Concept Of Ideal Type Research Articles

The Potential for Using the Method of Typological Analysis in the Sociological Diagnostics of Social Phenomena

This paper provides an abstract presentation and analyzes the content of the collective monograph titled Typological Analysis in Sociology as a Diagnostic Procedure. The focus is on the possibilities that the method of typological analysis provides when it comes to developing the genre of sociological diagnostics. In the introduction, we consider the approaches towards defining the concept of “sociological diagnostics” that have developed in the domestic scientific community, while noting the persistent ambiguity in its understanding and use. The main part of the paper gives a brief summary of the main theoretical and methodological provisions, the practice and results of applying the method of typological analysis as a tool for sociological diagnostics according to the first three chapters of the monograph. We have identified three connecting links that determine the integrity of the authors’ narrative in revealing the diagnostic potential of the typological analysis method: 1) adherence to the concept of ideal type, 2) search for controllable factors while overcoming methodological “bottlenecks”, and 3) strict observance of the analysis procedure. In conclusion, we reveal the actual and possible limitations in the use of typological analysis for diagnostics of modern social phenomena, and we challenge the selection and development of one ideal type of workers as a standard for making management decisions.

“TERRORISM”: REALITY AND CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK

The purpose of the article is to embed the modern representation of terrorism into the conceptual framework defined in the horizon of the fundamentals of the dominant liberal version of the economic paradigm of the political (“managerial paradigm”). The political is presented as a balance of interests, fixed at the moment as the result of endless public discussion; politics in this case is management, whose task is to harmonize interests and ensure conditions for peaceful existence - based on a liberal consensus on basic rights. The reality of the political arises in the process of aesthetic/historical representation, for which perspectivism is constitutive; such reality is fragmented and centered relative to an empty place (the exclusion of the sovereign and the sovereign decision), has the properties of hyperreality, the phenomena of which are simulacra of the third level. The absence of the possibility of drawing a border (the exclusive prerogative of a sovereign decision) leads to the non-distinction of “internal” and “external”, the area of “order” and “anomie”. In this situation, war becomes a permanent mechanism for the biopolitical production of life; an unrecognized enemy is a party to the war; the war is presented as fair, the goal is declared to restore the disturbed order. An unrecognized enemy is called a terrorist; the conceptual horizon for defining the concept of “terrorism” is the anti-terrorist war in the nearest way. Thus, the philosophical approach differs from the disciplinary scientific one; the philosophical concept of terrorism has other grounds than its ideal-typical concepts, which are operated by the disciplinarily organized sciences; the evidence of paradigmatic principles makes philosophical conceptualization difficult.

Ideal Types and Ideal(ized) students in Internationalized Post-secondary Pedagogy

This article explores the relevance of Weber’s sociocultural concept of ideal types in the context of modern Canadian post-secondary education. Ideal types are simplified or distilled representations of socio-cultural values, with relevance to various social (Prandy, 2002) and educational (Hayhoe, 2007; Hayhoe & Li, 2017; Wong & Chiu, 2021) analyses. This article builds upon Hayhoe and Li’s (2007) comparison of Confucian and Western ideal types, focusing on implications for internationalized education and implicit values within. The article explores the caveats of reductive thinking regarding cultures, particularly considering culture as a proxy for race where values differ. It revisits research exploring Western students studying in an East Asian context and East Asian students studying in a Western context (Chen, 2014; Maton & Chen, 2020), using ideal types as an analytical lens for underlying values and gaps in expectations. Specifically, it considers the pedagogical implications of the differing educational cultures and values as represented by Western and Confucian ideal types, and how a broader appreciation might supplement teaching approaches founded on either type to be more inclusive and beneficial for the various learners in Canadian higher education.

Actual Tasks of Sociological Diagnostics (on the Example of “Wartime Essays” by K. Manheim)

Introduction. The article analyzes the current possibilities of diagnosing the society of wartime, based on the subject content and methods of sociology, as a non-trivial task for sociologists-teachers of higher education.Methodology and sources. The theoretical sources of the research were the works of classics of sociology (O. Comte, K. Marx, E. Fromm, K. Manheim) and modern Russian sociologists (M.K. Gorshkov, S.A. Kravchenko, J.T. Toschenko, V.Y. Fetisov), who defined the tasks of sociological diagnostics. The "Diagnosis of Our Time" by K. Manheim is analyzed as a historical example of their formulation. The empirical base was made up of official documents of the Russian Federation, the results of VTSIOM surveys, materials of public discussions in the Russian media, expert assessments and examples of analysis of the dynamics of civil society in the conditions of SVO. The methodology of socio-cultural analysis, social constructivism, typological method is used as a specific research strategy that allows to formulate complex value judgments.Results and discussion. Based on the experience of K. Manheim, the article discusses the current possibilities of sociological diagnostics based on the essential characteristics of society. In contrast to technocratic approaches, it is argued that sociological rationalism is not reduced to scientific and experimental. He includes the problems of natural law as his methodological principle in the analysis of social dynamics. On this basis, the tasks of sociological diagnostics are formulated: the study of the assessment process as a factor of social change reproducing the “crisis of assessments”. Its mechanisms are considered, – transfer, transformation, replacement with non–traditional equivalents, creation of new values, and ways of justification, – utilitarian justification, faith in the leader, class, racial and ethnic community. It is shown that a holistic understanding of shifts in the evaluation system is achieved by constructing ideal-typical concepts based on the axiological consciousness of the researcher. A research strategy of sociological diagnostics is outlined: collecting samples, models of self-determination in wartime conditions and their public discourse. The practical application of sociological knowledge is associated with the creation of value-probabilistic scenarios for the development of society as incentives for socio-economic and political transformations. Conclusion. The sociological diagnosis of wartime society requires the construction of conceptual ideas that collect images of the future that meet the priorities of security, personal freedoms and innovation. The idea of a “gathering”, ideally a conciliar democracy, seems very promising.

A Weberian Framework for Critical Discourse Analysis

Discourse analysis, since its emergence, has gone through various changes and modifications, especially in the trend coming to prominence as critical discourse analysis. This trend has always manifested the impact of brilliant ideas by great intellectuals from different disciplines such as philosophy, sociology, psychology, and social theory. Max Weber is one of the towering figures in the history of sociology whose method of conducting sociological analysis, especially the concept of ideal types, has not been adequately utilized in discourse studies. Throughout years, critical discourse analysis has been criticized on account of its founding assumptions, vagueness, preferences for a particular social theory, lack of rigor, unsystematic nature, lack of methodological consistency, nontransparent research procedures, etc. Simply stated, using its theories in conducting actual analysis has always been a problem for researchers. This study is an attempt to propose a framework using Weber’s ideas and methodology which enables researchers to utilize discourse theories in practice. The Weberian framework does not reject other theories within the field as it is in line with an orientation termed hyper-differentiation of theories in which theories coexist rather than compete with each other.

Common concern for the global ecological commons: solidarity with future generations?

This article elaborates on ideas concerning future generations and whether they are useful in understanding some aspects of the concern for the global ecological commons. The article’s main scholarly contribution is to develop analytical tools for examining what a concern for future generations would require of current generations. It combines the scholarly literature on future generations with that of solidarity. The ideas concerning future generations are interpreted in terms of an ideal typical concept of solidarity with future generations. This concept is divided into four dimensions: the foundation of solidarity, the objective of solidarity, the boundaries of solidarity and the collective orientation. By applying these four dimensions in the context of the political process leading to Agenda 2030, the potentials and limitations of the concept are evident. The article concludes that the absence of reciprocity between current and future generations and uncertainty about the future are both crucial issues, which cut across the four dimensions. We cannot expect anything from people who have not yet been born, and we do not know what preferences they will have. This shows the vulnerability of forward-looking appeals to solidarity with future generations. Nevertheless, such appeals to solidarity may give global political processes a normative content and direction and can thereby contribute to understanding common concerns for the global ecological commons.

Contextualising Urban Experimentation: Analysing the Utopiastadt Campus Case with the Theory of Strategic Action Fields

Practices of urban experimentation are currently seen as a promising approach to making planning processes more collaborative and adaptive. The practices develop not only in the context of ideal-type concepts of urban experiments and urban labs but also organically in specific governance contexts. We present such an organic case in the city of Wuppertal, Germany, centred around a so-called change-maker initiative, ‘Utopiastadt.’ This initiative joined forces with the city administration and collaborated with a private property owner and the local economic development agency in an unusual planning process for the development of a central brownfield site. Ultimately, the consortium jointly published a framework concept that picked up the vision of the ‘Utopiastadt Campus’ as an open-ended catalyst area for pilot projects and experiments on sustainability and city development. The concept was adopted by the city council and Utopiastadt purchased more than 50% of the land. In order to analyse the wider governance context and power struggles, we apply the social-constructivist theory of Strategic Action Fields (SAFs). We focused on the phases of contention and settlement, the shift in interaction forms, the role of an area development board as an internal governance unit and the influences of proximate fields, strategic action, and state facilitation on the development. We aim to demonstrate the potential of the theory of SAFs to understand a long-term urban development process and how an episode of experimentation evolved within this process. We discuss the theory’s shortcomings and reflect critically on whether the process contributed to strengthening collaborative and experimental approaches in the governance of city development.

What do Social Scientists Do in a “Value Polytheism” Situation?; Or, A Little More on Weber’s “Vocation”

The purpose of the present paper consists of two points. First, it is to show how the internal structure and the “inner logic” of science as a value sphere are formed in Max Weber’s theory. Then, relying on logical-methodological foundations proposed by Weber, the second point is to identify how the action carried out by scientists in a “vocation” mode in a situation of “value polytheism” is realized within science. Analyzing the content of recent discussions about the empirical validity and character of Weber’s argumentation in one of his central works, The Protestant Ethics and the Spirit of Capitalism, as well as about the autonomy and conceptual boundaries of Weber’s science, we draw a line of reasoning as follows. Firstly, we trace the changing of the methodological role of values in general, and the value of truth, in particular, in the “sciences of culture” in connection with the transition from the transcendental solution of Heinrich Rickert to Weber’s “value polytheism”. Secondly, we analyze how the relationship between Weber’s science, progress, and rationalization is structured. Thirdly, we explicate the mode of “vocation” in science, relying on the logical-methodological foundations proposed by Weber. Fourthly, we identify the development of Weber’s idea of the value autonomy of science. It is shown that Weber rejects the criterion of truth’s universality proposed by Rickert’s logical solution. However, the construction of ideal-typical concepts and the mechanics of “cognitive interest” described by Weber allows scientists to separate extra-scientific pragmatics from the scientific research itself. The progress of the “sciences of culture” for Weber is the differentiation and the emergence of new research approaches and the refinement of concepts. At the same time, science is not teleologically connected with “progress in general” and the rationalizing world, the configuration of which is a specific historical constellation. As associated with scientific work, “gaining the clarity” turns out to be not its own goal, but a possible effect of using scientific knowledge. The mode of “vocation” in a “value polytheism” situation forces scientists to contribute to the endless scientific progress; they formulate such ideal-types and causal explanations that seem adequate and sufficient from the point of view of their cognitive interests. The stability of science’s boundaries and its value autonomy are formed in Weber’s theory gradually; epistemological studies and the implementation of his sociology of the religion research “programme” make the difference between vocations in science and politics clear.

Представление национализма: структура, содержание, критика

Nationalism determines modernity — L. Grinfeld’s thesis at the very beginning of the 90s of the twentieth century (repeating the judgment of E. Keduri in the early 60s), unexpectedly for liberal social science, immediately acquired political relevance. The purpose of the article is to identify the reasons for this «surprise»: the representation of the nation in the economic paradigm of the political (D. Agamben’s term) as a civic association of freely self-determining autonomous individuals-citizens excludes the possibility of national conflicts, the reality of which is obvious. Objective scientific research within the disciplinary structure of modern science has as a given object of research in the representation: thus, a philosophical interpretation becomes necessary as a method of criticizing the representation of the nation and the national in the economic paradigm. It has been established that the representation of a nation is normatively and value-wise conditioned by the foundations of «liberal metaphysics»; it is necessary to distinguish between «civil» and «ethnic» nationalisms, which does not have «empirical foundations» (R. Brubaker); attribution to value as a way of constructing an ideal-typical concept of nationalism presupposes the need for an assessment conditioned by the way nationalism is presented; the moral and political disqualification of «ethnic nationalism» as an invalid «remnant» (V. Pareto) is thus «built in» into scientific research, which is at the same time an ideological instrument and a political program. The philosophical interpretation of the meaning of the representation of nationalism in liberal social science, external in relation to the dominant paradigm of the political, provides scientific novelty and leads to the conclusion: a «civil nation» is valid as a political project that presupposes a «historiographic recalculation of the past» (M. Heidegger), retrospectively placing the beginning of nationalism in past. In the course of the presentation, the practical significance of the conclusion is clarified: the theory of the «civilized nation» presupposes drawing a border between «civilized» and — «cultural» and «natural» nationalisms as political enemies that must be removed: drawing the line between «civil» and «ethnic» nationalisms has both scientific and political significance; These circumstances contribute to the understanding of the meaning and the assigned goal of the nation-building process and the practice of national politics.

Biofuel research: perceptions of power and transition

Whether biofuels represent a sustainable innovation, a creative alternative, or a gold rush, very much depends on our perception of power and change with regard to sustainability. This article provides an overview of existing understandings of power in the research on biofuels, including positive perceptions that often lead to more optimistic evaluations of biofuels. It exposes the diversity with which one can understand power through three ideal type concepts: “power with,” “power to,” and “power over”. Integrating these concepts in one power framework allows for examining how the three dimensions interrelate with each other and developing the contours of a power lens on biofuel governance and research. With the 2007–2008 food price crisis, critics re-politicized the governance of biofuels. Several farmer associations have completely turned against biofuels. The article argues that this rejection of biofuels is due to a limited perception of power as a coercion and manipulation (power over). While the current governance of biofuels basically reproduces systems and positions, we should start to more seriously and intensively ask questions of where, when, and how the governance of biofuels may also allow for “green” resistance (power to) and collective empowerment (power with).

Closure in the elite professions: the field of law and medicine in an egalitarian context

This article examines if and how the elite professions of law and medicine have managed to maintain their exclusivity in a period of educational expansion in Norway. The extent to which these professions disproportionately recruit students with socio-economically advantageous backgrounds is seen as an indication of intergenerational closure. Using registry data covering the entire population of Norway over a 26-year time span, we show that even though these two professions have experienced growing numbers of candidates, they manage, partly due to different institutional strategies, to maintain their exclusivity. Parents’ income and self-recruitment are relatively stable and important factors for the recruitment in both fields, although these trends are somewhat higher in law than in medicine. Drawing on Turner’s (1960) ideal-typical concepts of contest and sponsor mobility, we pinpoint institutional differences between the types of education provided for both groups and how these have adapted to meet the expansion in candidates seeking to qualify as lawyers and doctors.

‘Power with’ and ‘power to’ in environmental politics and the transition to sustainability

ABSTRACTScholars of environmental politics demand serious reform of international governance and institutions to protect planet Earth. There is therefore an urgent need to discuss what causes change and gridlock in environmental politics. Serious reform is inextricably tied up with questions of power. The diversity with which studies on environmental politics understand power is exposed through three ideal type concepts: power with (learning and cooperation), power to (resistance and empowerment) and power over (coercion and manipulation). So far, scholars have mainly used analysis of coercive power (over) to explain gridlock in environmental politics; also needed is explicit acknowledgement of coaction and individual agency that can enable transition to more sustainable societies.

Potencjał delegitymizacji systemu politycznego w społeczeństwie polskim

Delegitimization of the political system could be a strong factor leading to disruptions of the social and political order, including political violence. In order to measure the potential of this phenomenon an original measurement tool was created. The tool is based on the concept of ideal types and empirical types introduced by Max Weber and Georg Jellinek. Quantitative empirical data was provided by the Polish General Election Study (2011). Using this data, analyses of intergroup differences of selected sociodemographic and psychographic variables were carried out. The following groups emerged from the analyses: legitimizing the political system, ambivalent towards the political system, delegitimizing the political system (completely or incompletely), and several groups of moderate potential to delegitimize (for instance people rejecting democracy, but expressing satisfaction with the institutional aspects of its functioning in political practice). The gathered results confirm a moderate but noticeable potential for delegitimization of the Polish democracy; several extracted social categories may be a potential threat to internal security.

Weber's limits: Value and Meaning, Rationality and Individualism

Weber's formulation of Verstehenden Sociology is the product of a series of demarcations (De-finitionen). From these belong a number of applied concepts and conceptual distinctions: value freedom and value relation, natural and cultural science (nomothetic and idiographic), generic concepts and idealtypical concepts, action and behaviour, understanding and causal explanation, psychological and sociological, actual and motivational understanding, value and meaning, rationality, individualism. Weber does not always sufficiently clarify and define these distinctions, and what is excluded is often ill-defined. The article considers three main demarcations and their boundaries.

Kein Wandel ohne Macht ‐ Nachhaltigkeitsforschung braucht ein mehrdimensionales Machtverständnis

Which power leads to change, and which power prevents it? The article provides an overview of existing understandings of power in research on environmental politics and sustainability, including positive perceptions of power that researchers have hardly made explicit so far. It exposes the diversity with which one can understand power through three ideal type concepts: power with (cooperation and learning), power to (resistance and empowerment) and power over (coercion and manipulation). Integrating these concepts in one power framework allows examining how the three dimensions interrelate with each other. As will be shown, power imbalances affect processes of power with and power to. Conversely, however, “sustainability leadership” as well as “green” creativity and resistance can also weaken and overcome power over. Examples from research on climate politics serve for illustration. The aim is to push a broader debate on the phenomenon of power and to set a new agenda for a multi-dimensional understanding of power in sustainability research.

On the Very Idea of an Ideal Type

The concept of ideal type plays an essential role in Max Weber’s social science. Unfortunately Weber failed to explain exactly what an ideal type really is. This question cannot be answered as long as the source of the concept is not identified. We will examine some possible sources and argue that the work of the physicist and physiologist Hermann von Helmholtz is the most plausible source. Our purpose is to show that a consideration of several key essays by Helmholtz shows what Weber meant with his concept of ideal type: namely the result of a specific kind of induction.

Fenomenologi Alfred Schutz: Studi tentang Konstruksi Makna dan Realitas dalam Ilmu Sosial

Abstract: Alfred Schutz phenomenology is one of the important thougt in phenomenology development as philosophical movement. Simultantly, Schutz’s phenomenology critizes and modifies Husserl concept of phenomenology and Weber concept of ideal type actions.This paper uses Friedrich concept to give a map of mode scientist in order to clarify Schutz phenomenological position in development of social science. In context of social science Schutz phenomenology position implies to qualitative methods research especially in observation structure to the object of research social emphasize by phenomenology.

Weber's Methodology: Understanding Concept of Ideal Type as Necessary Element of Weberian Comprehensive Sociology

Weber’s methodology is a hard nut. The concept of ideal type (pure type) is particularly difficult to crack. This essay provides an answer to the question what is ideal type and what purpose it serves in Weber's comprehensive sociology. Following my interpretation of Weber’s mind, based on his methodological texts, I present my version of who Weber is. I also present how Weber would have addressed a particular social topic, if he had been among us, following his proper methodological advises. To do so, I first describe these advises in chronological order, and then, apply them to a particular topic.

Nosologomania: DSM & Karl Jaspers' Critique of Kraepelin

Emil Kraepelin's nosology has been reinvented, for better or worse. In the United States, the rise of the neo-Kraepelinian nosology of DSM-III resuscitated Kraepelin's work but also differed from many of his ideas, especially his overtly biological ontology. This neo-Kraepelinian system has led to concerns regarding overdiagnosis of psychiatric syndromes ("nosologomania") and perhaps scientifically ill-founded psychopharmacological treatment for presumed neo-Kraepelinian syndromes. In the early 20th century, Karl Jaspers provided unique insights into Kraepelin's work, and Jaspers even proposed an alternate nosology which, though influenced by Kraepelin, also introduced the concept of ideal types. Jaspers' critique of Kraepelin may help us reformulate our current neo-Kraepelinian nosology for the better.

Does the Democratization of Polities Entail the Democratization of Citizenship Education? A Theoretical Framework for Researching the Democratic Quality of Citizenship Education in Transformation Countries and Elsewhere

In the last 30 years, the process of institutional democratization prevailing in Western Europe since at least the end of World War II has spread to Southwestern, Southeastern and Eastern European countries. To what extent has this democratic transformation of polities been followed by a genuinely democratic transfor-mation of citizenship education in these countries? Unfortunately, recent research on citizenship education does not provide a satisfactory answer, because it has mainly focused on institutional and organizational issues. Nothing was said about the question how well-sounding, but quite general – and therefore ambigu-ous – officially proclaimed goals and contents of citizenship education in transformation countries are educa-tionally construed in textbooks and the teaching practice. However, there are quite a few empirical examples and indications which clearly show that citizenship education in transformation countries (and elsewhere) shows a number of facets which are hardly in line with core democratic values. Therefore, this article pro-poses a theoretical framework for systematically researching the democratic quality of citizenship education in transformation countries (and elsewhere). With recourse to Max Weber`s analytical concept of ideal-types, this framework differentiates between a democratic and a non-democratic ideal-type of citizenship education (as outer points of a continuum between them). These two ideal-types of citizenship education are character-ized by structurally different ways of thinking about 1) human rights, 2) international relations, 3) current insti-tutions and norms, 4) authoritarian political structures and human rights violations in the history of the coun-try, and 5) differences in society.