Social Science as Public Philosophy Revived

More than 30 years ago, in their best-selling Habits of the Heart, Robert Bellah and his colleagues coined the phrase “Social Science as Public Philosophy” (SSPP). They proposed it as an alternative to the “professional sociology” they believed had become increasingly hegemonic; too many sociologists, they contended, mistakenly embraced an ideal of social science modelled on the natural sciences. Instead, they championed a vision of sociology in which “the boundary between social science and philosophy was still open” – a vision they traced back to the classical works of Tocqueville, Durkheim, and others. Though rhetorically tantalizing, and rich with critical potential, unfortunately, SSPP remains vague and undertheorized, and thus neglected. Accordingly, the aim of this article is to systematically reconstruct, refine, and ultimately revive the normative sociological vision underlying SSPP. This vision consists of five pillars: (1) a rejection of what Abbott refers to as the “dualist” aspiration to separate values from facts; (2) a view of social science as grounded in substantive traditions of ethical and philosophical inquiry; (3) transparency regarding the sociologists’ theoretical and normative commitments, and a willingness to subject them to scrutiny; (4) an immanent conception of social criticism, which values identification rather than detachment; and (5) a democratic, as opposed to elitist, orientation. I contend that SSPP remains a vital resource, if not an unmitigated model, for normative sociology today.

Jaar van publicatie:2022

Toegankelijkheid:Open