Theorizing Social Structure

The concept of social structure is widely recognized as one of the most fundamentalideas in the discipline of sociology. However, in this book theauthor argues that it still remains one of the most elusive and abused conceptsin sociological theory. The author claims that the continued status ofthe notion of social structure in contemporary sociological theory results froma significant lack of precise theories about social structure. The goal of thisbook is to achieve a theoretical synthesis in order to form a basis towards asociological theory of social structure. In doing so, the author draws fromthree major currents of sociological thought. First, the author identifiesprinciples of social structure from classical sociologists. Second, he revisitsand reclaims the useful contributions made in the discourse concerning theissue of structure-agency. Third, he draws from economic and organizationalsociology in search of governance structures which, in essence, offer a viableconceptualization of social structure. The book addresses the importantquestion of social structure in the field of general sociological theory.