1. Why Public Sociology May Fail.
- Author
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Brady, David
- Subjects
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SOCIOLOGY , *PUBLIC behavior , *CIVIL society , *SOCIOLOGISTS - Abstract
This section comments on the article Public Sociologies: Contradictions, Dilemmas, and Possibilities, by Michael Burawoy, which appeared in the June 2004 issue of the journal Social Forces. To be fair, Burawoy deserves credit for trying to change the discipline's norms on this matter, and if he is successful, his efforts may do something to change the culture of sociology. The major domain in which Burawoy anticipates sociology making a contribution is in civil society. In fact, Burawoy has argued that civil society is indeed the only, terrain for sociologists to organize their public initiatives, and states and markets are of great interest to sociologists but from the standpoint of their connection to civil society. However, he offers little evidence for his claims of the primacy of civil society. Instead, Burawoy just asserts that sociology has a comparative advantage in civil society and that sociology is born with civil society and dies with civil society. The final concern I have with Burawoy's public sociology is that he offers no tangible measures of success. Articulating some tangible measures of success will force sociologists to craft a concrete plan, and any concrete plans should be oriented by those goals.
- Published
- 2004
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