Paul F. Lazarsfeld, An Empirical Theory of Action
This book provides a critical introduction to the key writings of
Paul Lazarsfeld (1901-1976), edited by two prominent sociologists. It
includes Lazarsfeld's early work on youth and occupation, which shows
the intellectual influences of Austro-Marxism, academic psychology, and
the philosophy of the Vienna Circle, and how they were applied to
specific social issues. They also show how Lazarsfeld's concerns about
the intellectual and methodological aspects of sociology, which
foreshadowed some of the major issues in current sociological methods,
played an important role in shaping the direction of the discipline in
the United States. The essays demonstrate how Lazarsfeld laid many of
the foundations for reliable social survey techniques and qualitative
methods for understanding key aspects of contemporary society. Some
examples of these aspects are voting studies, opinion polling,
occupational research, and mass media research. Lazarsfeld's early work
in "administrative research" laid the groundwork for a lot of market and
business research. The essays in this book are accompanied by a
detailed and illuminating biographical introduction by the editors. This
collection is an important addition to the history of 20th-century
sociology. It is also the only English-language source of Paul
Lazarsfeld's early writings.
Nico Stehr, Christian Fleck (Hg.): „Paul F. Lazarsfeld, An Empirical Theory of Action“, Springer Nature, London, 406 Seiten, ISBN: 978-3-031-92673-0
