Toward a Public Sociology

• In Event: 61.056 - Toward a Taxonomy of Collaborative Research in Education and the Social Sciences

Abstract

Toward a Public Sociology

This paper situates its literature review in an overview of the historical context and emergence of collaborative forms of research in the discipline of sociology in the U.S. It describes key terms and definitions that sociologists deploy to describe their work and the work of other scholars in the discipline.

Sociologists have used a variety of terms to describe methodological approaches in research that aim at social improvement or the amelioration of social problems through the involvement of community members in research. Public sociology, organic public sociology, participatory action research, action research, community-based participatory research, community-based research, and engaged scholarship were frequent terms found in the literature, each of these intending to challenge traditional narrow conceptions of knowledge production. These terms are sometimes used interchangeably and their meanings seem to overlap, while at other times the terms are intended to mark out distinctive approaches.

These terms do seem to invoke variations in how members of the public are engaged in the research, to signal the relevance of the research to certain audiences, or to show that community members participate in the knowledge production processes (Parrado & Flippen, 2005; Couch, 2004; Gereffi and Christian, 2009). In some respects, “public sociology” (Burawoy, 2004; Nyden et al., 2012) has become the common inclusive term meant to reference these other approaches. However, public sociology is a broad umbrella whose common elements are the production of knowledge that is relevant to social issues (rather than solely to advance sociological theory) and that speaks to the public (and not just sociologists) and contributes to public dialogue and policy debates (Burawoy, 2004, 2005a, 2005b; Burawoy et al., 2004).

Some approaches go further though, and try to include active community engagement in research processes, in contrast to frameworks that position scholars as experts/knowledge producers and community members as providers of information/recipients of knowledge. These sociologists seek to conduct research with and not on communities. Some approaches try to construct mechanisms for unmediated dialogue between sociologists and community members or groups (Treviño, 2012). The purposes of these methodological approaches are to generate knowledge that contributes to action towards social justice and increases the capacity of community members to bring about social change (Couch, 2004; Miller, 2011). In other words, there is a continuing shift in emphasis among public sociologists from research that is relevant and accessible to the public to more emancipatory efforts and ethical considerations that critique power structures and aim to make actual change in and with communities.

Author

• Emily Borg, University of California - Santa Cruz