Macrosociology

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Macrosociology is a sociological approach that analyzes societies, social systems or populations on a large scale or at a high level of abstraction.[1] It is considered one of the main foundations of sociology, alongside microsociology and mesosociology). Macrosociology can also be the the analysis of large collectivities (eg. the city, the church). [2] Lenski [3] defines macrosociology simply as "concerned with human societies". Important representatives of macrosociological theories are:

  • Karl Marx; who analyzed society from the perspective of class conflict between workers and owners
  • Max Weber; who viewed society as rapidly modernizing and looked at the effects of this process, such as bureaucratization
  • Emile Durkheim; who viewed individual issues as reflective of greater social patterns, completing the first sociological study (which linked suicide to societal trends)

[edit] References

  1. ^ Craig Calhoun(ed) Dictionary of the Social Sciences (Article: Macrosociology), Oxford University Press, 2002
  2. ^ John Scott & Gordon Marshall (eds) Dictionary of Sociology, Oxford University Press, 2000
  3. ^ Gerhard Lenski, Human societies: An introduction to Macrosociology, McGraw-Hill, 1982, ISBN 0-07-037176-8

[edit] Further reading

  • Charles Tilly, Macrosociology Past and Future in Newsletter of the Comparative & Historical Section, American Sociological Association, (1995) 8: 1, 3, 4, online

[edit] See also