Social Theory and Social Structure (STSS) was a landmark publication in
sociologySociology is the scientific or systematic study of human societies. It is a branch of social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop and refine a body of knowledge about human social structure and activity, often with the goal of applying such...
by
Robert K. MertonRobert King Merton was a distinguished American sociologist perhaps best known for having coined the phrase "self-fulfilling prophecy," the explanation for how a belief or an expectation, correct or incorrect, affects the outcome of a situation or the way a person or a group will behave...
. It has been translated into close to 20 languages and is one of the most frequently cited texts in social sciences. It was first published in 1949, although revised editions of 1957 and 1968 are often cited.
The book introduced many important concepts in sociology, like:
manifest and latent functions and dysfunctionsManifest and latent functions are social scientific concepts first clarified for sociology by Robert K. Merton . Merton appeared interested in sharpening the conceptual tools to be employed in a functional analysis....
,
obliteration by incorporationIn sociology of science, obliteration by incorporation occurs when at some stage in the development of a science, certain ideas become so accepted that their contributors are no longer cited. Eventually, its source and creator are forgotten as the concept enters common knowledge.-Concept:The...
, reference groups,
self-fulfilling prophecyA self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior. Although examples of such prophecies can be found in literature as far back as ancient Greece and...
, middle-range theory and others.[Merton, 1980]
Discussion
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Social Theory and Social Structure (STSS) was a landmark publication in
sociologySociology is the scientific or systematic study of human societies. It is a branch of social science that uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop and refine a body of knowledge about human social structure and activity, often with the goal of applying such...
by
Robert K. MertonRobert King Merton was a distinguished American sociologist perhaps best known for having coined the phrase "self-fulfilling prophecy," the explanation for how a belief or an expectation, correct or incorrect, affects the outcome of a situation or the way a person or a group will behave...
. It has been translated into close to 20 languages and is one of the most frequently cited texts in social sciences. It was first published in 1949, although revised editions of 1957 and 1968 are often cited.
The book introduced many important concepts in sociology, like:
manifest and latent functions and dysfunctionsManifest and latent functions are social scientific concepts first clarified for sociology by Robert K. Merton . Merton appeared interested in sharpening the conceptual tools to be employed in a functional analysis....
,
obliteration by incorporationIn sociology of science, obliteration by incorporation occurs when at some stage in the development of a science, certain ideas become so accepted that their contributors are no longer cited. Eventually, its source and creator are forgotten as the concept enters common knowledge.-Concept:The...
, reference groups,
self-fulfilling prophecyA self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that directly or indirectly causes itself to become true, by the very terms of the prophecy itself, due to positive feedback between belief and behavior. Although examples of such prophecies can be found in literature as far back as ancient Greece and...
, middle-range theory and others.[Merton, 1980]
Further reading
- Robert K. Merton, Social Theory and Social Structure, Free Press, 1968, ISBN 0-02-921130-1