Performing Action: Artistry in Human Behavior and Social Research

In recent years the social sciences and the humanities have drawn closer to each other in thought and method. This rapprochement has led to new perceptions of human behaviour by sociologists, as well as new methodological orientations. Sociologist Joseph R. Gusfield draws upon drama and fiction to show how human action is shaped by the formal dimensions of performance.

Gusfield first defines the concept of behaviour as artistic performance. He then analyses routine and classic social researc...