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- Title
Articulation, or the persistent problem with explanation.
- Authors
Marres, Noortje
- Abstract
This article explores the limitations of explanation as a means of understanding society. It argues that society is distinct from nature and that individuals actively shape social reality through norms and rules. The article highlights the issue of explanation in social science, which often fails to consider the interactive nature of social categories and realities. It suggests that sociologists should focus on articulation, continuously revising and rethinking categories to accurately name and comprehend phenomena in a dynamic world. The article provides examples from computational social science and feminist technology studies to illustrate the significance of ethnographic description and theory-driven interpretation in capturing the complexities of social phenomena. It argues against the notion that social science should solely prioritize explanation and neglect the importance of articulation. Instead, it emphasizes the need for social science to develop vocabularies, categories, and sensibilities that make phenomena observable, explorable, and communicable. The text also criticizes the narrow focus on explanation and emphasizes the interactive relationship between social science and the social world. It suggests that social science should be reflexive and acknowledge the importance of articulation to avoid perpetuating outdated categories and better engage with the evolving social world.
- Subjects
SOCIAL science methodology; EXPLANATION; GENERATIVE artificial intelligence; SOCIAL comparison
- Publication
British Journal of Sociology, 2024, Vol 75, Issue 3, p354
- ISSN
0007-1315
- Publication type
Article
- DOI
10.1111/1468-4446.13084