Hermínio Martins and the State of the Social Sciences: An Interview with the Author

Abstract

The interview with Herminio Martins from 2011, published in Analise Social, the oldest Portuguese social science journal, focused on the trajectory of social sciences in Portugal. However, as it comprehensively covers the theoretical and institutional state of social sciences in general, it is of undeniable interest for this volume. Among the various topics covered, Martins inveighs against the sociological mainstream and criticizes the lack of theoretical thinking and attention to epistemology and temporality in the social sciences. He distances himself from the marketization of the university and the ‘officialization of scientism’, from ‘the dirigisme in relation to production of knowledge’, and the ‘frenzy of “article-ism”’. He favours an inter-disciplinary dialogue, and looking to horizons beyond a mere ‘theory-franchise’, defending his own contribution to a theory of social action which incorporates the notion of uncertainty.