Can Sociology change the world?

Can Sociology change the world? - An expert interview at the Discussion Forum of the ?American Sociological Association“ (Expert Interview and Research Proposal by Dr. Rodolfo Valentino)

1 Prolog

This question has been raised since the beginning of Sociology. For Auguste Comte this was totally clear. His motto, "Savoir pour prévoir, prévoir pour pouvoir," classifies Sociology as the ultimate and greatest science, a discipline above all other sciences which can integrate and relate their discoveries to a coherent and complete whole. Nowadays, we are already happy, when aging sociologists like Jürgen Habermas from the "Frankfurter Schule" speaks out publicly that fascism, racism and biologism are spreading around the world again and identifies them for us like the German Party AfD, the American President Donald Trump, the President of the Front Nationale Jean-Marie Le Pen and so many others......

https://www.timepatternanalysis.de/Blog/2016/11/17/habermas-politische-stabilitat-im-westen-erschuttert/

What about the new generation of young sociologists? Have we become comformists? Did the system suck us? What about the demand of many sociologists of the School of Chicago or the "Frankfurter Schule" to stand alongside societies in order to analyze them better and without middle-class-values? Did the new information society a "Gleichschaltung" with us?

I asked 2016/17 my colleagues all over the world. Just to name a few. You can find the whole conversation at:

https://www.dhirubhai.net/groups/1491397/1491397-6220939731476180995:

(a) Dr. Fateh Haloui (Université Mohamed Khider de Biskra, Algeria)

(b) Dr. Hashem sultani (Islamic Azad University Teheran, Iran)

(c) Denis Pageau (The Societalogy Institute, Université Laval, Ottawa, Canada)

(d) Abhijit Guha (Retired Professor at Vidyasagar University, West Midnapore, West Bengal, India)

(e) Mariano Manuel Adérito Lameira (Docente en ISCED, Luanda)

(f) Bahirathy Jeeweshwara Rasanen (Professor at Department of Sociology at University of Jaffna, Sri Lanka)

(g) David Gracia Quintana (Fundació Escolta Josep Carol Barcelona, Spain)

(h) Denis Pageau (The Societalogy Institute, Université Laval , Ottawa, Canada)

(i) Delgollage Senewirathne (Asain Institute of Technology, Bangkok, Thailand)

(j) Dr.Sheeba Khalid (PhD Sociology, Eastern Command Nursing College Jadavpur University, Kolkata, West Bengal, India)

(k) Farid Seyed Rabi (Researcher in sociology,Director of researches,Author. Member of CRESPPA-CNRS, Independent Reasearcher and analiysis University of Paris VIII, France)

(l) Muna AlGhuraibi (PhD Candidate in Sociology and Social Policy at the University of Sydney, Australia)

(m) Nik Roberts, PhD (Department of Corrections, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Saybrook University, Pittsburgh, USA)

(n) Nima Jafari (Ministry of Education University of khavarazmi, Iran)

(o) Olga Cupp (Social and Organizational Change Agent Playworks, Center for Learning and Development, University of West Hungary)

(p) Pina Lalli (Vice President of the School of Political Sciences, Campus of Bologna, University of Bologna, Italia)

(q) Prof. Dr. O. P. Monga (Professor of Sociology and Consultant in Higher Education at Panjab University, Chandigarh, India )

(r) Ranju Hasini Sahoo (Professor at Department of Sociology and Social Anthropology IGN Tribal University, Amarkantak, India)

(s) Ryder Gillespie (Mediart Design EHESS, Ecole des Hautes Etudes en Sciences Sociales Nice, Provence-Alpes-C?te d’Azur, France)

(t) Susan Elizabeth Lamb-Woodward (Lead Teacher/Parent Child Development Corporation, University of South Florida, USA)

(u) Twan Manders (Steno Diabetes Center Utrecht University Copenhague, Dinamarca)

(v) Zoubairi Majiev (Cursist sociaal vertalen bij Kruispunt Migratie-Integratie Zelfstandige, Bélgica)

and many many others....

When I started this conversation, I did not think that so many people would participate. Perhaps because I think (1) that we are living in the middle of a decadent phase, (2) that I am experiencing at university that the new generation is too social-isolated, in the sense that they don't look to the right, not to the left, is only interested in their own lifes with their friends and social networks, (3) that overall the ?homo mediocris“ dominates our political, social and economic system, etc. Through your comments and also thanks to the comment by Mr. ABHIJIT GUHA, I realized that we have to work interdisciplinarily to try to make this world better.

I thank all the scientific colleagues for the exciting contributions and interesting views. It was a great honor for me to have so many experts and interested people in this discussion. It is obvious that many are convinced that the methods of sociology can reveal power structures, identify particular interests, and at least show the world the way to avoid negative structures and behaviors in order to make this world more equal, more solidary and fairer. I divided and structured the interview partners for this publication according to their statements and opinions. However, I reserve the right to analyze and evaluate the expert interviews more closely in the future.

1 Introduction of Dr. Fateh Haloui, Hashem Sultani and Guglielmo Rinzivillo

Dr. Fateh Haloui offers us a little introduction to ?The (dangerous) role of Sociology and Sociologists“:

?Karl Marx had changed the world, when he analysed the interests groups which managing all the capital, values or material. Today the kind of social phenomenas is the same: groups, capital, values, so the results are conflicts in Syria, Africa, Middle East. On the other side there are the groups of stability: human rights, ong, schools, hospitals, etc. […] If sociologists can't interpret the world truly and transparent with the objective ideas and actions of positive stability, we imagine the world eating itself. Change and more change means more conflicts. The result: the human beings kill the human beings, that is the final of future or final of history. Each sociologist have a little of ideology. He uses it when he works with the interest groups. […] But today the sociology can't understand or can't enter in many fields of human actions as election, war, women, political and humanity organizations, the use of technologies. Now all sociologists think with the traditional theories and approaches as Comte or Weber [] Who owns the worth and the chair can change the world and can change the sociologists themselves. Every great responsible has a sociologist worker, who plans for his benefits. In history there were many thinkers around the table of a royal men and women. And today there are the organizations with their experts like CIA, DRS and ONU. They are collecting data and take decisions. In the results you see the change raised in the political geography, the number of people by the successive wars, immigrations and by mixing the race by marriage. Well, in many cases, it is not the Sociologist who made the change but he participates as a worker englobed, as an arm to change the nature of all things under his benefits. Who change the world are the intersts groups, the owner of the fortune, the arms instruments, the diplomacy instruments, more sheeps of soldiers, more infrastructures, more experts. Why they have the desire to change world ? To serve their benefits, to commercialize their business? [] They collect the Sociologists who walk in their line way. So the Sociology is not "a peace science " or humanitarian science. […] To change the world, is this the goal of sociology? Who changes who , the world changes the Sociology or Sociology changes the world? The revolution of TIC had changed the Sociology into a Digital Sociology ? Which society we begin to change or we change the whole world? […] So we talk about the theory of change and its approaches in related with the role of sociology but the reality of change begins and is driven by other power factors and empowered by them, not by Sociology.“

Hashem Sultani and Guglielmo Rinzivillo question the question itself:

?Can Sociology change the world? Your question reminds me the changing world by philosophers in Marx theory. A sense of legitimacy is necessity of changing the world, and no branch of science is in this place. Feel of legitimacy is characteristic of ideologies, and real place of science is describing the real world, Objectivity to another word. In an ideological structure similar to Marxism you try to change the real world to absolute good. Sociology as a science is realm of falsifiability, but ideology is realm of good and evil. Ideology is based on theology but science is secular essentially. Of course science has goals.“

"The question seems a little metaphysical, even if you like to think that it is in the concerns of the Social Philosopher Auguste Comte. In fact, Comte's perspective was to believe that the basis of science was the study of sociability, which is how individuals live together. Today, with the globalization this problem returns again being of interest to scientist and researchers. […] Sociology has no power to change society, as it does not yet have the power to change itself in a unified research perspective, which has paradigmatic and methodological units. Sociology remains an academic reflection on social phenomenology and for this reason will never change the world!“ (Translation from italian: ?La questione sembra un pò metafisica, anche se piace pensare che essa risieda nelle preoccupazioni del filosofo sociale Auguste Comte. In realtà la prospettiva di Comte fu quella di credere che la base della scienza fosse lo studio della socialità, cioè del modo in cui gli individui stanno insieme. Oggi con la globalizzazione questo problema ritorna in prospettiva a interessare gli studiosi ma mancano gli apporti comprensivi di una realtà totale. La sociologia non ha il potere di cambiare la società (Sociology has no power to change society) in quanto non ha nemmeno il potere di cambiare se stessa in una prospettiva di ricerca unitaria, avente una unità paradigmatica e metodologica. La sociologia rimane una riflessione accademica sulla fenomenologia sociale e per questo motivo non potrà mai cambiare il mondo!“)

Muna AlGhuraibi speaks of Sociology as a ?not completed science“, a ?theoretical luxury science“ and feels sorry to say that ?but this is the truth“:

?Should Sociology change the world? This is definitely a two-faced question. How can Sociology change the world while it's not even considered as stand-alone science. It mainly depends on other sciences to be completed. Sociologists on the other hand are totally soaked in the societal system. Few of them are made it out of the world system and think wisely about the phenomenons around us. Looking at the socio-political and economic issues, Sociologists always come late to discuss and weigh the consequences of these issues. Sociology is the other face of the coin, born to be a theoretical luxury science which meant to keep on the shelves just like Philosophy because no one cares. As a Sociologist I feel sorry to say that but this is the truth.“

David Gracia Quintana reminds us that Sociology is like any other science, no more, no less:

?It can, to the same extent as art or mathematics, through people, but ... What world do we want? As Sociologists we do not have a single recipe to create a better world. The most prudent thing is not wanting to change the whole world, but your closest context.“

And Denis Pageau makes counter-questions:

?If sociology can find the order and help to progress, how come, after 200 years of Sociology, our world is still full of racism, sexism, homophobic persons? Why is corruption so high? Why do we war instead of build peace?“

2 Call for cooperation with other sciences and for practical orientation of Sociology

Abhijit Guha believes that Sociology:

?[] can make some changes in the policy of the government if it successfully collaborates with her younger sister named Anthropology. The separation and often strenuous relations among these two sisters had done more harm than good at least in India. Take for example the case of Irawati Karve. She was one of the most brilliant Sociologists in India who was also a hard core Anthropologist: Karve (19051970). https://www.academia.edu/4290555/Irawati_Karve_1905-1970_. […] She was also one of the foremost policy researchers on development caused displacement in India. She was the first woman Anthropologist of the pioneering generation of professional Anthropologists in India. Karve is one of the finest examples of a successful collaboration between Anthropology and Sociology.“

Even Guglielmo Rinzivillo, Ryder Gillespie and Farid Seyed Rabi believe more in the practical utility of Sociology:

?In my view, the issue is more modern, but Sociology has to lose its capacity as academic science and engage more on the practical side. Migrations in the world show an important analysis camp where young sociologists can experience their discipline, giving proof to know the phenomena and predict the future more and more complex.“

?Sociology cannot change the world. The only thing it can do, as far as it is willing to do it (and I'm not always sure about that), is to understand and share it's understanding of how we define the world we live in and therefore help us understand why we act the way we do in socially defined situations... you'll need other disciplines if you want to go further than that.“

?Sociology is not yet a complete science but it has changed views of governments in the West in understanding of social problems (for example principal causes of poverty and violence and ....) and they act with rationalism.“

Prof. Dr. O.P. Monga, Susan Elizabeth Lamb-Woodward und Farid Bounekhla call for interdisciplinary approaches and strategies between Sociology and other sciences:

?Sociology can instill confidence that world need to change with the changing conditions, but we need more than Sociology to change it, that is, interdisciplinary approaches and strategies. I call it as 'socio-technogical approach. I understand that one of the biggest thing is the need for survival which tends to all of us and establishes sustainable linkages through culture of societies. The question, that can Sociology change? My answer is in affirmation. Sociology is a science which sets pointers for change and it is individuals who organise and manage change. No doubt that there are always number of intervening variables which mediate this change.“

?Sociology can't change the world, but Sociologist can change behaviors, ideals, strategies, and views by the integration of many disciplinary approaches to make society a better place!“

?Unfortunately, there is no science alone, the only who can understand and interpret the social phenomena. I think sociology is a science that would study in depth the community and has the ability to predict. I think Sociology can change the world. Today the social sciences as a science meeting, economics, psychology work together to understand the phenomena and the search for causes and factors, and access to the results. You can not neglect sociology as you said. I want to say that today Social Sciences are working together to reach more accurate results. […] In addition, no science can change the world. Every science remains relatively. It is very difficult to change the world because the world itself is always variable.“

3 Sociology for a better understanding of the world

Emmanuel Baba Aduku attaches great importance to Sociology, but it cannot change the world:

?Sociology may not be able to 'change' the world, but it can continue to be a force for good as it has been since the discipline was founded.“

In contrast to Ali Reza Ghobadi, Mariano Manuel Adérito Lameira, Dr. Sheeba Khalid, Delgollage Senewirathne, Nima Jafar and Ranju Hasini Sahoo and Olga Susskaya who are convinced that Sociology can change the world:

?I think Sociology CAN and must! do many things in human society. According to the philosophy of Social Sciences there are many perspectives which can give different pictures of social phenomena. Anyway I think if Sociology concentrates on the meanings of actions, then it can present a useful interpretation about the phenomena characters.“

?I think Sociology can contribute to changing the world indirectly because it helps us to understand ourselves. It does not have an immediate and visible response. The more people you meet you may have less prejudice and stereotypes about our actions. Long-term Sociology ode to contribute to the change of the world.“

?Sociology can change the world, because only a Sociologist can think about every aspects of society at micro & macro level.“

?People behavior can be changed through planned change, readiness to change and natural change .Therefore sociologist can make a big difference if all sociologist in the world come to one platform and do the changes through the system development.“

?Yes, it can. because the world is very regular and Sociology can find the order and help to progress. Your question has two answers: at first the progress is relative and go to the absolute progress. and second, some of us, understand the Sociology very better of another and they govern and control the people for do not destroy their opportunities. So we want the Sociology to discover these goals.“

?I work in Indira Gandhi National Tribal University, where 48 per cent tribal students study. In my department in Post Graduation 100 per cent are tribal students who study Sociology. I think after learning Sociology they understand their society better both from emic and ethic perspectives. In this way I think Sociology changes the world.“

?Sociology has sent and followed information, wich changed the world. It isn't a traditional question. Also, for my mind, Sociology as the ultimate and greatest science, a discipline above all other sciences which can integrate and relate their discoveries about society and world processes.“

For Zoubairi Majiev it is a question of the will, whether a system wants to follow Sociology or not:

?The big question is: can social sciences change the world or just interpret it? A qualified sociological interpretation often serves as the precondition of the change of reality in the desired direction.“

4 Sociologists are from this world – mainstreamed and conforming

Bahirathy Jeeweshwara Rasanen speaks of mainstream:

?It is more with how we conceptualize ourselves. Changes depend on how near and far from our personal particularities & peculiarities are. It is more relate with self-concept formation and the problem of identification and self identity. Individualism and collectivism are the consequences of certain social conditions. So the new generation of the young Sociologists are not escaped from this, in my opinion. going with the flow is the mainstream decision.“

Dundin Zen, Pavla Harris, Soulamy Laurens and Twan Manders speaks of conformism:

?Once you are part of the system, you become a different person loosing criticism. This also applies to so-called reformist persons.“

?The system necessarily made you into conformists. I do not believe large systems can be changed from within.“

?No we can't change it. If we could change the world, we would already have done it.“

?Sociologists are far too much influenced by middle class values to able to really understand BREXIT, Trump etc.“

5 Sociology needs more diffusion, fans and stars

Olga Cupp, Tanko Ahmed, Yvette Darden and Dr. Jaya Goyal see the great opportunity in the dissemination of information and advertising of sociological knowledge.

?Should Sociology itself change the world? Or should it 'understand' societies and describe their development, functioning, structure, and more? Not sure if for example physics is changing the world, rather describes it therefore giving directions for change. Why are we so tough on Sociology? There is still much to learn in Physical Sciences, same applies to Social Sciences. Comte believed that Sociology will be a "positive" science. No question about that. The question should be: How can Sociology change the world? Bourdieu (we all have a favorite Sociologist) believed (later in his carrier) that Sociologists need to come out of their 'Ivory tower'. (Yippee for Habermas, but I bet your neighbor has no clue who he is). We need what Bill Nye is doing for Physical Science. We (Sociologists) collectively need to prove that we CAN answer questions about for example business organizations (culture, organizational development, change management). And that is how Sociology can change the world.“

?ICT Revolution provides a formidable platform for Digital Sociology with its unlimited potentials in handling group dynamics - it is within this premise that Sociology could change the world.“

?There is a chance for Sociology to play a part in changing the world. The correct information in the correct individuals' hands, minds, and hearts could cause wonders and miracles to be worked.“

?Sociology is said to be the mother of social sciences but it has been greatly overshowed by its cousin - Economics! Not a problem in itself, but the fact that Marx have had more scholar fans till date than Durkheim, Weber or Kant shows that world is often seen from one lens - labour and markets ! Where are sociology's own heros that made big, after MN Srinivas, Andre Beteille, Gail Omvedt, Louis Dumont and Yogendra Singh?“

6 Outlook

Again I thank all the scientific colleagues for the exciting contributions and interesting views. It was such a great honor for me to have so many experts and interested people in this discussion. As you see, in result there are many experts here, who are convinced that the methods of Sociology can reveal power structures, identify particular interests, and at least show the world the way to avoid structures and behavior in order to make this world more equal, more solidary and fairer.

In my opinion the time of the great all-encompassing macro- and micro-theories such as he Theory of Social Systems (Luhmann)", "Symbolic Interactionism" (Mead, Blumer), "Theory of Communicative Action" (Habermas) is over. In Sociology, we are similar to physics in a phase of "Quantum Sociology". The great theories of the last centuries must now be "connected," but the "link" is missing in order to overcome the micro-macro-dualism and, on the other, to anylize the interrelationships between the "social phenomena" and human being in every detail.

The technological and scientific possibilities are there. But the Sociologists who are interested in such a "revolutionary research" are either unemployed, they are working in other professions and are fighting for their own "survival", so they have no time to expose unwelcome truths to powerholders, elites and modern manipulators, the last great truth of the ""Quantum Sociology" or even to keep the mirror in front of the world society. In this last scientific phase, Sociology must work more closely with other neighboring sciences such as Ethnology, Anthropology, Political Science, Psychology, etc., but also with more remote ones such as Biology, Physics and Chemistry in order to find the missing "link".

Dr. Rodolfo Valentino, Avda. Honduras, 5, 4° B, 39005 Santander, Telf.: 0034-601 492 418, Fax: 0049-32223358935, E-Mail: [email protected], WEB: https://bimev.de/, Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/eurosor/