Institute of Sociology NASU

On disenchanting of cognitive processes in sociology

stmm. 2023 (2): 193-195

Full text: http://stmm.in.ua/archive/ukr/2023-2/12.pdf

OLGA KUTSENKO, Doctor of Sciences in Sociology, Professor, Technical University of Berlin (23, Straße des 17. Juni /17th of June Street, Berlin, 10587); Taras Shevchenko Kyiv National University (60, Volodymyrska St., Kyiv, 01601)

olga.kutsenko.ua28@gmail.com

http://orcid.org/0000-0001-9921-0654

In-depth and long-term cognitive processes, complex and sometimes even painful theoretical inquiry are the basis for and an integral component of gaining scientific knowledge in any of its realm, sociology in particular. However, the gained knowledge oftentimes contains contradictions, which grow with the passage of time and, eventually, bring about a crisis in the given branch of science. The crisis, in turn, engenders a need to revise the existing conceptual and categorial apparatus, to update research programmes and conceptions; furthermore, to develop enhanced theoretico-methodological approaches able to broaden the horizons of the available scientific knowledge and its practical application. The process (and the outcome) of creating new scientific concepts and theories quite often become a subject for a detailed analysis, with an emphasis on the cognitive potential of these theories and their applicability to the adjacent branches of knowledge. Rational choice theory espoused by sociologists and economists alike can serve as an example in this regard.

This theory (whose well-known proponent was James Coleman) has been examined in a monograph authored by Volodymyr Shelukhin and titled “The point of divergence: Sociology and economics in the shadow of their origins”. Still, the analysis performed by the author constitutes only a small part of the set and successfully completed research task, which consisted in tracing the “intellectual contexts” of both branches of knowledge (economics and sociology) throughout their own history linked to the Age of Enlightenment and the Romantic Period respectively. As noted by the reviewer, the author’s thorough inquiry and exhaustive conclusions significantly change “the established ideas about the historical origin of sociological science”; besides, they “introduce theory synthesis as a methodology into Ukrainian sociology”. What else adds value to the reviewed book are Ukrainian translations of the two articles: “Economics: The imperial science?” (authored by George Stigler) and “The impact of Gary Becker’s work on sociology” (authored by James Coleman; the article sheds light on a book “The economics of discrimination” published in 1957).

The reviewed monograph should be of interest to social sciences and humanities experts, as well as to behavioural scientists and a wider audience.

Keywords: sociology, economics, history of science, cognitive processes, theory synthesis, scientific knowledge

References

Shelukhin, V. (2023). The point of divergence: Sociology and economics in the shadow of their origins. Kyiv: Lira-K (Lyre-K) Press.