Practice and Progress British Sociology 1950-1980

Originally published in 1981 Practice and Progress is a collection examining the changes that have occurred in the theories, methodologies and practices of sociology, in the institutional and educational setting of the subject, and in British society. The themes pursued include the professionalization of sociology its development and standing in the universities; the impact on it of Marxism and feminism and the major debates over positivism and empiricism, quantitative methods, linguistic analysis; and numerous other crucial methodological and theoretical concerns.

Introduction Part I: Intellectual Debates and Institutional Contexts 1. Professionalism in British Sociology, J.A. Barnes 2. Sociology as a Parasite: Some Vices and Virtues, John Urry 3. Oxbridge Sociology: The Development of Centres of Excellence, Anthony Heath and Ricca Edmonson 4. The Collapse of British Sociology, Philip Abrams Part II: Sociological Knowledge: Creation and Practice 5. The Social Construction of ‘Positivism’ and its Significance in British Sociology, 1950-80, Jennifer Platt 6. The Anti-Quantitative Bias in Post-war British Sociology, Christopher T. Husbands 7. Towards a Rehabilitation of Data, Maureen Cain and Janet Finch 8. W(h)ither Sociological Methodology?: Generalisation and Comparative Method, Peter Abell 9. Sociological Practice and Language, Michael Philipson Part III: Marxism and Feminsim: Radical Interventions in Sociology 10. Sociologies and Marxisms: the Odd Couples, Leslie Sklair 11. The Division of Labour Revisited or Overcoming the Two Adams, Margaret Stacey Bibliography Index