How do Markets Advance Social Theory? Findings and Questions.

• In Event: 3411 - Economic Sociology Regular Session: Theoretical Perspectives

Abstract

We have the tendency to go to social theory in search of concepts and interpretations that help us understand an empirical area of research. This paper argues that we can also reverse the “go-to” direction and ask what a particular area of research is telling us that’s challenging our regular interpretative resources and that could actually advance theory. The paper documents how contemporary financial markets are hard to integrate with established and routinely used theoretical concepts such as the notion of a network and that of a field without loss of unique adequacy. One reason may be that the area itself incorporates new knowledge and technology that intersect with social and cultural patterns, resulting in mixed and new architectures, logics and dynamics. The paper documents the theoretical difficulties and offers alternatives to existing concepts that may also become relevant for non-market areas.

Author

• Karin D. Knorr Cetina, University of Chicago