Week 2 Flashcards
Ideal type
A conceptual model that highlights the essential features of a social phenomena. It is not meant to describe reality but serves as a tool for analysis.
Verstehen
The unique advantage that social scientists have over natural scientists - the ability to imaginatively put themselves in the shoes of their study subject. Verstehen means the capability to empathize and understand the motivations behind people’s actions. For Weber, Verstehen was not just about empathy, but a method to rigorously understand and analyze the thought processes, motives, and meanings behind actors’ actions.
Weber’s take on causality in the social sciences
Weber took a middle position between nomothetic and idiographic approach, named adequate causality, the view in which the best we can do is make probabilistic statements about the relationships between social phenomena.
What are the 4 types of ideal type?
- Historical ideal type: These relate to phenomena found in some particular historical epoch.
- General sociological ideal type: These relate to phenomena that cut across a number of historical periods and societies.
- Action ideal type: These are pure types of action based on the motivations of the actor.
- Structural ideal type: These are forms taken by the causes and consequences of social action.
Nomothetic vs. ideographic approaches in history (Methodenstreit)
Weber’s definition of sociology
Sociology is a science concerning itself with the interpretive understanding (Verstehen) of social action and thereby with causal explanation (combining sociology and history) of its course and consequences.
Behavior
The concept of behavior is reserved, then as now, for autonomic behavior that involves no thought processes.
Action
Action occurred when individuals attached meanings to their action.
Social action
Action that takes into account the behavior of others and is oriented accordingly.
Value free sociology
Social scientists should not let their personal values influence their scientific research in any way. Instead, values should shape the selection of what we choose to study.
Weber’s ideas on social science vs. social policy
Weber argued that social science is about understanding reality, while social policy involves value judgments. He opposed politicized teaching and insisted that researchers should separate their personal beliefs from scientific work.
Four types of actions
- Means-end rationality: Action that is determined by expectations as to the behavior of objects in the environment and of other human beings; these expectations are used as “conditions” or “means” for the attainment of the actor’s own rationally pursued and calculated ends.
- Value rationality: Action that is determined by a conscious belief in the value for its own sake of some ethical, aesthetic, religious, or other form of behavior, independently of its prospect for success.
- Affectual action: Action that is determined by the emotional state of the actor.
- Traditional action: Action that is determined by the actor’s habitual and customary ways of behaving.
What are the 6 key characteristics of formal rationality?
Calculability (those things that can be counted or quantified), efficiency (finding the best means to a given end), predictability (things operate in the same way from one time or place to another), replacing human technology with non-human technology (more calculable, efficiency, and predictability than human technology), control over an array of insecurities, irrational consequences.
Rational-legal authority
This authority rests on a belief in the legality of enacted rules and the right of those elevated to authority under such rules to issue commands. According to Weber, bureaucracy is the purest type of exercise of legal authority.
Traditional authority
Authority based on an established belief in the sanctity of immemorial traditions and the legitimacy of those exercising authority under them.
Charismatic authority
Authority based on the devotion of followers to the exceptional sanctity, exemplary character, heroism, or special powers of leaders, as well as on the normative order sanctioned by them.
MacDonaldization
The process in of a society adopting the characteristics of a fast-food restaurant: Efficiency, calculability, predictability, control.
