Download or read book Violence written by Randall Collins and published by Princeton University Press. This book was released on 2009-08-03 with total page 580 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the popular misconception fostered by blockbuster action movies and best-selling thrillers--not to mention conventional explanations by social scientists--violence is easy under certain conditions, like poverty, racial or ideological hatreds, or family pathologies. Randall Collins challenges this view in Violence, arguing that violent confrontation goes against human physiological hardwiring. It is the exception, not the rule--regardless of the underlying conditions or motivations. Collins gives a comprehensive explanation of violence and its dynamics, drawing upon video footage, cutting-edge forensics, and ethnography to examine violent situations up close as they actually happen--and his conclusions will surprise you. Violence comes neither easily nor automatically. Antagonists are by nature tense and fearful, and their confrontational anxieties put up a powerful emotional barrier against violence. Collins guides readers into the very real and disturbing worlds of human discord--from domestic abuse and schoolyard bullying to muggings, violent sports, and armed conflicts. He reveals how the fog of war pervades all violent encounters, limiting people mostly to bluster and bluff, and making violence, when it does occur, largely incompetent, often injuring someone other than its intended target. Collins shows how violence can be triggered only when pathways around this emotional barrier are presented. He explains why violence typically comes in the form of atrocities against the weak, ritualized exhibitions before audiences, or clandestine acts of terrorism and murder--and why a small number of individuals are competent at violence. Violence overturns standard views about the root causes of violence and offers solutions for confronting it in the future.
Download or read book Micro Social Theory written by Brian Roberts and published by Bloomsbury Publishing. This book was released on 2019-03-15 with total page 200 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Micro social theory covers a rich tradition in sociological thinking and research that focuses on the self or actor and social interaction. This new title in the Traditions in Social Theory series traces the development of the tradition and assesses its contemporary importance.
Download or read book Micro Macro Links and Microfoundations in Sociology written by Vincent Buskens and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-07-16 with total page 265 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Micro-Macro Links and Microfoundations in Sociology focuses on two main issues in sociology. Firstly, how macro-conditions can explain macro-outcomes mediated by actor behaviour at the micro-level (micro-macro links). Secondly, how alternative micro-models affect macro-outcomes (microfoundations). The contributions reflect key features of micro-macro modelling in sociology as well as recent progress in this field. The chapters address core features of explanations of social phenomena using micro-macro models, the problem of cooperation, heterogeneity of actors, structural balance, opinion formation, segregation, and problems of micro-macro models that are based on rational choice assumptions. Moreover, the contributions show how different research methods can be applied fruitfully, such as laboratory experiments, equilibrium analysis, and agent-based modelling. As a result, the book can be a guide for graduate students who want to develop their skills in building micro-macro models. In addition, the book provides specialists of the different substantive research areas with up-to-date new developments in their research area. This book was originally published as a special issue of Journal of Mathematical Sociology.
Download or read book Microsociology written by Kai-Olaf Maiwald and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2019-09-05 with total page 158 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book offers an unprecedented, integrative account of the shape of social order on the microsocial level. Dealing with the basic dimensions of interaction, the authors examine the major factors which influence "structure" in social interaction by applying various theoretical concepts. Although the concept of "microsociology" is usually associated with symbolic interactionism, social psychology, the works of George Herbert Mead and Erving Goffman and with qualitative methodologies, this book reaches beyond interactionist theories, claiming that no single school of thought covers the different dimensions necessary for understanding the basics of microsociology. As such, the book provides something of a microsociologist’s "tool kit," analyzing an array of theoretical approaches which offer the best conceptual solutions, and interpreting them in a way that is independent of their specific theoretical language. Such theoretical traditions include systems theory, conversation analysis, structuralism, the theory of knowledge and the philosophy of language. Providing a distinct, systematic and incremental approach to the subject, this book fills an important gap in sociological literature. Written in an accessible style, and offering new insights into the area of microsociology, it will appeal to students and scholars of the social sciences and to those with interests in sociology, microsociology, interactionism and sociological theory.
Download or read book The Micro macro Link written by Jeffrey C. Alexander and published by Univ of California Press. This book was released on 1987-01-01 with total page 420 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The work of fifteen nationally and internationally known theorists in sociology, this volume demonstrates an exciting new trend in sociological thinking. Each essay proposes a link between the two distinguishable traditions of sociological theory--the microscopic, which stresses the self and the interaction among persons, and the macroscopic, which concentrates on the institutional, cultural, and societal levels. Each mode of analysis has had its champions, and the proponents of each have often taken positions of polemic opposition to one another.
Download or read book Advances in Social Theory and Methodology written by Karin Knorr Cetina and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2014-08-21 with total page 255 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: After a period in which sociology was torn apart by the polarized claims of micro- and macro-methodology, an increasing number of sociologists are now attempting a fusion of the two approaches. In this volume, some of the most distinguished sociologists set out possible resolutions of the debate. Each of the chapters, placed in perspective by the editors’ prologue, approaches the problem from a unique angle. Aaron Cicourel argues for a macro-basis of social interaction; Randall Collins shows how the macro consists of an aggregate of micro-episodes; Troy Duster presents a methodological model for generating a systematic data base across different contexts of social action through his examination of the procedures governing screening for inherited disorders. Rom Harré launches a philosophical attack on what he sees as a spurious bifurcation of micro- and macro-levels. Anthony Giddens explores the problem of unintended consequences, and Gilles Fauconnier, through a depiction of Jesuitical casuistry, shows how vital clues to macro-structure can be elicited from the micro-phenomenon of language. Victor Lidz continues the language theme in his chapter on the implications of advances in linguistic theory for macro-systems theory. Niklas Luhmann illustrates the micro-macro problem by the communication about law in interaction systems. The theory of historical materialism is reassessed by Jürgen Habermas. Taking the example of Renault and electric vehicles, Michel Callon and Bruno Latour investigate how micro-actor status is attained and the sociologist’s involvement in this transformation. Finally, Pierre Bourdieu, writing on men and machines, analyses the historical imperatives that create the complex relation between man and his environment.
Download or read book THE POWER ELITE written by C.WRIGHT MILLS and published by . This book was released on 1956 with total page 442 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Micro Sociological Theory written by S N Eisenstadt and published by SAGE Publications Limited. This book was released on 1985-10 with total page 202 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Micro-Sociological Theory provides a comparative appraisal of the most significant modern approaches to micro-theory and social psychology, focusing on the numerous trends toward convergence with macro-theoretical paradigms. The first part of the book examines recent developments in role theory and frame analysis. The second part refers to current debates in ethnomethodology on the mediatory role of language, collective symbols and the socio-cultural sources of emotional experience.
Download or read book Theoretical Sociology written by Jonathan H. Turner and published by SAGE Publications. This book was released on 2013-07-11 with total page 289 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: What can sociological theory tell us about the basic forces that shape our world? With clarity and authority, Theoretical Sociology: A Concise Introduction to Twelve Sociological Theories, by leading theorist Jonathan H. Turner, seeks to answer this question through a brief, yet in-depth examination of twelve major sociological theories. Readers are given an opportunity to explore the foundational premise of each theory and key elements that make it distinctive. The book draws on biographical background, analysis of important works, historical influences, and other critical insights to help readers make the important connections between these monumental sociological theories and the social world in which we live. This concise resource is a perfect complement to any course that seeks to examine both classic and contemporary sociological theory.
Download or read book Microsociology written by Thomas J. Scheff and published by University of Chicago Press. This book was released on 1990 with total page 231 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Moving beyond the traditional boundaries of sociological investigation, Thomas J. Scheff brings together the study of communication and the social psychology of emotions to explore the microworld of thoughts, feelings, and moods. Drawing on strikingly diverse and rich sources—the findings of artificial intelligence and cognitive science, and examples from literary dialogues and psychiatric interviews—Scheff provides an inventive account of the nature of social life and a theory of motivation that brilliantly accounts for the immense complexity involved in understanding even the most routine conversation. "A major contribution to some central debates in social theory at the present time. . . . What Thomas Scheff seeks to develop is essentially a quite novel account of the nature of social life, its relation to language and human reflexivity, in which he insists upon the importance of a theory of emotion. . . . A work of true originality and jolting impact. . . . Microsociology is of exceptional interest, which bears witness to the very creativity which it puts at the center of human social contact." —Anthony Giddens, from the Foreword "Scheff provides a rich theory that can easily generate further exploration. And he drives home the message that sociological work on interaction, social bonds, and society cannot ignore human emotionality."—Candace Clark, American Journal of Sociology "This outstanding and ground-breaking little volume contains a wealth of original ideas that bring together many insights concerning the relationship of emotion to motivation in a wide variety of social settings. It is strongly recommended to all serious students of emotion, of society, and of human nature."—Melvin R. Lansky, American Journal of Psychiatry
Download or read book Sociological Theory What Went Wrong written by Nicos Mouzelis and published by Routledge. This book was released on 2003-09-02 with total page 234 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Written with precision and clarity, this is a compelling analysis of the central problems of sociological theory today and of the means to resolve them. Argues that we should build on ideas from the 50s and 60s, and not dismiss them.
Download or read book Macro Micro Linkages in Sociology written by Joan Huber and published by SAGE Publications, Incorporated. This book was released on 1991-03 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this volume, twenty leading sociologists consider the dichotomy between micro and macro level analysis in social research. All demonstrate the inescapable connections between the two, and attempt to link them together. This topic is approached from various theoretical perspectives including the interrelationship of large scale and small scale theories, variables and concepts. It is studied more specifically in relation to institutions such as education, work and family, gender and demographic research.
Download or read book Understanding Social Theory written by Derek Layder and published by SAGE. This book was released on 2006 with total page 340 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Provides an introduction to the core issues in social theory. This book will be useful reading for students in sociology, social psychology, social theory, political theory and organization studies.
Download or read book Actions and Structure written by Nigel Fielding and published by SAGE Publications Limited. This book was released on 1988-10 with total page 216 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Social scientists have always recognised a divergence between approaches which emphasise the constraining power of social structure and those which interpret society through the cumulative effects of actions of individuals. In recent years there has been renewed interest in the latter through the micro-sociology of everyday life. Social scientists are now taking stock of the implications of micro-sociological research for the analysis of structure and the macro-level theory of society. In Actions and Structure the value of micro-sociological research for the analysis of social order is assessed. Individual chapters evaluate new research approaches from discourse and conversational analysis, mathematical, interactionist and phenomenol
Download or read book Frontiers of Social Theory written by George Ritzer and published by Columbia University Press. This book was released on 1990 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents essays reflecting the current state and near-term prospects of sociological theory.
Download or read book Core Concepts in Sociology written by J. Michael Ryan and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2018-09-07 with total page 450 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An essential guide to the basic concepts that comprise the study of sociology with contributions from an international range of leading experts Core Concepts in Sociology is a comprehensive guide to the essential concepts relevant to the current study of the discipline and wider social science. The contributing authors cover a wide range of concepts that remain at the heart of sociology including those from its academic founding and others much more recent in their development. The text contains contributions from an international panel of leading figures in the field, utilizing their expertise on core concepts and presenting an accessible introduction for students. Drawing on the widest range of ideas, research, current literature and expert assessment, Core Concepts in Sociology contains over 90 concepts that represent the discipline. Coverage includes concepts ranging from aging to capitalism, democracy to economic sociology, epistemology to everyday life, media to risk, stigma and much more. This vital resource: Sets out the concepts that underpin the study of sociology and wider social science Contains contributions from an international panel of leading figures in the field Includes a comprehensive review of the basic concepts that comprise the foundation and essential development of the discipline Designed as a concise and accessible resource Written for students, researchers and wider professionals with an interest in the field of sociology, Core Concepts in Sociology offers a concise, affordable and accessible resource for studying the underpinnings of sociology and social science.
Download or read book Encyclopedia of Social Theory written by Austin Harrington and published by Psychology Press. This book was released on 2006 with total page 752 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Encyclopedia of Social Theory cuts across all relevant disciplines, theories, approaches, and schools to present the latest information and research.
