What is theory? : answers from the social and cultural sciences / Hervé Corvellec (ed.).

Format:

Book

Contributor:

Corvellec, Hervé.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Social sciences.

Social sciences--Philosophy.

Physical Description:

333 pages ; 21 cm

Place of Publication:

Stockholm : Copenhagen Business School Press, [2013]

Summary:

There is no consensus in the social and cultural sciences on what theory is, and that is as it should be; a consensus would be outright dangerous for the diversity of intellectual life. The perspectives represented in What is theory? show that theory can be understood as plot, hope, beholding, doxa, heritage, a stalemate, disappointment, personal matter, or family concept. But even if theory can be defined in many ways, it cannot be defined in any one way. Beyond disciplinary and epistemological differences, theory has the steadfast characteristic of being what academics, including students, work with. More than an epistemological matter, the book's title question is an entry into the dynamics of academic practice. The volume consists of a multidisciplinary collection of essays that are tied together by a common effort to tell what theory is. These essays are also paired as dialogues between senior and junior researchers from the same or allied disciplines to add a trans-generational dimension to the book's multidisciplinary approach. What is theory? has been designed for third year undergraduate students, master's degree students, and postgraduates in the social sciences and the humanities, but it should be of interest to anyone who has felt that the question of what theory is can be more easily asked than answered. Book jacket.

Contents:

Chapter 1 Why ask what theory is? / Hervé Corvellec Corvellec, Hervé 9

1 Why theory? 11

2 A multidisciplinary and trans-generational approach 12

3 Why this book? 14

4 Eight pairs of chapters and an afterword 15

5 Theorizing as practice 21

Chapter 2 Beholding, explaining, and predicting-The history of the concept of theory / Sven Eric Liedman Liedman, Sven Eric 25

1 Theory as beholding 27

2 Theory, practice, and technique 29

3 The dream of the exact theory 35

4 The human sciences and theory 41

Chapter 3 History of ideas at the end of Western dominance / Edda Manga Manga, Edda 48

1 The grand narrative 50

2 Poststructuralism as a threat 52

3 Poststructuralism and the postcolonial situation 54

4 De-centering perspectives 55

5 Provincializing the history of ideas 59

Concluding remarks 63

Chapter 4 Looking at theory in theory of science / Margareta Hallberg Hallberg, Margareta 65

1 What is theory within philosophy of science? 67

2 What is theory outside of philosophy of science? 72

3 What is theory in theory of science? 74

4 Philosophy and theory of science and why they are not one and the same 75

5 The concept of science 79

6 The rote of theory in social studies of science 80

Concluding remarks 85

Chapter 5 Theory has no Big Others in Science and Technology Studies (STS) / Tereza Stöckelová Stöckelová, Tereza 88

1 Theory (as explanation) and description 89

2 Theory (as thinking) and data 91

3 Theory (as disinterestedness) and practice 93

4 Decentering theory 95

Chapter 6 What social science theory is and what it is not / Barbara Czarniawska Czarniawska, Barbara 99

1 Some historical precedents 99

2 Lessons from the past: what theory is, and what it should and could be 106

3 Theory as plot 107

4 Theorizing: constructing the plot 117

Chapter 7 Theory as hope / Tommy Jensen Jensen, Tommy 119

1 Antiessentialism and theory 119

2 Conversation and engagement 122

Chapter 8 Theory crisis and the necessity of theory The dilemmas of sociology / Elena Esposito Esposito, Elena 130

1 The discovery of social reference 130

2 Relativity and reflexivity: when theory speaks of itself 133

3 Contingency without arbitrariness 136

4 What sociology could do 138

5 How sociology works 144

Chapter 9 Theory as disappointment-The dilemmas of history in particular, and on the end of history in general / Sara Edenheim Edenheim, Sara 147

1 History and theory 150

2 The complacent rhetoric of reflexivity 152

3 Theories of contingency and ethics 157

Chapter 10 Theory - A personal matter / Billy Ehn Ehn, Billy, Orvar Lofgren Lofgren, Orvar 159

1 Life with or without theory 160

2 Dying theories 161

3 ...and emerging new ones 163

4 An "eclectic" tradition 165

5 Theory first, or 168

6 Passions for theory 171

7 Emotional challenges 176

8 Disciplines, generations, and micro-climates 178

Concluding remarks 179

Chapter 11 Theory - A professional matter / Fredrik Schoug Schoug, Fredrik 181

1 Personal matters and employability 181

2 Do lawyers and engineers need theory? 184

3 The study of theory from a pedagogical point of view 188

Chapter 12 Economic theory - A critical realist perspective / Lars Pålsson Syll Syll, Lars Pålsson 193

1 What should we demand of economic models? 196

2 Two paradigmatic examples 203

3 Why neoclassical economic theory is a dead-end 211

Concluding remarks 217

Chapter 13 For theoretical pluralism in economic theory / Fredrik Hansen Hansen, Fredrik 221

1 Nuancing Pålsson Syll's description of the state of theory in today's economics 222

2 What kind of realism? 225

3 Let's get pluralistic! 228

Chapter 14 What is theory in political science? / Morten Ougaard Ougaard, Morten 231

1 Political theory versus political research 232

2 Political theory 234

3 How sharp a distinction? 235

4 Theory and theories in political research 236

By way of conclusion: theory as a family concept 247

Chapter 15 For a new vocabulary of theory in political science / Martin Hall Hall, Martin 250

1 Language 1: the Hollis and Smith tradition 251

2 Language 2: the Jackson reply 254

In lieu of a conclusion 256

Chapter 16 Theorizing the earth / Richard Ek Ek, Richard, Mekonnen Tesfahuney Tesfahuney, Mekonnen 258

1 Imperative to theory 261

2 Theoretical/methodological Eurocentrism 264

3 Positivism, the revolution that never was, and human geography 267

4 The spatial turn 273

5 Down the ontic hole 276

6 Quo Vadis theory? 281

Chapter 17 The spatial turn within social and cultural studies - Spatial theory as an interdisciplinary praxis / Louise Fabian Fabian, Louise 283

1 Heralding the spatial turn in humanities and social sciences 285

2 A genealogy of the spatial turn 286

3 Critical geography 290

4 The phenomenological theory of place 291

5 The analysis of spatial practice 293

6 When is a turn a turn? 295

7 The methods and meta-theoretical insights nurtured by the spatial turn 296

Chapter 18 (Postface). Walk the line / Mats Rosengren Rosengren, Mats 299.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

8763002507

9788763002509

OCLC:

833047178