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Problems in Contemporary Sociology: A Focus on Theory and Research

This article discusses the challenges faced in contemporary sociology relating to theory building, problem identification, and the relationship between theory and research. It explores the need for a unifying theory, such as rational choice theory, to address the messiness in the field. Topics covered include the structure of theories, proposition testing, and the importance of problem-solving in sociology.

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Problems in Contemporary Sociology: A Focus on Theory and Research

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  1. PROBLEMS PROBLEMS PROBLEMS ALL DAY LONG WOUT ULTEE ICS THEORY COURSE SEPTEMBER 17, 2008

  2. PROBLEMS PROBLEMS PROBLEMS ALL DAY LONG (the Everly Brothers)

  3. PROBLEMS PROBLEMS PROBLEMS ALL DAY LONG? FOUR YEARS LONG!

  4. PROBLEMS PROBLEMS PROBLEMS ALL DAY LONG? FOUR YEARS LONG! (ICS juniors)

  5. YOU WILL ALREADY KNOW A LOT ABOUT BAD AND GOOD RESEARCH FROM YOUR BACHELOR AND MASTER WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT BAD AND GOOD THEORIES? NOT FROM A SUBSTANTIVE, BUT FROM A FORMAL POINT OF VIEW? AND WHAT DO YOU KNOW ABOUT BAD AND BETTER PROBLEMS?

  6. LINDENBERG: RESEARCH SHOULD BE THEORY-GUIDED AND THE BEST THEORY TO GUIDE RESEARCH IS RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY ULTEE: THEORY-BUILDING SHOULD BE PROBLEM-DRIVEN AND THE FAMILY OF RATIONAL ACTION THEORIES HAS BEEN IN SEARCH OF PROBLEMS WHEREAS SOCIOLOGY HAS A CATALOG OF CLASSICAL QUESTIONS

  7. THE THINGS TO DO TODAY: • MY DIAGNOSIS OF AND MY REMEDY FOR WHAT IS WRONG WITH CONTEMPORARY SOCIOLOGY • OVERARCHING PROBLEMS AND SUBPROBLEMS • FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS OF QUESTIONS • THE SEQUENCE OF RAISING QUESTIONS • THE BACKGROUND OF QUESTIONS • GENERATIONS OF QUESTIONS • CONTRADICTIONS AS THE BEST QUESTIONS

  8. SOCIOLOGY WAS AND IS MESSY ONCE IT WAS HELD THAT SOCIOLOGY IS MESSY BECAUSE IT DOES NOT HAVE THE RIGHT VIEW OF THE RELATION BETWEEN THEORY AND RESEARCH THE SOLUTION, BORROWED FROM PSYCHOLOGY, WAS TO OPERATIONALIZE CONCEPTS RELIABLY AND VALIDLY AND GEAR RESEARCH TOWARDS REPLICATION

  9. HOWEVER, THE LITERATURE ON RELIABILITY AND VALIDITY IS A MESS AND MORE IS GOING ON IN RESEARCH THAN REPLICATION

  10. A THEORY IS MORE THAN A SYSTEM OF CONCEPTS SOCIOLOGY HAS TOO MANY CONCEPTS WITHOUT PROPOSITIONS A THEORY IS A SYSTEM OF PROPOSITIONS AND SOME PROPOSITIONS ARE RICHER IN CONTENT THAN OTHERS WITH THE LESS INFORMATIVE PROPOSITIONS BEING DERIVABLE FORM THE MORE INFORMATIVE PROPOSITIONS

  11. LATER RESEARCH PROVIDES STRONGER TESTS OF PROPOSITIONS TESTS OF PROPOSITIONS ARE MORE SEVERE IF A PROPOSITION IS CONFRONTED WITH AN ALTERNATIVE PROPOSITION THESE ALTERNATIVE PROPOSITIONS MAY IMPLY THAT SEEMINGLY VALID OPERATIONALIZATIONS ARE SOMETIMES OFF THE MARK

  12. THE FIRST OFF THE MARK OPERATIONALIZATION SHOULD STATUS BE MEASURED AS OCCUPATION, AS EDUCATION OR AS INCOME? OLD SOLUTION: MAKE A SCALE OF ALL THREE DIMENSIONS TAKE EACH DIMENSION AS HAVING THREE CATEGORIES: HIGH, MIDDLE, LOW LATER CRITICISM: A PERSON WHO IS HIGH ON INCOME AND LOW ON EDUCATION IS LUMPED IN THE SAME FINAL CATEGORY AS A PERSON WITH MIDDLE EDUCATION AND MIDDLE INCOME YET THE HYPOTHESIS OF STATUS INCONSISTENCY SAYS THAT THE VOTING BEHAVIOUR OF THESE PEOPLE WILL BE QUITE DIFFERENT NEW SOLUTION: KEEP DIMENSIONS SEPARATE SO THAT THE STATUS INCONSISTENCY HYPOTHESIS CAN BE TESTED

  13. THE SECOND OFF THE MARK OPERATIONALIZATION SHOULD CULTURAL PARTICIPATION BE MEASURED AS VISITING PLAYS, OR VISITING CLASSICAL CONCERTS, OR VISITING MUSEUMS? OLD SOLUTION: MAKE A SCALE OF ALL THREE DIMENSIONS LATER QUESTION TO BE ANSWERED AFTER IT WAS FOUND THAT CULTURAL PARTICIPATION IS HIGHER IF A PERSON HAS MORE EDUCATION: DOES RELIGION KEEP PEOPLE FROM CULTURAL PARTICIPATION? HYPOTHESIS: ORTHODOX PROPESTANT PERSONS SHUN PLAYS, BUT LIKE CLASSICAL CONCERTS THE SCALE IS NOT ATTUNED TO TESTING THIS HYPOTHESIS, ALL DIMENSIONS ARE TREATED AS EQUAL SOLUTION: KEEP DIMENSIONS SEPARATE SO THAT THE HYPOTHESIS ABOUT ORTHODOX PROPESTANTS CAN BE TESTED

  14. NOT: R1 R2 R1 R2 BUT: T1 T2 REPLICATION VERSUS SEVERE TESTING

  15. IN ADDITION, SOCIOLOGY IS A MESS BECAUSE THE RELATION BETWEEN ITS THEORIES OFTEN IS UNCLEAR RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY ?? ?? ?? ?? DURKHEIM’S DURKHEIM’S INTEGRATION ANOMIE THEORY THEORY OF SUICIDE OF SUICIDE LOOSE PROPOSITIONS VERSUS DERIVABLE PROPOSITIONS

  16. THE STRUCTURE OF DURKHEIM’S INTEGRATION THEORY OF SUICIDE: LEVELS OF CONTENT (AND GENERALITY) T1 T2 T3 T4 T5 T6 T7 T8 NORMS ON SUICIDE INTEGRATION IN CHURCH, FAMILY RELIGION, MARRIAGE

  17. APART FROM T’S AND R’S, THERE ARE P’S THEORIES ARE THERE TO SOLVE PROBLEMS

  18. THE EXPRESSION THAT THEORY T1 DOES NOT SOLVE PROBLEM P1 CAN MEAN TWO THINGS: * IT MAKES PREDICTIONS THAT ARE OFF THE MARK * IT DOES NOT MAKE ANY PREDICTIONS AT ALL ON A CERTAIN TOPIC THE FIRST CASE INDICATES THAT SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH T1 THE SECOND CRITICISM AMOUNTS TO SAYING THAT IT IS DIFFICULT TO EAT SOUP WITH A KNIFE

  19. BUT SOME THEORIES MAY SOLVE MORE PROBLEMS THAN OTHER THEORIES, AND THE MORE PROBLEMS A THEORY SOLVES, THE BETTER P1 P2 T1 P3 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY SHOULD BE SUCH A UNIFYING THEORY MAKING SOCIOLOGY LESS MESSY

  20. SOCIOLOGY IS MESSY MAINLY BECAUSE ITS CATALOG OF PROBLEMS SEEMS FAR TOO LONG, WITHOUT APPARENT LINKS BETWEEN PROBLEMS HOWEVER, THERE ARE LINKS BETWEEN SOCIOLOGY’S PROBLEMS: FOR INSTANCE, THERE ARE OVERARCHING PROBLEMS AND SUBPROBLEMS

  21. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION

  22. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION HOBBES’ WAR OF ALL AGAINST ALL AND OF RULERS AGAINST RULERS

  23. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION HOBBES’ WAR OF ALL AGAINST ALL AND OF RULERS AGAINST RULERS LOCKE’S REBELLION OF SUBJECTS AGAINST RULERS

  24. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION HOBBES’ WAR OF ALL AGAINST ALL AND OF RULERS AGAINST RULERS LOCKE’S REBELLION OF SUBJECTS AGAINST RULERS BENTHAM’S SWIFT, SEVERE AND CERTAIN SENTENCING

  25. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION HOBBES’ WAR OF ALL AGAINST ALL AND OF RULERS AGAINST RULERS LOCKE’S REBELLION OF SUBJECTS AGAINST RULERS BENTHAM’S SWIFT, SEVERE AND CERTAIN SENTENCES DURKHEIM’S SUICIDE

  26. THE EMERGENCE OF THE PROBLEM OF COHESION COHESION HOBBES’ WAR OF ALL AGAINST ALL AND OF RULERS AGAINST RULERS LOCKE’S REBELLION OF SUBJECTS AGAINST RULERS BENTHAM’S SWIFT, SEVERE AND CERTAIN SENTENCES DURKHEIM’S SUICIDE

  27. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION

  28. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS

  29. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR

  30. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR SUICIDE AS CUTTING THE LAST TIE TO SOCIETY

  31. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR SUICIDE AS CUTTING THE LAST TIE TO SOCIETY PARTAKING IN RELIGIOUS RITES

  32. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR SUICIDE AS CUTTING THE LAST TIE TO SOCIETY PARTAKING IN RELIGIOUS RITES MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE

  33. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ISOLATION ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR SUICIDE AS CUTTING THE LAST TIE TO SOCIETY PARTAKING IN RELIGIOUS RITES MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE

  34. ONCE MORE DURKHEIM ON COHESION COHESION VIOLENCE AGAINST OTHERS ISOLATION ECONOMIC TIES THROUGH THE DIVISION OF LABOUR SUICIDE AS CUTTING THE LAST TIE TO SOCIETY PARTAKING IN RELIGIOUS RITES MARRIAGE AND DIVORCE

  35. PROBLEM STRUCTURES AND THEIR DYNAMICS P7 P1 P6 P2 P3 P4 P5

  36. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS PSYCHOLOGY IS ABOUT HUMAN BEINGS SOCIOLOGY IS ABOUT HUMAN SOCIETIES TRUE, BUT THE STUDY OF SOCIETIES IS NOT A FULL-FLEDGED PROBLEM IT IS AT BEST THE SPECIFICATION OF THE OBJECT TO BE STUDIED

  37. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS SOCIOLOGY STUDIES HOW SOCIETIES FUNCTION THAT DOES NOT SAY MUCH: FUNCTIONING IS NOT YET A VARIABLE FEATURE OF SOCIETIES

  38. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS SOCIOLOGY STUDIES THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH EACH PARTICULAR PENAL LAW OF INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES IS TRESPASSED HERE A VARIABLE FEATURE OF SOCIETIES IS SPECIFIED

  39. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS SOCIOLOGY STUDIES THE FREQUENCY WITH WHICH EACH PARTICULAR PENAL LAW OF INDUSTRIAL SOCIETIES IS TRESPASSED HERE THE SOCIETAL PHENOMENON TE BE EXPLAINED IS SPECIFIED BUT NO HINT IS GIVEN OF THE FACTOR(S) DOING THE EXPLANATION

  40. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS WHY IS IN 2005 THE MURDER RATE IN THE USA AND RUSSIA HIGHER THAN IN THE NETHERLANDS AND SWEDEN? THIS IS AN EXPLANATORY QUESTION, BUT NO CAUSES ARE SPECIFIED

  41. BAD AND BETTER QUESTIONS: FILLING IN ALL THE BLANKS IS IN 2005 THE MURDER RATE IN THE USA AND RUSSIA HIGHER THAN IN THE NETHERLANDS AND SWEDEN, BECAUSE THE FIRST TWO COUNTRIES HAVE LENIENT LAWS ON GUN OWNERSHIP, WHILE THE LAST TWO HAVE RESTRICTIVE LAWS? THIS QUESTION SPECIFIES A POSSIBLE CAUSE

  42. FROM DESCRIPTIVE QUESTIONS BY WAY OF COMPARARIVE QUESTIONS AND TREND QUESTIONS TO DEEPER AND DEEPER EXPLANATORY QUESTIONS DEPTH HAS NO END STOPPING RULES ARE ARBITRARY AND SOCIALLY CONSTRUCTED

  43. HOW HIGH IS IN 2005 THE MURDER RATE IN THE NETHERLANDS? THIS IS A DESCRIPTIVE QUESTION THE DESCRIPTION MAY NOT BE EASY MURDER RATES IN THE STATISTICS OF DEATH CAUSES MAY DIFFER FROM MURDER RATES IN POLICE STATISTICS AND FROM MURDER RATES IN CONVICTION STATISTICS

  44. TO WHAT EXTENT DOES THE DUTCH 2005 MURDER RATE DIFFER FROM THE DUTCH MURDER RATE IN 2000? THIS IS A TREND QUESTION TO WHAT EXTENT DOES THE DUTCH 2005 MURDER RATE DIFFER FROM THE MURDER RATES FOR THAT YEAR IN RUSSIA, SWEDEN AND THE UNITED STATES? THIS IS A COMPARATIVE QUESTION

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