A history and theory of the social sciences : not all that is solid melts into air / Peter Wagner.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Wagner, Peter, 1956 June 7-

Series:

Theory, culture & society (Unnumbered)

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social sciences--History.

Social sciences.

History.

Social sciences--Philosophy.

Physical Description:

viii, 200 pages ; 24 cm.

Other Title:

Not all that is solid melts into air

Place of Publication:

London, England ; Thousand Oaks, Calif. : SAGE, 2001.

Summary:

Divided into two parts, this book examines the train of social theory from the 19th century, through to the organization of modernity', in relation to ideas of social planning, and as contributors to the rationalistic revolution' of the golden age' of capitalism in the 1950s and 60s. Part two examines key concepts in the social sciences. It begins with some of the broadest concepts used by social scientists: choice, decision, action and institution and moves on to examine the collectivist alternative': the concepts of society, culture and polity, which are often dismissed as untenable by postmodernists today. This is a major contribution to contemporary social theory and provides a host of essential insights into the task of social science today.

Notes:

Includes index.

ISBN:

0761965696

OCLC:

45991432