
with none too high regard for each other.[173]

Sociology and applied sociology are connected to the

professional and academic discipline of social work.[165]
Both disciplines study social interactions, community and
the eect of various systems (i.e. family, school, community, laws, political sphere) on the individual.[166] However, social work is generally more focused on practical strategies to alleviate social dysfunctions; sociology
in general provides a thorough examination of the root
causes of these problems.[167] For example, a sociologist
might study why a community is plagued with poverty.
The applied sociologist would be more focused on practical strategies on what needs to be done to alleviate this
burden. The social worker would be focused on action;
implementing theses strategies directly or indirectly In 2007, The Times Higher Education Guide published a
by means of mental health therapy, counseling, advocacy, list of 'The most cited authors of books in the Humanities
community organization or community mobilization.[166] (including philosophy and psychology). Seven of the top
Social anthropology is the branch of anthropology that ten are listed as sociologists: Michel Foucault (1), Pierre
studies how contemporary living human beings behave Bourdieu (2), Anthony Giddens (5), Erving Goman (6),
Habermas (7), Max Weber (8), and Bruno Latour
in social groups. Practitioners of social anthropology, Jrgen
[174]
(10).
like sociologists, investigate various facets of social organization. Traditionally, social anthropologists analysed
non-industrial and non-Western societies, whereas sociologists focused on industrialized societies in the Western 8 Journals
world. In recent years, however, social anthropology has
expanded its focus to modern Western societies, meaning See also: List of sociology journals
that the two disciplines increasingly converge.[168][169]
Sociobiology is the study of how social behavior and organization have been inuenced by evolution and other
biological process. The eld blends sociology with a number of other sciences, such as anthropology, biology, and
zoology. Sociobiology has generated controversy within
the sociological academy for allegedly giving too much
attention to gene expression over socialization and environmental factors in general (see 'nature versus nurture').
Entomologist E. O. Wilson is credited as having originally developed and described Sociobiology.[170] Besides
Sociobiology the biocommunication theory investigates
interactions between non-human organisms such as animal communication, plant communication, fungal communication and communication in microorganisms on the
basis of rule-governed sign-use. In this respect any coordination of behavior between at least two organisms
is sign-mediated that underlies combinatorial (syntactic),
context-dependent (pragmatic) and content-relevant (semantic) rules.[171]
Irving Louis Horowitz, in his The Decomposition of Sociology (1994), has argued that the discipline, whilst ar-

The most highly ranked general journals which publish original research in the eld of sociology are the
American Journal of Sociology and the American Sociological Review.[175] The Annual Review of Sociology, which publishes literature reviews, is also highly
ranked.[175] Many other generalist and specialized journals exist.

9 See also
Economic sociology
Engaged theory
Grand theory
History of the social sciences
Outline of sociology
Sociological theory

21

10

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11 Further reading
Aby, Stephen H. Sociology: A Guide to Reference
and Information Sources, 3rd edn. Littleton, Colorado, Libraries Unlimited Inc., 2005, ISBN 156308-947-5 OCLC 57475961

26

12

Babbie, Earl R.. 2003. The Practice of Social Research, 10th edition. Wadsworth, Thomson Learning Inc., ISBN 0-534-62029-9 OCLC 51917727
Collins, Randall. 1994. Four Sociological Traditions. Oxford, Oxford University Press ISBN 0-19508208-7 OCLC 28411490
Coser, Lewis A., Masters of Sociological Thought :
Ideas in Historical and Social Context, New York,
Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1971. ISBN 0-15555128-0.
Giddens, Anthony. 2006. Sociology (5th edition),
Polity, Cambridge. ISBN 0-7456-3378-1 OCLC
63186308

EXTERNAL LINKS

Wallace, Ruth A. & Alison Wolf. 1995. Contemporary Sociological Theory: Continuing the Classical Tradition, 4th ed., Prentice-Hall. ISBN 0-13036245-X OCLC 31604842
White, Harrison C.. 2008. Identity and Control. How Social Formations Emerge. (2nd ed.,
Completely rev. ed.) Princeton, Princeton University Press. ISBN 978-0-691-13714-8 OCLC
174138884
Willis, Evan. 1996. The Sociological Quest: An introduction to the study of social life, New Brunswick,
New Jersey, Rutgers University Press. ISBN 08135-2367-2 OCLC 34633406

Landis, Judson R (1989). Sociology: Concepts 12 External links

and Characteristics (7th ed.). Belmont, California:
Professional associations
Wadsworth. ISBN 0-534-10158-5.
Lipset, Seymour Martin and Everett Carll Ladd.
The Politics of American Sociologists, American
Journal of Sociology (1972) 78#1 pp. 67104 in JSTOR
Macionis, John J (1991). Sociology (3rd ed.). Englewood Clis, New Jersey: Prentice Hall. ISBN
0-13-820358-X.

African Sociological Association (AfSA)

Association of Applied and Clinical Sociology
(AACS)
American Sociological Association (ASA)
Association for Humanist Sociology (AHS)
Australian Sociological Association (TASA)

Merton, Robert K.. 1959. Social Theory and Social

Structure. Toward the codication of theory and research, Glencoe: Ill. (Revised and enlarged edition)
OCLC 4536864

Bangladesh Sociological Society (BSS)

Mills, C. Wright, The Sociological Imagination,1959OCLC 165883

Canadian Association of French-speaking Sociologists and Anthropologists

C. Wright Mills, Intellectual Craftsmanship Advices

how to Work for young Sociologist
Mitchell, Georey Duncan (2007, originally published in 1968). A Hundred Years of Sociology: A
Concise History of the Major Figures, Ideas, and
Schools of Sociological Thought. New Brunswick,
New Jersey: Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978-0202-36168-0. OCLC 145146341. Check date values in: |date= (help)
Nisbet, Robert A. 1967. The Sociological Tradition,
London, Heinemann Educational Books. ISBN 156000-667-6 OCLC 26934810

British Sociological Association (BSA)

Canadian Sociological Association (CSA)

European Sociological Association (ESA)

French Sociological Association
German Sociological Association (DGS)
Indian Sociological Society (ISS)
International Institute of Sociology (IIS)
International Sociological Association (ISA)
Latin American Sociological Association (ALAS)
Portuguese Sociological Association (APS)
Sociological Association of Ireland (SAI)
South African Sociological Association (SASA)

Ritzer, George and Douglas J. Goodman. 2004.

Sociological Theory, Sixth Edition. McGraw Hill. Other platforms
ISBN 0-07-281718-6 OCLC 52240022
SocioSite: Famous Sociologists - Strong shoulders
to stand on
Scott, John & Marshall, Gordon (eds) A Dictionary
of Sociology (3rd Ed). Oxford University Press,
2005, ISBN 0-19-860986-8, OCLC 60370982

Sociology Today e-forum

27

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Afgreif, Materialscientist, Danno uk, Citation bot, Carlsotr, Raven1977, ArthurBot, Charliehesk, Xqbot, S h i v a (Visnu), Sionus, Cureden, Capricorn42, Seanbrowning, Andreadb, Nasnema, Hanberke, Sociologist4life, Tyrol5, Petropoxy (Lithoderm Proxy), J04n, GrouchoBot, Omnipaedista, Miriska, RibotBOT, JerryIsThePosterChild, Peter Robinson Scott, Canto2009, Doulos Christos, Traord09, Fixentries, Willdw79, A.amitkumar, Guerorocks, Sushiinger, Verpar, Qbert789, FrescoBot, Taishan88, Tobby72, Pepper, Ronald bolender,
Ricky1984, D'ohBot, Ladril, Citation bot 1, Cdickerson01, Pinethicket, I dream of horses, Adasinol, Ibn khaldun78, Nurefsan, Coekon,
Calmer Waters, A8UDI, Hesham4488, Vanderdecken12, MichaelExe, Nale, Nimh00, Reconsider the static, FadulJA, Gamewizard71,
FoxBot, TobeBot, Wotnow, Douglasbell, Darigan, CathySc, Lotje, Dinamik-bot, Junglefever2009, Capt. James T. Kirk, Reaper Eternal, Suusion of Yellow, Tbhotch, Reach Out to the Truth, DARTH SIDIOUS 2, Obsidian Soul, Threewords,eightletters..., Rjwilmsi-

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TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

Bot, Msin10, Andreas Philopater, KiLLaCRuSHs, Aircorn, DASHBot, Whywhenwhohow, EmausBot, John of Reading, Orphan Wiki,
Soccybrarian, WikitanvirBot, Josephcunningham, Max139, Aaloklamsal1, Dewritech, Northernsoutherner, GoingBatty, PHMegacorp,
Slightsmile, Wikipelli, We hope, Nick.patrick55, Nj301409, ZroBot, Life in General, Knight1993, Universalbuilder, Allforrous, Caromkidd, Jonpatterns, Dgd, Gary cunningham, Netknowle, Veshhistory, , Donner60, NTox, Arunconcern, GrayFullbuster, DASHBotAV, Littlesh597, ClueBot NG, E to pi i is minus one, Raghith, Rathersilly, NestleNW911, Robiminer, Hermes the Wise, Thegodfather115, Hazhk, O.Koslowski, Duke Pepelu Tivrusky, Widr, Jorgenev, Cinkapp, Helpful Pixie Bot, ProtoFire, BG19bot, Prudentist,
Krenair, Marcuswikipedian, Nikilearner, Frze, WaspByte, Mark Arsten, Rm1271, Skaulan Jgen, Mutiheer, Stimulieconomy, Meclee, JobHorber, Thebeard88, Dianaruttman1, MBWhitney, Dwt123, Bradyculous, Xsjadow, Suneja786, Pratyya Ghosh, Vincentames28, Omohoa, Editor123789, Samar.nasir, Ladumdum, Skohli1, Sajuachu, Sociology111, Adebayo577, Tosinojo, Adammohamed1993, Nmarzouk,
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Tentinator, Sdaeun, Backendgaming, SamX, DavidLeighEllis, Lewismacdonaldcock, Deborah Lupton, Ugog Nizdast, Puthoni, Melody
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13.2

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File:AdornoHorkheimerHabermasbyJeremyJShapiro2.png Source:
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Original artist: Howard R. Hollem

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