Key Sociological Thinkers

Description

The third edition of this popular and established core textbook provides an invaluable guide to 24 of the most influential thinkers in Sociology. Written by leading academics in the field, Key Sociological Thinkers provides a clear and contextualised introduction to classical and contemporary theory. Each chapter offers an insightful assessment of a different theorist, exploring their lives, works and legacies, and in a much-valued 'Seeing Things Differently' section authors demonstrate how each thinker's ideas can be used to illuminate aspects of social life in new ways. With frameworks for deep learning around group discussion, this continues be an essential text for undergraduate and postgraduate modules on sociological and social theory. New to this Edition: - Four new chapters, on Mead, Du Bois, Latour and Alexander - Five chapters by new authors on existing key thinkers: Durkheim, Merton, Goffman, Bourdieu, and Giddens - A major new introduction - An updated, structured and annotated 'Further Reading' section for each thinker - Extended accounts of 13 additional thinkers who have influenced, or been influenced by, the key thinkers

Rob Stones is Professor of Sociology in the School of Social Sciences and Psychology, Western Sydney University. He has a broad interest in social, sociological and political theory, their application in empirical research, and their importance to serious reflection on public issues. He has pioneered the version of structuration theory known as strong structuration theory (SST), designed to guide empirical case study research and adopted in diverse areas. His books include Sociological Reasoning (1996), Structuration Theory (2005), and Why Current Affairs Needs Social Theory (2015). He is the editor of two book series with Palgrave Macmillan, Themes in Social Theory and Traditions in Social Theory.

A text with the conceptual and pedagogical qualities of Key Sociological Thinkers comes around only once every academic generation, presenting ideas in a way that aids students in developing theoretical literacy and including exercises to help apply theory to real-world cases. * Javier Trevino, Wheaton College, USA *