Sociocultural Systems

Macrosociology--the study of large-scale social structures andthe fundamental principles of social organization--was the styleof sociology practiced by the founders of the discipline. Today, thesocial theories of Karl Marx, Max Weber, Émile Durkheim, and HerbertSpencer (among others) are commonly studied as part of the history ofthe field, but, although the macrosociological approach that thesethinkers advocated is still employed, it no longer dominates thediscipline. Instead, sociologists typically adopt a narrower focus,specializing in areas such as social psychology, medicine, religion, orthe study of social stratification. Examining the bigger picture is atask often left to public intellectuals. Sociocultural Systems aims to reinstate macrosciology asthe heart of the discipline by demonstrating that both classical andcontemporary macrosociologists stand upon common ground. Focusing onthe broad issues that concerned the founders, Elwell addressesquestions such as: Historically, what factors accounted for the origin,survival, and evolution of sociocultural systems? Why were somesocieties more technologically advanced than others? What is the originof capitalism? What factors determine the allocation of goods andservices within and among societies? What effects do changes ingovernment and economic institutions have on communities? Elwell argues that, as evolution does for biology, themacrosociological paradigm offers an analytical strategy that can beused both to guide and prioritize research in all of the myriadspecialties within sociology and to lay forth an orderly body ofknowledge for students. Clearly articulating important sociologicalprinciples, Sociocultural Systems provides a criticalunderstanding of social institutions and issues, while also furnishinga framework for possible solutions to the perennial social crises thatare part and parcel of the development of human societies.

Information and communication technologies play a crucial role in a number of modern industries. Among these, education has perhaps seen the greatest increases in efficiency and availability through Internet-based technologies. E-Learning as a Socio-Cultural System: A Multidimensional Analysis provides readers with a critical examination of the theories, models, and best practices in online education from a social perspective, evaluating blended, distance, and mobile learning systems with a focus on the interactions of their practitioners. Within the pages of this volume, teachers, students, administrators, policy makers, and IT professionals will all find valuable advice and enriching personal experiences in the field of online education.

This book is a condensation of a large body of work concerning human learning carried out over a period of more than five years by Dr. Sun and his collaborators. In a nutshell, this work is concerned with a broad framework for studying human cognition based on a new approach that is characterized by its focus on the dichotomy of, and the interaction between, explicit and implicit cognition and a computational model that implements this framework. In this work, a broad, generic computational model was developed that instantiates Dr. Sun's framework and enables the testing of his theoretical approach in a variety of ways. With this model, simulation results were matched with data of human cognition in a variety of different domains. Formal (mathematical and computational) analyses were also carried out to further explore the model and its numerous implementational details. Furthermore, this book addresses some of the most significant theoretical issues, such as symbol grounding, intentionality, social cognition, consciousness, and other theoretical issues in relation to the framework. The general framework and the model developed generate interesting insights into these theoretical issues.

This study was well-established as a pioneer work on archaeological methodology, the theoretical basis of all archaeological analysis whatever the period or era. The first edition of the book presented and evaluated the radical changes in methodology which derived from developments in other disciplines, such as cybernetics, computer science and geography, during the 1950s and ‘60s. It argued that archaeology was a coherent discipline with its own methods and procedures and attempted to define the entities (attributes, artefacts, types, assemblages, cultures and culture groups) rigorously and consistently so that they could be applied to archaeological data. The later edition continued the same general theory, which is unparalleled in its scope and depth, adding notes to help understanding of the advances in method and theory to support the student and professional archaeologist. Review of the original publication: "One might venture that this is the most important archaeological work for twenty or thirty years, and it will undoubtedly influence several future generations of archaeologists." The Times Literary Supplement