Suchergebnisse

Introduction -- The Designed World -- The Functionalist School and Functional Practice -- Programmatic Functionalism and Functionalist Programmes -- Bronisław Malinowski and Cultural Biology -- Radcliffe Brown: Social Anthropology as Comparative Sociology -- Marion Levy and Structural: Functional Requisite Analysis -- Robert K. Merton: Functional Tensions in a Divided World -- Functional Design and Functional Reasoning: Conclusion.

In his article, 'Against difference and diversity in social work: the case of human rights', Stephen Webb captures several important problems concerning the application of a postmodern human rights perspective in social work. Although accepting Webb's diagnosis, for example that the postmodern discourse neglects basic structural conditions essential for understanding social problems and thus leads to a policy of symbols and rhetoric, this article argues that Webb reifies the perspectives of diversity and universalism and misses the need for balancing these aspects in the practice of social work. Some general argumentative techniques in the postmodern discourse are identified, and it is argued that several of Webb's conclusions are reached via those argumentative techniques, particularly when it comes to his claim that the philosopher Alain Badiou could play a central role for social work. The possibility of implementing in social work general philosophical programmes such as Alain Badiou's is questioned.

Torgny T:son Segerstedt (1908-99) was the first duly appointed professor of sociology in Sweden. With a background in philosophy, early in his career Segerstedt was occupied with questions of symbolic communication and normative structures. From Segerstedt's understanding of social life follows the importance of social control and symbolic power whose most condensed expression in his perspective are norms. Segerstedt's focus on symbolic and normative structures gave him an early social constructivist perspective, applied, e.g. in research concerning travellers. Segerstedt advocated an empirical approach of sociology but considered a theoretical framework necessary for guiding research and making 'facts' intelligible. The basic social unit in Segerstedt's conception of sociology is the social group, constituted to a high degree by shared norms and common norm sources. Segerstedt was interested in the consequences of changing group structure and changing functional structure in modern society.

Conceptual constructionism: an introduction / Peter Sohlberg and Hakon Leiulfsrud -- On the near disappearance of concepts in mainstream sociology / Richard Swedberg -- Methodological programs and applications -- What do we do with norms-conform, break, understand or explain? / Peter Sohlberg -- Colligation / Richard Swedberg -- Sensitizing concepts in action :expanding the framework / Anne Britt Flemmen -- Culture, nature and consumption -- Culture as a sociological concept / Willy Martinussen -- Bringing nature back in / Willy Guneriussen -- The study of consumption in sociology-beyond utility theory / Pal Strandbakken -- Social structure, organizations and institutions -- Social structure / John Scott -- The organization of action / Goran Ahrne -- About actors : an institutional perspective / Raimund Hasse -- The family and interwoven concepts / Hakon Leiulfsrud -- Collective action : why is it so difficult for the social sciences to grasp the rational aspects of collective action? / Roar Hagen -- Class, gender, race and social recognition -- The status of the political in the concept of class structure / Erik Olin Wright -- Gender as analytic, political and interdisciplinary concept / Harriet Bjerrum Nielsen -- Race : a contested and travelling concept / Mette Andersson -- Recognition : conceptualization and context / Antje Gimmler -- Index.

The governance of the welfare state is going through profound transformations in many western countries. Similarly, reforms, influenced by neoliberal ideology, are being applied particularly in the field of education all over Europe. However, it is likely that there are divergent outcomes as these widely shared models are adapted in historical and local particularities. The aim of this article is to examine how Finnish, Irish and Swedish teachers perceive change in professional control and autonomy, and the influence of documentation and evaluation on daily work. Correspondence analysis on survey data ( N = 2304) shows that whereas the Finnish teachers regard that the new regulatory measures do not influence their daily work much, the Irish teachers, and also the Swedish teachers, tend to feel the increasing influence of control and accountability. Obviously, despite the similarities in formal policy and education acts, there are different kinds of restructuring operating in Finland, Ireland and Sweden.