Access the full text.
Sign up today, get DeepDyve free for 14 days.
References for this paper are not available at this time. We will be adding them shortly, thank you for your patience.
The Dynamics of Stratification Systems1 ANDREW TUDOR University of Essex, Colchester, U.K. IT IS a methodological truism that theories must include both variables and constants; we cannot take simultaneous account of every possible factor. Indeed one of the vital functions of theory is to provide a criterion of relevance whereby the potentially infinite may be made finite. Most sociology tends, for example, to hold ecological variables as a constant environmental factor, and operate within them. Now there is clearly a danger here in that reification of such a position leads to the theorist asserting a priori that certain variables are totally unimportant for social action. This is the other side of the coin to White- head's fallacy of misplaced concreteness: certain factors are taken as totally ex- plaining the empirical phenomena precisely because the theorist forgets that he is working within a theory, and that this theory must limit its field of operation by holding some factors constant. This has, unfortunately, been true of a number of theories and theorists in sociology, and it is the aim of this paper to try to redress the balance a little in the thorny area of stratification. The basic assumption is
International Journal of Comparative Sociology (in 2002 continued as Comparative Sociology) – Brill
Published: Jan 1, 1969
Read and print from thousands of top scholarly journals.
Already have an account? Log in
Bookmark this article. You can see your Bookmarks on your DeepDyve Library.
To save an article, log in first, or sign up for a DeepDyve account if you don’t already have one.
Copy and paste the desired citation format or use the link below to download a file formatted for EndNote
Access the full text.
Sign up today, get DeepDyve free for 14 days.
All DeepDyve websites use cookies to improve your online experience. They were placed on your computer when you launched this website. You can change your cookie settings through your browser.