Integralism Altruism And Reconstruction

Integralism, Altruism and Reconstruction: Essays in Honor of Pitirim A. Sorokin presenta el sociòleg de nacionalitat russa Pitirim A. Sorokin (1889-1968) des de la perspectiva del pensament sociològic contemporani. Els nou autors que participen en aquest llibre, originaris de diverses universitats nord-americanes i espanyoles, reflexionen sobre els períodes brillants i obscurs de la trajectòria acadèmica de Sorokin. Després d'haver experimentat una vida política molt activa a Rússia, Sorokin emigrà als Estats Units durant els anys 30, on esdevingué una figura acadèmica de gran prestigi. Arribà a ser director del departament de sociologia de la Universitat de Harvard de 1930 a 1944, fundà el Harvard Research Center in Creative Altruism el 1949 i fou nominat com a president de la American Sociological Association el 1964. Ara bé, malgrat la seua distingida i prolífica carrera acadèmica, moltes de les seues obres han estat ignorades en gran manera per la sociologia convencional. Aquest llibre descriu les raons per les quals el destí de Sorokin prengué una direcció tan desafortunada i posa en relleu l'existència avui mateix d'un creixent grup d'acadèmics interessats a revitalitzar aquest important teòric i autor.

The study of altruism, morality, and social solidarity is an emerging field of scholarship and research in sociology. This handbook will function as a foundational source for this subject matter and field, and as an impetus to its further development.

Public sociology—an approach to sociology that aims to communicate with and actively engage wider audiences—has been one of the most widely discussed topics in the discipline in recent years. The Handbook of Public Sociology presents a comprehensive look at every facet of public sociology in theory and practice. It pays particular attention to how public sociology can complement more traditional types of sociological practice to advance both the analytical power of the discipline and its ability to benefit society. The volume features contributions from a stellar list of authors, including several past presidents of the American Sociological Association such as Michael Burawoy, a leading proponent of public sociology. The first two sections of the Handbook of Public Sociology look at public sociology in relation to the other three types of practice—professional, policy, and critical—with an emphasis on integrating the four types into a holistic model of theory and practice. Subsequent sections focus on issues like teaching public sociology at various levels, case studies in the application of public sociology, and the role of public sociology in special fields in the discipline. The concluding chapter by Michael Burawoy, a past president of the American Sociological Association and a leading proponent of public sociology, addresses current debates surrounding public sociology and presents a constructive vision for the future that embraces and improves upon all four types of sociology. The Handbook of Public Sociology with its examination not only of public sociology but also of how it can enhance and complement other types of practice, transcends differences in the field and will appeal to a wide range of academics, students, and practitioners.

Pitirim A. Sorokin is a controversial figure in the history of sociology, of which he remains one of the masters. Those who read Sorokin today must, however, frame the historical reality experienced by the scholar (his Russian and American experiences) because the evolution of his thought had several phases that correspond to his personal, family, and professional lives (he founded and directed the Department of Sociology at Harvard University for many years). This Russian-American sociologist argued that socio-cultural phenomena must be studied following their dynamism (in space and time) since the constituent elements (personality, society, and culture) are constantly changing and cannot be studied separately. Reviving his thought is not a form of celebration but a moment to reflect on how some sociology classics still have their relevance and how, all too often, they are forgotten. This is why this book takes up his main conceptualizations by anchoring them to contemporary society, whose transformations are often difficult to read, and above all to highlight how the role of sociology as a science has, in part, lost sight of its ontological foundation as a service to humanity or public service. The theoretical paths taken by Sorokin range from Social and Cultural Dynamics to Social Mobility and to many other topics, such as man and society in calamities or love and altruism - one of Sorokin's latest topics. All these topics can revive the idea of a sociology that holds together the micro, meso, and macro dimensions and allows us to predict changes in society.

Offering a deep look into the moral uncertainty in the contemporary social sciences and American society, this book explores an in-depth solution. This solution, as articulated by Pitirim A. Sorokin in the 20th century, is the theory of Integralism; a perspective dating back to Plato, Aristotle and Aquinas. Sorokin initially applied Integralism by locating and analyzing three dominant super socio-cultural systems over 2500 years of Graeco-Roman and Western history. Each super system was unified by a central philosophical principle based either on materialism (the senses), or the rational, or the supersensory/super-rational. A super system declines when it reaches the limits of its potential to achieve its true reality and value, to be replaced by another super system. Sorokin described a trendless rotation of the three super socio-cultural systems. The current dominant super socio-cultural system in the West is a materialist version emphasizing science and technology with little thought given to supersensory/super-rational reality. Sorokin asserted contemporary materialist culture was in a state of collapse due to the breakup of its moral values. As a consequence he saw a struggle for power occurring between egoistic individuals and groups often resulting in revolutions, wars and inter-human strife. In response to the one sided materialist view of reality the goal of Integralism is to unify all three forms of reality into an integral culture that harmoniously balances materialist and supersensory/super-rational orientations. A solution to the contemporary moral confusion, Sorokin argued, can be found in the application of supra-conscious intuition that would enable a human to know what is eternal in the ordinary and reach the transcendent; an experience not accessible to the senses or the rational intellect alone. The supra-conscious is the source for reaching the supreme moral value; creative unselfish altruism which can be shared by all cultures to produce peace and harmony in the world.

The origins of organizing are conventionally seen as emerging from the historiographical works of Western social scientists in the early 20th century. Here, the authors address a gap in current literature by exploring previously unrecognized or marginalized global origins in both modern and ancient history.

This volume brings together some of the biggest names in the field of sociology to celebrate the work of Pitirim A. Sorokin, professor and founder of the department of sociology at Harvard University. Sorokin, a past president of the American Sociological Association, was a pioneer in many fields of research, including sociological theory, social philosophy, methodology, and sociology of science, law, art, and knowledge. Edward A. Tiryakian's updated introduction examines major factors, inside and outside sociology, that have led to new appreciation of Sorokin's contributions and scholarship, and demonstrates their continued relevance. This new edition also includes an updated bibliography of works by and about Sorokin.The volume includes Arthur K. Davis, who describes Sorokin's importance as a teacher in the Socratic tradition. Talcott Parsons examines internal differentiation in Christianity in its historical Western development. Thomas O'Dea deals with the institutionalization of religious values. Walter Firey examines how actors relate their conception of a distant future to their present behavior. Florence Kluckhohn focuses upon the problem of cultural variations within a social system. Robert K. Merton and Elinor Barber examine the sociological aspect of ambivalence. Bernard Barber considers the American business's efforts to institutionalize professionalism.Other contributors include Charles P. Loomis, Wilbert E. Moore, Georges Gurvitch, Marion J. Levy, Jr., Nicholas S. Timasheff, Carle Zimmerman, and Logan Wilson. This volume is an essential collection of essays concerning the work of one of the most prominent thinkers in twentieth-century sociology.

This volume brings together some of the biggest names in the field of sociology to celebrate the work of Pitirim A. Sorokin, professor and founder of the department of sociology at Harvard University. Sorokin, a past president of the American Sociological Association, was a pioneer in many fields of research, including sociological theory, social philosophy, methodology, and sociology of science, law, art, and knowledge. Edward A. Tiryakian's updated introduction examines major factors, inside and outside sociology, that have led to new appreciation of Sorokin's contributions and scholarship, and demonstrates their continued relevance. This new edition also includes an updated bibliography of works by and about Sorokin.The volume includes Arthur K. Davis, who describes Sorokin's importance as a teacher in the Socratic tradition. Talcott Parsons examines internal differentiation in Christianity in its historical Western development. Thomas O'Dea deals with the institutionalization of religious values. Walter Firey examines how actors relate their conception of a distant future to their present behavior. Florence Kluckhohn focuses upon the problem of cultural variations within a social system. Robert K. Merton and Elinor Barber examine the sociological aspect of ambivalence. Bernard Barber considers the American business's efforts to institutionalize professionalism.Other contributors include Charles P. Loomis, Wilbert E. Moore, Georges Gurvitch, Marion J. Levy, Jr., Nicholas S. Timasheff, Carle Zimmerman, and Logan Wilson. This volume is an essential collection of essays concerning the work of one of the most prominent thinkers in twentieth-century sociology.