Sari Hanafi and Chin-Chun Yi (eds),Sociologies in Dialogue

Sociologies in Dialogue is a unique project that takes the international discussion on sociology and its role in socioeconomic changes at the local and global scales to a fundamentally new level. Discussions about ‘global sociology’ have been going on for a long time. However, this is the first time when an integrated intellectual product appears that combines the efforts of sociologists from 20 countries.

The main problem in the discussion on ‘global sociology’ remains its fragmentary character. Different visions of sociology, created in various local and national contexts, have not been comprehended on a single conceptual framework. The task is not only to ‘pay attention’ to local specifics, but also to systematically and consistently overview particular cases, locating them on a single conceptual space.

The book Sociology in dialogue tries to accomplish this task and mostly succeeds. Two distinguished editors, Sari Hanafi and Chin-Chun Yi, put forward three ‘conditions for sociologies to be in Dialogue’ (p. 2) in the conceptual fundament of the monograph.

First, is to ‘deconstruct the binary logic of the antagonistic categories, such as tradition/modernity, East/West, universalism/contextualism . . . ’ (p. 2). The dominant conceptual frameworks in sociological mainstream are indeed sometimes rigid and inadequate, which has long been recognized in the literature. However, the question is what concrete new categorical systems can effectively substitute the existing ones? The book offers several sketches for such novel conceptual frameworks. However, for the larger part, this is, apparently, the task for future research.

The second basic premise is to recognize ‘the necessity to reach a cross-cultural consensus on universal concepts’ (p. 2). Understanding the complexity of this task, the authors offer an original and innovative solution. They claim that the focus should be on the universality of ‘ideas’, not necessarily implying the same concrete models or mechanisms – an approach that stands behind mainstream sociological vocabulary, manifested in such notions as ‘democracy’ or ‘social class’. Given the increasing turbulence and diversity in institutional contexts on the local, national, and global levels, this approach seems adequate; however, the problem is how to combine it with the demand for methodological consistency of sociology as a science, not an ideology.

Sari Hanafi and Chin-Chun Yi rightfully point out the need to overcome the spatial barriers that limit sociological knowledge (for instance, the usual division into West and East), but it is also important to note the temporal dimension. The global dialogue between sociologies may be an important step for understanding ‘globality’ as a qualitatively new state of contemporary world, which did not exist before. For example, the notion of ‘social class’ indeed requires revision – but not only because it is Western-centric. Another part of the story is that, in its traditional interpretations in terms of property or labor relations, ‘social class’ may not allow adequately capturing the recent global changes in economy, including those related to the role of artificial intelligence in transforming the nature of work.

The third principal suggestion advanced by the editors concerns linking sociological knowledge production at the international and local levels. The suggestion to recognize English as the lingua franca of contemporary sociology (not discriminating other cultures and their native languages) is an important step for building effectively institutionalized professional communication.

The book consists of five parts. Part 1, ‘Trends in Internationalization of Sociology’ is perhaps of special importance, because it deals with the most acute issues in the emerging global sociology scholarship: what does internationalization and globalization of sociology actually mean for sociological communities around the globe? What implications does it have for sociological theory and methodology?

Paola Borgna analyzes internationalization of Italian sociological scholarship. On one hand, she shows how local and national issues may become underrepresented in global academic discourse. On the other hand, she demonstrates that the global manifests itself in local realities – for instance, in the case of the international academic ranking system. Tom Dwyer and Carlos Benedito Martins look at internationalization in Portuguese-speaking countries in the context of other language-specific ‘tiers’ of sociological communication. Important is the shift from the traditional ‘North–South’ nexus in thinking about sociology’s internationalization – to the less explored ‘South–South’ dimension.

Dan Woodman speaks about ‘global generations’, offering an example of a concrete phenomenon requiring inherently global social science for its accurate comprehension. The ‘global generations’, Dan Woodman demonstrates, are imbedded in a new type of global reality, which goes beyond both local and global in its traditional mainstream comprehension. For Dan Woodman, ‘global’ contains an aspect of ‘imaginary’ which explains why it may be seen as both universal and contextual-specific.

Anna Wessely elaborates on the long debates concerning the relation between center and periphery in sociological practice and claims that evaluation of sociological knowledge should base primarily on its heuristic value. This issue is highly relevant for the continuing structuration of sociological communities, involving those in former Soviet countries and in the ‘global South’. The question that Anna Wessely raises is, does the fact that a concrete theory or idea has come from a particular ‘underrepresented’ country or community increase the value of this theory? Perhaps yes, – Anna Wessely explains,–but only to the extent that it actually brings new relevant concepts, tools, and hypotheses.

Part 2, ‘Emerging New Local Sociologies’, brings together insights from Filipinas, Taiwan, Russia, Mexico, and several other Latin American countries. Dennis S. Erasga demonstrates the pitfalls of raw nativism and reactionary indigenization. Roberto Briceño-León proposes a ‘Mestizo sociology’ stressing a poli-paradigmatic position and combining elements of Marxism and functionalism with ideas of social learning and psychoanalysis. The results are prospective and ambitious methodological innovations rethinking the rigid distinction between universality and contextualism.

The stories by Fernando Castañeda Sabido, Mikhail F. Chernysh, and Chih-Jou Jay Chen demonstrate the uniqueness of the local against the global universal dynamics. Each of the national cases they refer to (Mexico, Russia, and Taiwan) has an unprecedented historical past connected with specific patterns of internal colonialism (Mexico), post-socialistic social change (Russia), or indigenization (Taiwan). Without considering such particularities, the global sociological dialogue would not be productive.

Part 3, ‘Sociology in a (Post-)authoritarian Context’, is remarkable for Sari Hanafi’s analysis of the ‘Arab left’ phenomenon, bringing conceptual advancement to the postcolonial studies. Sari Hanafi highlights two features of the ‘Arab left’, insufficiently explored in current debates: the anti-imperialist and anti-Western nature of this phenomenon. The proposed methodological solution is to combine a postcolonial approach with a post-authoritarian one.

Part 4, ‘When Sociology Becomes Public’, opens with Kazuo Seiyama’s paper on the complex relations between the normative and empirical sides of sociological practice on the example of recent debates concerning welfare reforms. Since one of sociologies’ major tasks is ‘exploring a desirable communal society’ (p. 239), Kazuo Seiyama argues that the ‘highest emphasis’ (p. 239) is needed on the normative value of the phenomena under study, including welfare society. Another strong contribution to this chapter comes from Terry Wotherspoon, who claims that current multiple crises call sociologists to prove ‘the value of their craft and the knowledge produced through their activities’ (p. 241). Terry Wotherspoon explores the process of reconciliation between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people in Canada showing how it appears ‘framed within global dynamics in ways that are highly relevant to understanding prospects for global dialogues within the discipline’ (p. 241). In particular, Terry Wotherspoon emphasizes the fact that ‘the assumptions and relationships that have guided sociological knowledge and practice within a white settler colonial context’ (p. 262) – are becoming increasingly problematic, which requires ‘the advancement of global dialogue within the discipline’ (p. 262).

Part 5, ‘Hurdles for the dialogue: Challenges of the Institutionalization of Sociology’, continues critical overview of the sociologies’ diverse paths in the non-Anglo-Saxon world, including Bangladesh, Portugal, and Palestine. Shaikh Mohammad Kais argues that ‘erratic and disorganized development of sociology programs in universities and colleges can lead to devaluation of this abstract science, the practice of which requires a critical mind with the ability of independent thinking’ (p. 339). He further provides evidences that, in the case of sociology’s development in Bangladesh, ‘unplanned quantitative proliferation has been associated with crucial qualitative degeneration’ (p. 355). Such criticism seems highly on time concerning not only Asian countries, many of which indeed remain leaders in expansion of tertiary education not always followed by increased economic growth and broader societal development, but the global world as a whole.

The book Sociologies in Dialogue marks a new stage in the development of the International Sociological Association. It is a stage when the work of the association becomes truly global; a stage when its activities more comprehensively reflect the growing diversity of national sociologies in the twenty-first century; a stage when intense and productive interaction between various national sociologies as parts of global sociology is more necessary than ever. This new stage is most welcome, because the world is in a state of crisis against the background of the COVID-19 pandemic and its expected consequences. The book Sociologies in Dialogue gives hope that sociologists as professionals, scholars, policy consultants, and public intellectuals will have an important role in dealing with this crisis, which is truly global as sociology itself.