Understanding Social Theory

by Derek Layder

Overview

'This is a robust text - challenging and provocative and one which students will benefit from reading. Layder guides the reader through a large body of relevant literature. He draws attention to the strengths and weaknesses of particular approaches as he sees them and he is not afraid to offer his own judgements on the issues and problems he addresses′ - Professor John Eldridge, University of Glasgow

'Derek Layder′s Understanding Social Theory, provides one of the most comprehensive, incisive and readable treatments of the macro-micro problem now available′ - Professor Paul Colomy, University of Denver

This is a revised, updated and enlarged version of the accessible, authoritative first edition - a jargon-free textbook that provides an introduction to the core issues in social theory. It includes:

} chapter previews, summaries and a glossary of key terms;

} a ′problem focus′ that encourages students to acquire skills of argument and discussion;

} new material on recent developments in social theory;

} an entirely new concluding chapter which relates theory to social domains;

} relevant examples from everyday life to illustrate key theoretical issues.

The book will be essential reading for students in Sociology, Social Psychology, Social Theory, Political Theory and Organization Studies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780761944508
Publisher:	SAGE Publications
Publication date:	12/15/2005
Edition description:	Second Edition
Pages:	336
Product dimensions:	7.32(w) x 9.13(h) x (d)

About the Author

Derek Layder is Emeritus Professor of Sociology at the University of Leicester and Honorary Professor of Health and Life Sciences and De Montfort University. He was awarded a doctorate by the London School of Economics in 1976. Appointed Lecturer in Sociology at the University of Leicester in 1974 and promoted to Reader in 1995, he became Professor in 1997 and Emeritus Professor from 2002. He has held several visiting academic positions and has also held honorary visiting appointments at The Australian National University (as a Humanities Research Fellow) and the University of Western Sydney (as Eminent Research Visitor). He taught in areas of social theory, social psychology, social research methods and the philosophy of social sciences. He has published numerous academic articles and 12 books. Among his books, in the area of the philosophy of social science, he is the author of The Realist Image in Social Science (1990); in social theory, he has written Understanding Social Theory (second edition, 2006), as well as Modern Social Theory (1997). On research strategies and methods, he has authored New Strategies in Social Research (1993), Sociological Practice (1998), and Doing Excellent Small-Scale Research (2013). He has also written on intimacy, emotion and self-identity, including Emotion in Social Life (2004), Social & Personal Identity (2004) and Intimacy & Power (2009).

Table of Contents

PART ONE: THE VIEW FROM ON HIGH The Legacy of Talcott Parsons
Varieties of Marxism
PART TWO: WHERE THE ACTION IS
Meanings, Situations and Experience
Perceiving and Accomplishing
PART THREE: BREAKING FREE AND BURNING BRIDGES
Foucault and the Postmodern Turn
Beyond Macro and Micro
Abandoning False Problems
Gidden's Theory of Structuration
PART FOUR: ONLY CONNECT: FORGING LINKS
Linking Micro and Macro
A Loose Coupling of Social Orders
Habermas's Lifeworld and System
Conclusion
Pulling the Threads Together

Editorial Reviews

‘Not simply an account, it is also an argument...Not only did Layder's book make me think it made me want to ask questions about his coverage and argue with him.... Layder's is a book which I would refer a student who was interested in and thinking hard about theory; perhaps I should also direct to it those students who need to be made to think about theory' - Ian Craib, British Journal of Sociology

'Derek Layder's Understanding Social Theory, provides one of the most comprehensive, incisive, and readable treatments of the micro-macro problem now available' - Professor Paul Colomy, University of Denver

'This is a robust text - challenging and provocative and one which students will benefit from reading. Derek Layder guides the reader through a large body of relevant literature. He draws attention to the strengths and weaknesses of particular approaches as he sees them and he is not afraid to offer his own judgements on the issues and problems he addresses' - Professor John Eldridge, University of Glasgow

From the Publisher