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Given the lines of connection sociology draws between actions and norms, it is not surprising that, with few exceptions, improvisation – the ability to cope with the unforeseen – has not been part of the sociological lexicon. The present paper argues that improvisation is crucial not only in the aesthetic field but in all situations of agency in coaction. Extending the micro-sociological approach, I shed light on the improvisational work that, more than norms or reasons, allows interactions to be accomplished. As a category of social theory, improvisation enables us to overcome the dominating normative paradigms, with their emphasis on stability and control (Garfinkel called it the «fallacy of imposed order»), and to reconceptualize the nature of human agency.

Given the lines of connection sociology draws between actions and norms, it is not surprising that, with few exceptions, improvisation - the ability to cope with the unforeseen - has not been part of the sociological lexicon. The present paper argues that improvisation is crucial not only in the aesthetic field but in all situations of agency in coaction. Extending the micro-sociological approach, I shed light on the improvisational work that, more than norms or reasons, allows interactions to be accomplished. As a category of social theory, improvisation enables us to overcome the dominating normative paradigms, with their emphasis on stability and control (Garfinkel called it the «fallacy of imposed order»), and to reconceptualize the nature of human agency. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]