Rethinking Contemporary Social Theory

ISBN-13: 9781612052595 / Angielski / Twarda / 2013 / 256 str.

Roberta Garner

Opis

The authors recontextualize contemporary sociological theory to argue that in recent decades sociology has been deeply permeated by a new paradigm, conflict constructionism. Their analysis integrates and sheds new light on eight prominent domains of recent social thought: the micro-level; discourses, framing, and renewed interest in signs and language; the construction of difference and dominance; regulation and punishment; cultural complexity and transculturation; the body; new approaches to the role of the state; and a consistent conflict perspective. The paradigm combines elements of both social construction theory and conflict theory. It has deep roots in critical theory and more recent links to postmodernism. It is associated with postmodern social thought, although it is less radical and more adaptable to empirical inquiry than postmodernism. The authors tie their new conceptualization of social theory to contemporary applications of social theory in everyday life.

Spis treści

Part I Paradigms Chapter One Paradigms in Sociology Chapter Two Conflict Constructionism: Elements of the Paradigm Chapter Three History of a Paradigm Part II Paradigm Change in Selected Subfields Section 1 Deep Impact: The New Paradigm Becomes Dominant Chapter Four Constructing Difference and Dominance: Race-Ethnicity and Gender Chapter Five Culture in an Era of Globalization, Jose Soltero Chapter Six Media in the Information Age: Surface Intensities and Total Symbolic Environments Chapter Seven Sociology of the Self: From Personality to Persona Section 2 Paradigms in Play Chapter Eight Political Sociology and the Analysis of Collective Action: Old and New in Harmony Chapter Nine Urban Sociology and Spatial Analysis: Paradigms in Coexistence Chapter Ten Disruptions in the Field Formerly Known as Sociology of Deviance, Greg Scott and Julian Thompson Section 3 Paradigm Limited Chapter Eleven Social Class and Socioeconomic Inequality Chapter Twelve Contemporary Theories of Family Life, Tait Runnfeldt Medina and Julie E. Artis Section 4 Paradigms Reconstituted in a Transdisciplinary Field Chapter Thirteen The Sociology of Health, Illness, and Medical Practice, Grace Budry Conclusion

O autorze

Roberta Garner, Black Hawk Hancock, Grace Budrys