The Theory Primer: A Sociological Guide

Front Cover
Rowman & Littlefield, 2006 - 343 pages
This book is a classical theory text aimed at teaching theorizing as a skill. After analyzing the process of theorizing into a set of simple steps, it shows how the theories of Marx, Weber, Durkheim, and Mead were constructed following these steps. It links their theories with contemporary ones in the same research tradition and shows how these traditions exemplify fundamental paradigms that can guide the student's own theorizing.

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Contents

Theories and Theorizing
1
A Definition of Theory
2
Theory and Explanation
4
Explication
5
Causal Accounting
6
Theorizing as a Process
8
Developing a Problem
9
Creating a Theory
15
The Grounds of Bureaucratic Authority
159
The Grounds of Traditional Authority
160
The Grounds of Charismatic Authority
161
Charismatic Authority and the Sociology of Charisma
164
The Social Ecology of Bureaucracies
169
Rationalization and Historical Change
172
The Types of Social Action
173
Stratification and Conflict
179

Evaluating the Theory
20
Theories and Paradigms
35
Conclusion
36
Notes
38
The Context of Classical Theory
41
Karl Marx and Capitalism
47
Capitalism as a Problem
48
Capitalism Observed
50
The Workers Condition Conceptualized as a Variable
51
Alienation
52
Exploitation
56
An Empirical Generalization
59
Creating a Theory to Explain the Change
60
Working Conditions and Concentration of Power
61
Mechanisms of Change
66
Evaluating Marxs Theory
69
Predicting the Transition from Capitalism to Communism
70
The Mechanism of Transition
73
Conclusion
79
The Dialectic
80
Notes
84
Historical Materialism and Its Legacy
87
The Legacy of Marx
95
The Conflict Paradigm
96
A Theory of Gender Relations
98
The Paradigm of Cultural Materialism
101
Conclusion
106
Notes
107
Max Weber and Capitalism
111
Theoretical Modesty and Use of Analytic Typologies
112
Webers Protestant Ethic Account of Capitalism
114
An Empirical Generalization
115
Economic Traditionalism versus the Spirit of Capitalism
116
The Spirit of Capitalism
118
Background Information
120
Calling Predestination and Worldly Asceticism
122
Luthers Idea of Calling
124
Calvin and Predestination
125
Calvinism and Worldly Asceticism
126
Evaluating the Protestant Ethic Thesis
135
Weber and Historical Idealism
138
Weber and Verstehen
140
Conclusion
142
Max Weber and Analytic Typologies
147
What Is an Analytic Typology?
148
What Makes for a Good Typology?
151
Usefulness
153
Webers Typologies
154
Authority
156
Conclusion
183
Mutual Exclusivity
184
Measuring Rationalization
185
Notes
188
Emile Durkheim on the Division of Labor and Suicide
193
The Division of Labor
194
The Forms of Solidarity
195
Modes of Punishment Vary with Forms of Solidarity
199
Evaluating Durkheims Theory
201
Durkheim on Suicide
204
Setting Up the Problem
205
From Empirical Generalizations to a Theory
206
Evaluating Durkheims Theory of Suicide
214
Measuring and Calibrating Integration and Regulation
215
Robustness and Dubious Ad Hoc Assumptions
217
Implications Unsupported by Data
218
Social Integration and Mortality
221
Conclusion
223
Notes
224
Emile Durkheim and Functionalism
229
Denning the Problem
231
Explaining Crime
234
Fraud and Innovation in Science
236
Functionalism as a Paradigm
240
Functional Explanations of Stratification and Poverty
246
Herbert Cans on Poverty
249
Concluding Remarks on Functionalism
253
The Problem of Religion
254
Explaining Religion
256
Evaluating Durkheims Explanation
258
On Structuralism
261
Conclusion
263
Notes
264
G H Mead and Symbolic Interaction
269
The Formation of the Self
271
The Phases of the Self
273
Erving Goffman and Symbolic Interaction
277
Explaining the Rules of Interaction
278
Social Processes in Total Institutions
283
Structural Models
285
The Affect Control Subparadigm
290
Conclusion
294
Notes
295
Postscript
299
Glossary
305
Bibliography
323
Index
333
About the Author
337
Copyright

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About the author (2006)

Mark A. Schneider is associate professor of sociology at Southern Illinois University-Carbondale.

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