Department of
Sociology

Center for
Innovation

A New Paradigm for the Social Sciences

Knowledge Evolution and Institutional Transformations: Action Theory Solutions to Solve Adaptive Problems (Jerald Hage, 2020) accomplishes four objectives. The first objective provides a new framework for social change that explains the many disruptions occurring around us today so that one can better understand what is happening and why. Knowledge growth represents a fourth dimension of social space, although usually not recognized, and one increasingly dominating societal evolution. The central thesis is that as knowledge advances, one has to construct more complex social selves, organizations, relationships, and institutions. One test of this new paradigm is how many different social science theories can be folded into the same framework.

Testing the theory’s scope represents the second objective. This new paradigm synthesizes not only many theories in sociology but major ones in economics and political science. More than 35 theoretical concepts, theories and even paradigms are combined into a new meta-narrative. At the micro level, the ideas of Chomsky, Giddens, Habermas, Goffman, Homans, Riesman, Tönnies, and Parsons when combined explain the four kinds of social contexts that undergird the many disparities in values and partisanship prevalent today. However, the postmodern social self, which is becoming more common, reflects agency by sparking both criticism and creativity. At the meso level, the integration of organizational, regional and inter-organizational network theory provides guidelines for generating more innovation to solve major societal problems. Moving to the macro level, Marx, Weber, and Durkheim are updated and synthesized to highlight structural changes in stratification systems with growing inequality, alterations in organizational forms and increasing concerns about powerlessness, and the proliferation of both social and inter-organization relationships (internal and external); conflict theory, functionalism and postmodernism are integrated. Again, on an optimistic note, both postmodern organizations and inter-organizational networks have emerged. To these perspectives, comparative institutional analysis, neoclassical economic theory, human capital theory, social capital theory, economic growth theory, and the theories of civil society and democracy are added to form a new meta-narrative.

With this combination of theories, the book addresses a third objective, which is reflected in the subtitle. Action theory solutions are provided for close to 50 social problems, the adaptive problems created by knowledge evolution puncturing the equilibrium of society. They range from alienation, powerlessness, social isolation, mental illness, and suicide at the micro level to automation, populism, globalization, inequality (five kinds), and unemployment at the macro level with anomic social contexts, homelessness, poverty and racism in between. Most critically, action theory solutions are proposed for rebuilding society, creating a new economy, and making democracy more responsive to the people. Usually these solutions involve three pronged attacks containing systemic coordinated networks, new technologies and new skill sets. However, a sense of realism is maintained by identifying the many obstacles, both macro and micro that have to be overcome. Some attention is given to how this might be accomplished.

These action solutions lead to a fourth objective: uniting theory and research to advance new careers for sociologists in public sociology. Throughout the book, comparative data studies, 100 year-long historical analysis of four European countries, and action theory examples provide evidence for the validity of the action theory solutions. The new careers involve evaluating these solutions in their effectiveness as well as their social costs. To facilitate the latter, a more complex conflict (inequality)-functional (social integration) evaluation framework provides a guideline. Furthermore, the three-pronged attack of systemic coordinated networks, new technologies and new skills sets offers a distinctive sociological take on how to solve adaptive problems.

References

Hage, J. 2020. Knowledge Evolution and Institutional Transformations: Action Theory Solutions to Solve Adaptive Problems. New York: Anthem Press.

Updated 10 May 2020