Aaron Cicourel's contributions to language use, theory, method, and measurement

Abstract

AbstractAaron Cicourel's contributions to sociology and other disciplines are discussed. Cicourel brought to sociology the philosophical and linguistic principle that language plays an active role in creating and sustaining social interaction and social reality; Cicourel and his colleagues pioneered the use of videotape as an analytic tool, which enabled them to vividly illustrate the importance of organizational and interpersonal constraints on social interaction and communication. His empirical studies of healthcare and schooling uncovered linguistic and organizational practices that contribute to the assembly of steps on students' academic careers and patients' diagnoses, treatments, and healthcare outcomes. Cicourel's work provides a wealth of empirical evidence for the argument that there is a reflexive relationship between social structure and social action as displayed in language use.