Coming to My Senses: The Autobiography of a Sociologist

by George Caspar Homans

Overview

Those interested in the development of scientific theory and in the nature of academic life will appreciate this intellectual autobiography written by one of America's leading sociologists. Following his family tradition (The Education of Henry Adams was written by his great-uncle), George Caspar Homans describes how his ideas about the proper nature of theory in social science, both in form and content, have developed over time. The chief interest of the book lies in the description of this process.

Homans' career has spanned many of the key periods of development in social research, and his own work has been central to the process. He was the first major sociologist to outline the sociological implications of psychologists' work on learning or behavior theory. His contributions to modern sociology have had a major impact on the study of small groups, the problem of theory and methods of theory construction, and the study of basic characteristics of social behavior. He is regarded as the father of social exchange theory.

Homans considers academic and intellectual as well as nonacademic influences on his development: personalities of highly idiosyncratic individuals against whose views of culturalism, functionalism, and structuralism he reacted, discussions with colleagues, reading, as well as his ancestry, his childhood in Boston, his literary education and later social-life in Boston, and his experiences as a sea captain in the Navy in World War II. This is an absorbing book, both an autobiography and a history of the development of the social sciences in the post World War II era.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781412851527
Publisher:	Transaction Publishers
Publication date:	03/15/2013
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	383
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x (d)

About the Author

George Caspar Homans (1910-1989) was professor of sociology emeritus at Harvard University. He taught at the universities of Manchester, Cambridge, and Kent and is the author of The Human Group and Social Behavior along with numerous other works on social behavior and social theory.

Table of Contents

1: Ancestors; 2: The Back Bay; 3: Parents; 4: School; 5: Harvard College; 6: DeVoto, Henderson, Zinsser; 7: Curtis and Pareto; 8: The Society of Fellows; 9: Mayo I: Psychology; 10: Mayo II: Social Anthropology; 11: Medieval England; 12: Sailing with Uncle Charlie; 13: Dining with Ba; 14: The Navy I: Hazel, Accentor , and YMS 59; 15: The Navy II: Aruba-Curaçao; 16: The Navy III: Trinidad-Recife; 17: The Navy IV: The Pacific; 18: Harvard after World War II; 19: The Human Group; 20: Theory and Explanation; 21: Social Behavior; 22: Summary: Medfield

Editorial Reviews

George Homans is a maverick among sociologists. He is one of those who, to use the dictionary definition of the term, take an independent stand refusing to conform to that of his (professional) group. His autobiography is of special interest, if only because among sociologists mavericks have of late become rather rare . . . [H]onest, lucid, and elegantly written memoir . . . Homans belongs to a dying breed; they do not make them any more, even at Harvard . . . We need mavericks of the Right like George Homans almost as much as we need mavericks of the Left like Thorstein Veblen and C. Wright Mills. They are the salt of the earth.” —Lewis A. Coser, Contemporary Sociology “Coming to My Senses is the 'intellectual autobiography' of the Harvard sociologist George Caspar Homans . . . The book is a charming and witty account of the education of George Homans.” —Karen S. Cook, American Journal of Sociology “Homans’s book . . . tells the story that’s there to be told . . . Homans embodies the accounts of his sociology in the story of his larger life.” —Charles C. Lemert, Theory and Society “Autobiographies by scientists are rare. They are even more rarely written by social scientists . . . George Homans is an exception. His eminence and impact not only on sociology but on fields beyond makes him noteworthy . . . His ability to write well-formed and lively prose makes all of this not only possible but downright pleasurable to read. Coming to My Senses is filled with wonderful vignettes; with humor, wry self-criticism, and a becoming modesty. It provides us with an insider’s history of the Harvard sociology department in the postwar years and a fascinating sketch of how the son of a blue-blood family, trained to be a leading professional or businessman, took up science as his vocation and the arts as his avocation. The book well embodies the charm and grace of the man himself.” —Jeffrey C. Alexander, Theory and Society “In his wry honesty and plain speaking, his voracious curiosity and his shrewd assessments of himself and his world, he stands apart from the ordinary run of conservatives . . . [Homans’] observations are shrewd and entertaining, his cantankerous abrasiveness and candor will win the grudging admiration of many of whose whom he affects to despise. We need not agree with all of his opinions to find that the author of this entertaining book is a gentleman, a scholar, and a 'good fellow.'” —Richard Schlatter, Society

From the Publisher