Consequences of Realism for Sociological Theory‐Building
TLDR
In this paper, a meta-theory called causal realism (a variant of critical realism) is suggested for the development of sociological theory, and the main tenets and key concepts of realism, such as causality and explanation, mechanism, stratified reality, are presented.Abstract:
It is argued that the Achilles heel of contemporary sociology – and great parts of social science – is a) weak theory development, and b) absence of a meta-theory providing a common platform and a shared goal for its practitioners, fostering cumulativity. A meta-theory called causal realism (a variant of critical realism) is suggested for these purposes. The main tenets and key concepts of realism, such as causality and explanation, mechanism, stratified reality, are presented. Thereafter, via an analogy to the physical sciences, it is argued that a natural implication of realism and the search for causal mechanisms is a division of society into levels. The micro-macro issue is approached by a level-ontology for the development of sociological theory. Five levels are suggested, discussed and briefly exemplified. In the concluding remarks, some further positive implications of realism to sociology are touched upon. (Less)read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Criticism and the Growth of Knowledge. Edited by I. Lakatos and A. Musgrave. Pp. viii, 282. £3·50, paperback £1. 1970. (Cambridge University Press.)
Journal ArticleDOI
The logic of small samples in interview-based qualitative research:
Mira Crouch,Heather McKenzie +1 more
TL;DR: In a qualitative framework, research based on interviews often seeks to penetrate social life beyond appearance and manifest meanings as mentioned in this paper, which requires the researcher to be immersed in the research field, to establish continuing, fruitful relationships with respondents and through theoretical contemplation to address the research problem in depth.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Open Society and its Enemies
TL;DR: The Open Society and its Enemies by K. R. Popper as mentioned in this paper is a book of great length (444 pages of text), great learning (168 pages of notes), but not of commensurate understanding.
Book
Dissecting the Social: On the Principles of Analytical Sociology
TL;DR: Hedstrom as mentioned in this paper argues for a systematic development of sociological theory so that it has the explanatory power and precision to inform sociological research and understanding, and shows how strong links can be forged between the micro and the macro, and between theory and empirical research.
Journal ArticleDOI
Narrative, organizations and research
Carl Rhodes,Andrew D. Brown +1 more
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors investigate the contribution of narrative approaches to the understanding of organizations and processes of organizing, and evaluate their contribution to substantive areas of organization theory in relation to an ongoing tension between story and science, and conclude by contemplating some of the criticisms and the future of narrative research.
References
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Book
The Construction of Social Reality
TL;DR: In "The Construction of Social Reality", eminent philosopher John Searle examines the structure of social reality (or those portions of the world that are facts only by human agreement, such as money, marriage, property, and government), and contrasts it to a brute reality that is independent of human agreement as mentioned in this paper.
Book ChapterDOI
Falsification and the Methodology of Scientific Research Programmes
TL;DR: For centuries knowledge meant proven knowledge, proven either by the power of the intellect or by the evidence of the senses as discussed by the authors. But the notion of proven knowledge was questioned by the sceptics more than two thousand years ago; but they were browbeaten into confusion by the glory of Newtonian physics.
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A Theory of Structure: Duality, Agency, and Transformation
TL;DR: A theory of structure that restores human agency to social actors, builds the possibility of change into the concept of structure, and overcomes the divide between semiotic and materialist visions of structure is proposed in this article.
Book
The Open Society and Its Enemies
TL;DR: The Open Society and its Enemies as mentioned in this paper is a collection of essays written by Karl Popper about the Open Society, and its enemies in the contemporary global world, with a focus on human rights.
Journal ArticleDOI
Criticism and the Growth of Knowledge
Imre Lakatos,Alan Musgrave +1 more
TL;DR: The distinction between normal and revolutionary science hold water as mentioned in this papereyerabend, T. S. Kuhn and T. E. Toulmin have made a distinction between the two categories of science.