Formal theory in sociology : opportunity or pitfall? /

In this book consisting of papers from a special conference supported by the American Sociological Association, organizer and editor Hage (Univ. of Maryland) has assembled a formidable array of sociological theorists, including Randall Collins, Jonathan Turner, Bernard Cohen, and Hubert Blalock. They provide a retrospective on the death of the short-lived formal theory movement in sociology, which developed during the late 1960s and early 1970s, and also discuss the advisability and possibility of its resurrection. In general, the contributors highlight sociological as opposed to epistemological factors, for example Collins and Waller's identification of sociology as an antipositivist battleground and Turner's attention to how sociology is organized. Although no consensus emerges, several sociological insights into this chapter in the history of sociology are offered that not only are relevant to the fate of formal theory but reflect on the current status and future of the discipline as well. The work also serves as a collective case study in the sociology of sociology. Recommended for graduate students and scholars, especially those with a particular interest in formal theory. M. F. Keen; Indiana University at South Bend