Sociological Definition Research Articles

Problem definisanja i operacionalizacije pojma socijalna isključenost

Social exclusion appears as one of the main problems of modern societies. It is a process in which individuals or groups exclude themselves from opportunities, possibilities and rights arising from political, economic and social spheres, as guaranteed by the organization of a particular society. One of the basic problems that sociologists and other researchers encounter is obviously different, often incomplete definition of social exclusion, which in many ways makes research difficult. For this reason, the problem of defining and operationalising of the notion of social exclusion is a very important step in investigating this phenomenon. There is a very small number of attempts to operationalise this term in literature, and there is often no difference between the concepts of social exclusion and poverty, since the concept of social exclusion is often used as a substitute for the notion of poverty. Within this paper, the problem of defining social exclusion, basic approaches, dimensions and its operationalisation will be discussed. The subject of this research is an analysis of the social exclusion concept. The aim of the paper is to use the method of definition of the term through creation of a precise and complete primarily sociological definition of the social exclusion concept and through analysis of its dimensions, to operationalise this notion and find indicators relevant to this research.

From Documentary Meaning to Documentary Method: A Preliminary Comment on the Third Chapter of Harold Garfinkel’s Studies in Ethnomethodology

The text deals with Harold Garfinkels theorizing of what Karl Mannheim called ‘documentary meaning’, and established as a foundation of all historical disciplines, and what Garfinkel calls the ‘documentary method’ of lay and professional sociological reasoning. The commentary tries to establish the systematical position of the chapter in Garfinkel’s ‘Studies in Ethnomethodology’, and, indeed, in Garfinkel’s social theory at the time of publication. This position involves, and redefines, Weber’s definition of sociology, Schutz’s sociology of knowledge and especially, the very idea of a common stock of. typifications, and the discovery of ‘historical time’, or ‘Geschichtlichkeit’ in each micro-sequential interaction. Some consequences are drawn, or sketched, for ethnomethodology as a steady thorn in the side of sociology, and vice versa: for lay and professional sociology as an equally steady thorn in the midst of ethnomethodology.

Economy and Society: A New Translation by Max Weber Keith Tribe (review)

Book Reviews 275© Max Weber Studies 2019. the use of which can therefore serve as a basis for asserting intellectual dependence. Wagner’s approach is decidedly original; but many readers will not, I fear, find in the introduction and other editorial material sufficient treatment of what they will, quite reasonably, be looking for. This book virtually closes the majestic procession of volumes that constitutes the Max Weber Gesamtausgabe. We should be deeply thankful for the Gesamtausgabe, and properly mindful of the immense efforts which have gone into it over many years. And however one may feel about Wagner’s approach in the book under review, it is a timely reminder that we can never take our classics for given, even when they come in definitive editions. Hans Henrik Bruun University of Copenhagen Max Weber, Economy and Society: A New Translation, ed. and trans. Keith Tribe (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 2019), xi + 504pp. (pbk). ISBN 978-0-67491-654-8. $24.95. Marianne Weber has a lot to answer for. After her husband’s death in 1920, she created Max’s magnum opus, Wirtschaft und Gesellschaft, by combining his recently completed work on sociological categories with manuscripts from before 1914 into a single book, first published in 1922 and then in an expanded two-volume version in 1925. With mixed feelings, this reviewer recalls taking the university library copy of one of those editions, in large format with oddly small type, home one summer, and mistakenly reading it by beginning at the beginning, then turning the pages. Weber’s assurance that he had revised a previously published article (‘Ueber einige Kategorien der verstehenden Soziologie’ [1913]) to make it as easy to understand as possible only enhanced the intimidating effect, but the experience told a naïve undergraduate that if this was sociology, surely it was a very serious field. After the 1920s, the work had a complicated publication history: Johannes Winckelmann edited new post-war versions in slightly different formats, and Talcott Parsons and others produced partial English translations, later assembled and revised by Guenther Roth and Claus Wittich as Economy and Society (ES), still sitting halfread on many office bookshelves. A book Max Weber did not complete became his major claim to international scholarly fame. That fame helped to justify the remarkable Max Weber Gesamtausgabe—whose 276 Max Weber Studies© Max Weber Studies 2019. editors decided ruthlessly to undo Marianne’s effort by decomposing the ‘book’ into six constituent parts. Keith Tribe has now retranslated one of those parts, the Erster Teil of the 1920s editions, which Weber himself had been preparing for separate publication. As the core of Weber’s ‘sociology’—scare quotes used advisedly— it has long drawn special attention. Here, Weber proposes his definitions of social action and sociology, his approach to understanding and explanation, his categories of economic action, his types of Herrschaft, and his distinction between class and Stand. In several ways, this new translation is a major contribution to scholarship. For one thing, Tribe offers much more than a translation. In his introduction, he nicely untangles the tangled history of the work (with a nod to MWG editor Edith Hanke), recounting Friedrich Hayek’s role in the background of the first translation and concluding with a list of German and English versions that by itself covers nearly two pages. Drawing on his expertise in German economic discourse, he masterfully places Weber’s preoccupations in historical context; if you had neglected to follow up on Weber’s references to Friedrich Gottl in the Preamble or G.F. Knapp in chapter 2, Tribe will tell you what you missed. An experienced translator, he explains in exemplary fashion his overall approach and his specific choices, in his introduction, a series of footnotes, and a substantial appendix on key terms. As an additional aid to readers, Tribe introduces each chapter with an overview of its content and finishes the volume as a whole with another appendix containing just the definitional paragraphs of chapter 1. That appendix also supports one of Tribe’s main points by illustrating the coherence of Weber’s text that, he claims, previous English translations had obscured. Tribe conveys that ‘systematic didactic structure’ (8...

Sociología urbana: evolución y renacimiento

En este texto tratamos de definir la sociología urbana, sus orígenes, su mirada hacia la ciudad como objeto de estudio y cómo la define, cómo la estudia, a partir de qué temas. Se trata de ver la importancia de esta disciplina para estudiar la ciudad. La sociología urbana o de lo urbano ofrece una mirada complementaria a otras disciplinas que también se interesan por el fenómeno urbano; va mucho más allá del aspecto físico-espacial, pues la definición de ciudad para los sociólogos urbanos se encuentra precisamente en la intersección entre lo social y lo espacial. Con el apoyo de contribuciones de especialistas del área, se presenta lo que podría ser una agenda de trabajo, sus temas privilegiados de investigación y su forma de acercarse para estudiarla. El campo es inmenso y complejo, ya que consta de una gran variedad de puntos de vista a través de épocas, continentes y dentro de la misma disciplina.

INTERPRETATION OF THE MOST IMPORTANT NOTIONS OF SOCIAL INEQUALITIES OVERT IN THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM

Present paper focuses on the social inequalities that are mainly manifested in the educational system. Therefore, I aim at reflecting on the sociological definitions that codify the subject in a theoretical context. The theoretical background of the study comprises the subsequent notions: equality and equity, inclusive society and education, bicultural socialization, and the relation between social mobility and school.

Отношение к общественному благу и социальная активность жителей городских и сельских поселений

The paper presents the results of two sociological studies on local governance and the quality of life in metropolitan and rural settlements. The authors perform a comparative analysis of the parts of the questionnaire on respondents’ attitudes towards public good activities. There were significant differences in the opinion of respondents in the polls in 2014 and 2018. Most respondents (66%) expressed a voluntary desire to propose and implement a project for the public good in a 2014 survey. A 2018 poll showed that the number of respondents who wanted to do this decreased to 27%. The authors associate these changes with the social status and field of activity of the respondents, the conditions for conducting surveys, the deteriorating financial situation and well-being of the respondents and their families. It has become possible to systematize the scope of projects focused on public goods and identify the constraints on the active involvement of respondents and local residents in project implementation while providing a content analysis of the 2014 survey explanations made by respondents. The sociological definition of public goods and M. Olson’s theory of collective inaction, the concept of elite capture of resources and the concept of privatism are the theoretical basis for the conclusions made by the authors about the lack of interest of the locals in the projects under consideration. The authors conclude that the attitude of the majority of respondents and local residents to public good activities has become rational. The reluctance to be engaged in it is caused by a lack of support and solidarity of the local community and a lack of common interests among neighbors. In this case, the idea of what is a public good and the desire to contribute to its multiplication become diluted. People demonstrate the dominant desire to augment private and, to a lesser extent, club goods that implies the improvement to the local space of the respondents’ residence.

On the use of definitions in sociology

Definitions may seem marginal to the sociological enterprise but can be very useful; however, they can also lead to serious errors. Examples of both are given in this article. Different types of definitions are presented, and their relevance for sociology is highlighted. A stipulative definition, for example, is very useful in sociology, as opposed to lexical and ostensive definitions. The definition of a concept that is used in a sociological analysis has to be sociological in nature, and the concept cannot have the same meaning as it has in everyday language. Additional items to bear in mind when a definition is put together are discussed, including some tips on how to proceed that come from political science (Sartori, Collier, Goertz). A definition can also be very helpful in the research process itself by indicating which are the important aspects of some phenomenon to focus on (Weber, Blumer). On the negative side, a term that is not properly defined may lead to misunderstandings as well as to a false sense of agreement with other uses of the term.

Leibniz and Bourdieu

P. Bourdieu borrows a number of ideas and conceptions of G.-V. Leibniz and uses them in his theory of the social space in systematic fashion. The Leibnizean theories of the relation physical space, of the real definition, of the pre-established harmony become the interrelated reflective means of empirical sociology. This article attempts to interpret epistemic significance of the fact that the conceptions of Leibniz have appeared to be fruitful in sociology of Bourdieu. Sociological real definition defines a social fact not only by its distinctive features but first of all by its genesis, not in its static “what” but in historic “why”. In this perspective the real definition expresses the subject of sociological study and its method in the same time. And it is not the beginning of scientific research but its complicated result, to construct the real definition of a social fact means already to explain it. The real definition of the social space is neither direct reflection of social structures nor such purely formal operations of indirect mathematic construction of the social space which could be jettisoned after achievement of the result. The construction of the real definition is included in its result. The objectivity of this definition consists not in achieving the reality of “the things themselves” but in expressing genesis of purely transcendent, not accessible to simple reflection social relations in gradual construction of a system of purely immanent, sensual signs, in numeric dependencies and terms.

SOCIOLOGICAL INDICATORS OF А SOCIAL EVENT AS FACTOR OF THE TRANSFORMATIONAL DEVELOPMENT OF SOCIETY

The scientific article presents sociological indicators that allow, first, to reveal the laws of the genesis, existence and influence of a social event on sociodynamics and the direction of social development, and secondly, to demark the social event among other phenomena of social reality. Three interrelated groups of its objective and subjective sociological indicators are distinguished on the basis of the sociological definition of the social event: genesis and determination; Social being; Social consequences. Sociological indicators of genesis and determination reflect the sources of a social event: the prerequisites, factors and reasons that cause the emergence of a social event. Sociological indicators of social life record the manifestation of the essential properties of a social event, as well as the existence in the social reality of the main structural components of a social event. Sociological indicators of the consequences of the influence of a social event on social development record changes in the leading structures and processes of society: in social institutions, in social relations, in the way of life and worldview of social actors. These indicators, in their unity and interrelationship, constitute an integral set of social markers that allow, at an empirical level, to carry out a sociological measurement of the influence of a social event on the socio-dynamics of society and the emergence of a qualitatively new social reality.

Definire la sociologia del diritto: riflessioni e spunti

This paper reflects on the definition of sociology of law proposed by Renato Treves in two of his most important works - Introduzione alla sociologia del diritto of 1977 and Sociologia del diritto. Origini, ricerche, problemi of 1987-1988 - by analysing its meaning and effects, in light of other definitions of sociology of law. The author then proposes his own view on how to define this study field.

Structural effects on the climatic architecture

climatic architecture, like Islamic architecture and any other traditional architecture, is related to worldview. Traditional Iranian architecture, in a particular way, is an allegory of the universe of existence and human, in its cosmic form. Islamic civilization is a prominent example of a traditional civilization, in which there is the presence of certain extreme principles that shadow the civilization over time and space. Islamic art is nothing more than the reflection of soul in this mundane world. From this perspective, it seems that the definition of sociologists from religious art and Islamic art is different from the sociological definition of art in general [1]. The relationship between architecture and environmental features is important not only for native architects, but also for non-native architects who have grown in a different cultural context. Exploring such an interactive process is full of unique and tricky perceptions, both for non-native architects and for audiences, employers, and analysts. One of the doubts is that in today's world, where the boundaries of countries have lost their credibility in the eyes of architects, and they are always looking for new opportunities in new environments, does this recommendation that the work of architecture should interact with the cultural platform make any sense? The new ideas of globalization, which respect regional attitudes, respond positively to the above question, which ultimately suggests that today, political, social and cultural decisions are made in different parts of the world based on a global-indigenous attitude [2].

Rethinking militarism as ideology: The critique of violence after security

This article argues for a reformulation of the concept of ‘militarism’ as ideology. Although existing sociological approaches have been suspicious of an understanding of militarism as ideology, these criticisms have misrepresented the implications of adopting such a concept. By returning to Althusser’s classic study of ideology, and complementing it with more recent psychoanalytic approaches that emphasize the centrality of desire, the article shows that thinking of militarism as ideology can be complementary to existing sociological studies. Moreover, though, it argues that such a reformulation brings with it key advantages. This is because it foregrounds the task of anti-militarist critique in a way that has hitherto been lacking. To demonstrate this point, the article considers the contribution that a concept of militarism as ideology could make to existing debates in critical security studies. Recent debates in this subfield have examined the ethical ramifications of various understandings of security for the pursuit of violence. However, these arguments have frequently reached a deadlock because of an inadequate understanding of the nature of militarism, one that borrows implicitly from prevalent sociological definitions of the concept. Instead, the article presents an understanding of militarism as ideology as a way out of these difficulties, showing how a critique of violence based on this concept of militarism rather than security can be more effective.

SAFETY OF LIFE AS A SUBJECT OF SOCIOLOGICAL ANALYSIS: CLARIFICATION OF THE CONTENT OF THE CONCEPT

The article analyses the sociological definition of «security» and «safety» presented in the works of domestic and foreign scientists. The possibilities of sociological study of safety of life at meta, macro, meso-, micro-, and nanolevels, and also the connection between the author’s definition of life safety as a component of the embodiment of the safety culture that integrates aspects of behavior safe type as the uncontested model of activity and range of competences (knowledge of the standard rules of conduct in both domestic and in extreme situations, ability to implement actions of self-preservation). Argued the benefits of further development of the system of modern knowledge about security within the sociology of safety as a new branch of theory, which in contrast to the sociology of security, sociology of culture of safety, sevitology and securitology has a number of significant advantages.

La scienza possibile: spiegazione e causalità in sociologia secondo J.H. Goldthorpe

This article reviews John H. Goldthorpe’s latest essay Sociology as a Population Science (2016). After outlining the main theses of the book, two major issues arising from the British sociologist’s proposal are discussed: the concept of causality and the boundaries of sociology. On the former, it is argued that Goldthorpe’s critique of the counterfactual approach in sociology is not convincing, particularly as concerns the issue of voluntarism in human social action. On the issue of the boundaries, it is maintained that Goldthorpe’s definition of sociology as a population science regards more its method rather than its substantive content. This leaves unanswered the question of how sociology can be distinguished from neighboring disciplines such as demography and economics, and what would be the mutual benefits from an alliance with them.

Kultur, Ritual, Tabu - und das Zeichen des Schleiers

Abstract Following the refugee crisis 2015 and the terror attacks by Islamists in Europe, there was a media debate in Germany on the yashmaks of female Muslims in Summer 2016, called the burqa-debate. Taking this debate as a starting point, the chapter discusses rituals and taboos of religious communities in a secular society. Proceeding from a sociological definition of rituals, the paper then attempts to present a terminological framework for the analysis of taboos in intercultural communication and applies the critical discussion of stereotypical assumptions to the current debate in secular countries in Europe on women wearing a burqa in public. The example serves for dealing with the problem of asymmetry in taboo discourse.

Tragic Elements in Josephus

While the discussion on how to classify Josephus’ works within ancient historiography is not new and attention is increasingly being paid to the genre of “tragic history,” more recently there have been attempts to draw parallels between the Jewish War and Greek tragedy (e. g., Chapman and Feldman). Following a sociological definition of “Hellenism,” my paper argues not only that optimal conditions existed in Flavian Rome after 70 C. E. for Josephus to use in his account of the Jewish War certain elements of tragedy and that at least in reference to some aspects a bridge can be constructed from Aeschylus, Euripides and Sophocles to Josephus via the Exagoge of the Jewish tragedian Ezekiel, but also that the Jewish War, among other goals, in many ways pursues the same goal as the influential theory of the Aristotelian Poetics defined for the tragedy and that was already named by Gorgias of Leontini: Pity is to be aroused by scenes that cause horror. In discussing this theory of tragedy, which is controversial in many details and must be brought into relation with other statements by Aristotle on awakening pity, this paper presents arguments for the thesis outlined above, which is based on the observation that Josephus’ horrific representation of suffering is without parallel in the context of Greco-Roman historiography, that he embeds the motif of pity in the work in various ways, and that in the proem he himself problematizes the classification of the account as historiography by justifying the pathetic elements, which ancient historians like Polybius criticized as being only suitable for the tragedy. Of critical importance in all of this is a clear distinction between tragedy and ancient drama on the one hand and pathetic and horrible elements of ancient historiographies and tragedies on the other. With reference to the key text, Ant. 7.127–129, this paper concludes that the generally accepted intentions of the Jewish War—to sketch the Jewish people as inherently noble and for the most part not to blame for the insurrection—can in some respects also to be understood against the background of the theory of tragedy, according to which pity can only result from the staging of a suffering “tragic hero.”

Inside the Ghetto - Using a Table of Contingency and Cladisitic Methods for Definitional Purposes

This article aims at clarifying sociological definitions with the help of an original tool, the logical table of contingency, which has characteristics in common with both the statistical table of contingency and Carroll’s bilateral diagram. The unclear notion of ghetto is taken as a test-case. Successive tables of contingency are applied to various defining properties and various sociohistorical situations. Cladistic methods are then used to make the relationships between all ghetto-like situations explicit.

Konsumpcjonizm — nową religią współczesnego człowieka?

The aim of the article was an attempt to form a reply to the question: is consumerism a new religion of contemporary man, understood in its sociological formulation? After initial terminological considerations (consumerism), sociological definitions of religion were discussed (objective and functional) as well as the symptoms of consumerism allowing it to be treated as a new religion. Objects of religious cult in contemporary consumerist culture were analyzed (trademarks, goods, places, services as well as sensations and pleasures associated with these), ways of celebrating and new feasts, significant persons (idols), religious functions achieved by consumerism, its compulsory dogmas-myths, convictions, as well as the behaviour of consumers (rituals and ceremonies) in the new religion. The whole was concluded with a summary. The analytic-synthetic method was applied in the article. The thesis accepted in the research process: consumerism is a new religion of contemporary man, was refuted.

Reflections on the Notion of Culture in the History of Mathematics: The Example of “Geometrical Equations”

Argument This paper challenges the use of the notion of "culture" to describe a particular organization of mathematical knowledge, shared by a few mathematicians over a short period of time in the second half of the nineteenth century. This knowledge relates to "geometrical equations," objects that proved crucial for the mechanisms of encounters between equation theory, substitution theory, and geometry at that time, although they were not well-defined mathematical objects. The description of the mathematical collective activities linked to "geometrical equations," and especially the technical aspects of these activities, is made on the basis of a sociological definition of "culture." More precisely, after an examination of the social organization of the group of mathematicians, I argue that these activities form an intricate system of patterns, symbols, and values, for which I suggest a characterization as a "cultural system."

Virtual(ly) Athletes: Where eSports Fit Within the Definition of “Sport”

ABSTRACTElectronic sports, cybersports, gaming, competitive computer gaming, and virtual sports are all synonyms for the term eSports. Regardless of the term used, eSports is now becoming more accepted as a sport and gamers are being identified as athletes within society today. eSports has even infiltrated higher education in the form of an intercollegiate athletic sport, as two university athletic departments have made eSports an official varsity sport where scholarships are provided to collegiate eSports athletes. Thus, the intertwining of eSports and university athletics brings into question whether eSports should be considered sport by broader society. This article provides a brief history of eSports, a further developed definition of eSports, and a comparison of eSports to traditional philosophical and sociological definitions of sport. The purpose of this article is to provoke thought on the academically accepted definitions of sport and debate whether eSports should be considered a sport. Attention will be given to the following components of sport: play, organization, competition, skill, physicality, broad following, and institutionalization.