Kenneth Menzies - Sociological Theory in Use (RLE Social Theory)

ROUTLEDGE LIBRARY EDITIONS: SOCIAL THEORY

Volume 72

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY IN USE

SOCIOLOGICAL THEORY IN USE

KEN MENZIES

First published in 1982

This edition first published in 2015

by Routledge

2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon, OX14 4RN

and by Routledge

711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017

Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group, an informa business

1982 Ken Menzies

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or utilised in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

Trademark notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe.

British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library

ISBN: 978-0-415-72731-0 (Set)

eISBN: 978-1-315-76997-4 (Set)

ISBN: 978-1-138-78257-0 (Volume 72)

eISBN: 978-1-315-76535-8 (Volume 72)

Publishers Note

The publisher has gone to great lengths to ensure the quality of this reprint but points out that some imperfections in the original copies may be apparent.

Disclaimer

The publisher has made every effort to trace copyright holders and would welcome correspondence from those they have been unable to trace.

Sociological theory in use

Ken Menzies

First published in 1982

by Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd

39 Store Street,

London WC1E 7DD,

9 Park Street,

Boston, Mass. 02108, USA and

Broadway House,

Newtown Road,

Henley-on-Thames,

Oxon RG9 1EN

Set in 10/12 Sabon by

Inforum Ltd, Portsmouth

and printed in Great Britain by

Billing & Sons Ltd

Guildford, London, Oxford and Worcester

Ken Menzies 1982

No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without permission from the publisher, except for the quotation of brief passages in criticism

Library of Congress Cataloging in Publication Data

Menzies, Ken.

Sociological theory in use.

Bibliography: p.

Includes index.

1. Sociological research. 2. Sociological research Evaluation. 3. Sociology Methodology. I. Title.

HM48.M45 301.072 81-12144

ISBN 0-7100-0892-9 AACR2

ISBN 0-7100-0893-7 (pbk)

To be a successful fortune teller, publicise your successes and ignore your failures. Find a sympathetic audience for the numerous cases from your lifetimes work that illustrate the accuracy of your crystal ball. Remember that unexpected predictions do come true when least expected. Make the most of them. Avoid investigative reporters who want to follow up systematically on your predictions. They have bad karma. This is frequently the gist of the advice given to those who write sociological theory books. Find a sympathetic audience for the numerous cases from research reports and your general knowledge that illustrate the worth of your theory. Remember that plausible examples can be given of virtually any concept or relationship. Make the most of them. Avoid researchers who want to use your theory systematically. They produce complexities.

Many books on sociological theory are undertaken largely on the basis of the authors reading of numerous other books and articles on theory. The author defines precisely what other theorists mean in their works obscurities are clarified and concepts redefined. Next, the author produces his own statement of the relationship between the various concepts he has analysed. The result is compared and contrasted with the theories of others and may well be elegant. However, the relationship and relevance of the theory he has produced to current research is left vague. The result, to overstate the case, reads like a cross between literary criticism and philosophy of science written by a fortune teller turned sociologist.

In an attempt to write a different theory book, I decided to start not by reading books by theorists, but by examining research. In order to do this systematically, I have read a random sample, stratified by year and journal, of 570 research articles published in British, Canadian and American mainstream general sociology journals between 1970 and 1979. The result is a book devoted to research, and I mean devoted in both its meanings. The book rejects the view that most research is mindless, crude empiricism. Instead, it takes seriously the claim that research contributes to our general knowledge of how society works. My main objective is to specify and then critically evaluate some of the major structures of explanation that are embodied in current research as represented by the sampled articles. To put it another way, I aim to clarify theory in use and assess the worth of many theories that researchers use. My second concern is to show that there is a substantial difference between the theoretical content of research and theory as found in most theory books and articles.

The sampling strategy on which this book relies means that it has been easy for me to miss much that is important. If I have managed to deal with the important issues and the relevant theoretical and empirical material, it is substantially due to the many people who have kindly commented on drafts of the book and drawn relevant material to my attention. The following have all taken the time and trouble to comment on all or most of a draft or outline: Stan Barrett, Allan Bitz, Jeff Evans, Ray Foote, Julian Laite, Kathleen Lyle, Janet Maher, Herminio Martins, Stephen Mennell, Michael Petrunik, Jennifer Platt, Frans Schreyer, Peter Sinclair, Mary Stiasny, and Gordon West. Numerous other people have shared with me their knowledge of particular areas: Michael Au (functionalism), Bette Bullert (roles), Brian Campbell (introduction), Joo da Camara (interests), Richard Fenn (role and action theory), Peter Halfpenny (functionalism and status attainment studies), Rom Harr (action theory and middle range theory), Anthony Heath (interests and action theory), Keith Hope (status attainment studies), Allan Kerckhoff (status attainment studies), Kenneth MacDonald (middle range theory and status attainment studies), Neil MacKinnon (role and status attainment studies), John Ridge (middle range theories and status attainment studies), Paul Rock (symbolic interaction and role), Ralph Turner (symbolic interaction and role) and Bryan Wilson (role). Last, and most important, I would like to thank Marion Stiasny for commenting on every draft and providing constant encouragement and support. Finally, it is with some trepidation that I accept responsibility for the numerous errors that undoubtedly remain. Having sampled a population of which many readers know some members well ensures that my distortions will be all too visible.