Abstract
Public Sociology: Commitment and Science of a Global Sociology
This volume represents a unique contribution to the vivid debate about the necessity for global sociology to be committed to its surrounding social reality. Its editor, Michael Burawoy, has brilliantly integrated diverse perspectives coming from different parts of the globe. The result is a discussion by outstanding scholars regarding the global development of public sociology through different research venues, topics, methodologies and theoretical arenas. Burawoy highlights the importance of moral commitment and a strong motivation to understand fully why the authors of this monograph engage with their immediate social, political and economic environments to achieve change regardless of personal risk.
This collection highlights the need to reflect on the extent to which public sociology can counteract the strong tendencies towards dehumanisation that endanger our civilisations. The authors present different forms of exercising a Weberian ethics of responsibility in their scholarly work, drawing on their own research and/or trajectory as sociologists practising public sociology. Merton’s (1973: 273) idea of communism of science, in which ‘[the] findings of science are a product of social collaboration and are assigned to the community’ may resonate with the reader.
The special issue opens with an excellent introduction by Burawoy, pointing out the crucial elements of public sociology in the context of global market fundamentalism. He draws from Bourdieu to discuss current dilemmas public sociologists face worldwide. Along these lines, he stresses the theoretical consistency with which each of the 10 pieces tackles a wide range of dilemmas that shape the practice of public sociology. This consistency turns the monograph into an exceptional collective work that will inform other scholars’ commitments to go public in their own research.
In the first piece, Cesar Rodríguez-Garavito draws from his experience with research on and advocacy for socio-environmental conflicts in Latin America. The author proposes a series of strategies to address public sociology dilemmas through the ‘amphibious sociology’ approach (p. 157). The image of Don Quixote fighting the windmill is aptly used by the author to illustrate the dangers of practising public sociology in countries with a history of recent political violence. Similarly Nandini Sundar from India explores the dilemma of validating the sociology from the global academic periphery in a world where ‘to publish globally is to perish locally and vice versa’ (p. 170). She also challenges the specialised readership to reflect upon the question of ‘what is the sociologists’ responsibility in times of war?’ (p. 173). Sundar revisits her own life as an academic-activist and the long-term ethical dilemmas that were involved. The third piece comes from Karl Von Holdt, from South Africa. Rooted in the post-apartheid context, a case study of the transformation of a hospital demonstrates how sociologic activism can mutually reinforce the different types of sociology. This process reflects on the power dynamics and intersections of dominant and subordinate sociologies. The author expands Webster’s concept of critical engagement, a practice that can produce new critical knowledge.
The Lebanese sociologist Hanafi follows, inviting the readers to immerse themselves in the development of sociology in the Arab context. Drawing from his own work on the Palestinian Diaspora, Hanafi sheds new light on the tension between political and humanitarian priorities in defining responses for vulnerable populations. Next, Pun Ngai presents a three-year public sociology experiment in China involving researchers, workers and transnational movement activists. She shows how they are all struggling to contest the forces of the global production regime. Readers learn about the history of sociology in China and today’s critical rebirth of the discipline through denouncing Chinese workers’ precarious conditions. Along similar lines, Francis Fox Piven explores the Occupy Movement in the USA, analysing ‘how people at the bottom sometimes exercise power’ (p. 223) with the capacity to disrupt and to communicate successfully. Piven’s concept of interdependent power (p. 225) serves to understand better the implications of going beyond disruptive power and to explain better the problems this entails.
The Spanish sociologists Flecha and Soler discuss a method of organic public sociology for and with civil society through what they call Communicative Methodology. This methodological approach brings scientific knowledge into dialogue with grassroots insight, identifying successful actions that reduce barriers of social justice. These actions are then recreated with the public in a process of dialogic democracy (p. 235). Next, the French sociologist Wieviorka revisits his work on racism, anti-Semitism and terrorism, and on anti-nuclear and labour movements in relation to Touraine’s sociological intervention. He reflects on public sociology’s dilemmas, such as how to maintain a critical distance when closely analysing social reality (p. 250).
Temkina and Zdravomyslova describe the development of gender studies in Russia as an example of public sociology in the Soviet context. The gender backlash in Russian politics is contrasted by the development of a democratic community that shares liberal and leftist ideas of gender equality and gender freedom. Finally, Walden Bello narrates his trajectory investigating the killings committed by the Philippine Communist Party. Like the other authors, Bello endeavours to develop theoretical analyses to ‘provide a guide to shaping social arrangements for the better’ (p. 271). He discusses the need to develop unorthodox research methods and provides a deep reflection on one of the main dilemmas public sociologists face, namely, how to link truth and power.
In summary, this monograph illustrates the fact that public sociology is not an easy endeavour. Public sociology involves both commitment and science. The different reflections in this work are relevant for a wide variety of ongoing debates: scientific neutrality, objectivity versus social engagement, local versus global, the social and political impact of research among others. The balance between theory, critical analysis, methodological innovation and public orientation makes this monograph a milestone that will be especially inspiring for young scholars seeking sources of meaning in their academic work. This volume will also be of interest to those who are struggling to find a balance between intellectualism and activism, showing ways in which sociology already contributes to making the world a better place in which to live.