Rethinking Contemporary Social Theory [Hardcover]

Rethinking Contemporary Social Theory outlines a new theoretical paradigm emerging from out of social construction theory, conflict theory, Marxism and critical theory and argues that these insights are redefining social theory as a whole. The authors select ten fields within sociology and in each one trace the reception and impact of the new paradigm. The fields include gender, sexuality, race/ethnicity, media and the sociology of family life. Drawing on Thomas Kuhn's The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, the authors identify causes for this paradigm shift, which include the contributions of specific individuals, the general intellectual climate and various social changes such as globalisation and neoliberalism.Part I Paradigms Chapter One Paradigms in Sociology Chapter Two Conflict Constructionism: Elements of the Paradigm Chapter Three History of a Paradigm Part II Paradigm Change in Selected Subfields Section 1 Deep Impact: The New Paradigm Becomes Dominant Chapter Four Constructing Difference and Dominance: Race-Ethnicity and Gender Chapter Five Culture in an Era of Globalization, Jose Soltero Chapter Six Media in the Information Age: Surface Intensities and Total Symbolic Environments Chapter Seven Sociology of the Self: From Personality to Persona Section 2 Paradigms in Play Chapter Eight Political Sociology and the Analysis of Collective Action: Old and New in Harmony Chapter Nine Urban Sociology and Spatial Analysis: Paradigms in Coexistence Chapter Ten Disruptions in the Field Formerly Known as Sociology of Deviance, Greg Scott and Julian Thompson Section 3 Paradigm Limited Chapter Eleven Social Class and Socioeconomic Inequality Chapter Twelve Contemporary Theories of Family Life, Tait Runnfeldt Medina and Julie E. Artis Section 4 Paradigms Reconstituted in a Transdisciplinary Field Chapter Thirteen The Sociology of Health, Illness, and Medical Practice, Grace Budry Conclusion