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In a general study of Sociological Theory, social processes are usually broken down into three tiers: macrodynamics (societies and large-scale institutions), microdynamics (interpersonal encounters), and mesodynamics (corporations, communities, smaller organizations). In this seminal work, the author pulls these separate areas of research into one comprehensive general theory of social reality.More than analytical distinctions or research terminology, the author demonstrates that the social world actually unfolds along these three (macro, micro, and meso) levels of interaction. By developing a set of explanatory, testable, repeatable principles, the author creates a general empirical framework for sociological research. The three volumes of Principles of Sociology explore each level of social dynamics individually, with cross-references to bring the three together. This work will be essential for researchers in Sociological Theory and Social Psychology. Individual volumes will presentnew research of interest for researchers in Race and Ethnicity, Stratification, Demography, Political Sociology, Organizations and Community Movements, Motivation and Emotions.
List of contents
Macrodynamics: First Steps in Developing a General Sociological Theory.- Selection Pressures and the Evolution of the Macrodynamic Realm.- Elemenary Principles on Macrodynamic Forces.- The Dynamics of Institutional Domains.- The Dynamics of Stratification Domains.- The Dynamics of Stratification Systems.- The Dynamics of Societal Systems.- The Dynamics of Inter-Societal Systems.- Principles of Macrodynamics.- Microdynamics: Encounters at the Micro-level Realm of Reality.- The Embedding of Encounters.- Demographic and Ecological Dynamics of Encounters.- Status Dynamics in Encounters.- Role Dynamics in Encounters.- Cultural Dynamics in Encounters.- Motivational Dynamics in Encounters.- Emotional Dynamics in Encounters.- Principles of Microdynamics.- Mesodynamics: The Meso-Level Realm of Reality.- Micro-and Macro-Level Constrains under Mesodynamics.- Corporate Unit Dynamics: Groups, Organizations, Communities.- Corporate Unit Dynamics in Categoric-Unit Dynamics.- Principles of Mesodynamics.
About the author
Jonathan Turner is a general theorist who seeks to integrate existing theories into more robust and formal theories. He is the author of twenty-eight books and over 140 articles and chapters as well as editor of four other books. He also has been editor of Sociological Perspectives and is currently editor of Sociological Theory.
Summary
In a general study of Sociological Theory, social processes are usually broken down into three tiers: macrodynamics (societies and large-scale institutions), microdynamics (interpersonal encounters), and mesodynamics (corporations, communities, smaller organizations). In this seminal work, the author pulls these separate areas of research into one comprehensive general theory of social reality.
More than analytical distinctions or research terminology, the author demonstrates that the social world actually unfolds along these three (macro, micro, and meso) levels of interaction. By developing a set of explanatory, testable, repeatable principles, the author creates a general empirical framework for sociological research. The three volumes of Principles of Sociology explore each level of social dynamics individually, with cross-references to bring the three together. This work will be essential for researchers in Sociological Theory and Social Psychology. Individual volumes will presentnew research of interest for researchers in Race and Ethnicity, Stratification, Demography, Political Sociology, Organizations and Community Movements, Motivation and Emotions.
