Systems Analysis and Sociological Theory

Bibliographic Data

ID10563003
AuthorsDavid L Sallach (Indiana University, corresponding author)
Year1972
Volume5
Issue3
Pages54-60
Publication date1972-04-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueSociological Focus (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0038-0237 • E-ISSN: 2162-1128
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00380237.1972.10570823
OpenAlexW2062763654
LanguageEN
References cited18

DAVID L. SALLACH Indiana University Historically, models and analogies have been instrumental in the development of sociological theory. Comte, for example, coined the term sociology only because his first choice, social physics, had already been employed by Quetelet. Later, through the work of Spencer, Sumner, Durkheim, and others, the organismic analogy came to occupy a dominant position in early social theory. In social psychology, Lewin's (1951) introduction of terms such as force field, valence, and locomotion reveal his debt to the physical sciences. Most recently, Dewey (1969) has emphasized the growth of the modern theatrical analogy, popularized by Goffman (1959) and Evreinoff (1967), while pointing out its limitations for disciplined analysis. The use of such models is not without value; creative models, em ployed heuristically, frequently provide fresh insight into social processes. Nevertheless, two difficulties characteristically plague model usage. First, there is a tendency for some practitioners to reify the model; second, a model's structured framework is often ill-equipped to provide a systematic analysis of the complexities found in the social world.1 The latter difficulty is exemplified by the inability of functionalism to deal adequately with social change. Despite its theoretical sophistication, modern functionalism continues to employ many of the mechanistic and organismic assumptions of Pareto and Durkheim. The resulting emphasis on system-maintenance and equilibrium has created a static orientation that lends credibility to the criticisms of Lockwood (1956) and Dahrendorf (1958). Efforts to incorporate change into the functional perspective (Canci?n, 1960; Gouldner, 1959), to the extent that they conceptualize change solely as linear progression, seem less than successful

Epistemology · Social science · Sociological research · Sociological theory · Sociology · Anthropology · Evolutionary Game Theory and Cooperation · Opinion Dynamics and Social Influence · Philosophy · Weber, Simmel, Sociological Theory

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