Private Bag: Regionwide Planning Will Make the Problems Worse

Population and Environment -     

Whither the profession of sociology?

Sociological practice and applied sociology have long held an ambiguous status within the profession. A major source of tension has been the debate over the utility of knowledge: one faction views sociology as inescapably involved with societal problems and social action; another faction seeks scientific status and academic acceptance. In recent years, sociological practice and applied sociology have received greater recognition within the ASA. In the future, the vitality of the sociological enterprise will depend more upon its perceived social utility than its academic standing. The demand for useful knowledge and skills in social analysis will grow as a result of the increasing need for program assessments and the need to democratically “manage” diverse ethnic and cultural differences in the common interest.     

Keines für alle!

The article is an answer to Hartmut Esser’s “One for All? The Weber Paradigm, the Moderate Methodological Holism Concept and the Sociological Explanation Model”, published earlier in this journal (KZfSS 58: 352–363). It explicates the differences between Essers sociological explanation model and the alternative model of moderate methodological holism. It analyses Esser’s misunderstandings and shows that his model — contrary to Esser’s “official” announcement — doesn’t entail the concept of macrodetermination, which is rightly so, because it doesn’t fit with Essers reductionist approach. The ontological and anthropological conceptions underlying the two explanation models are very different and lead to different methodologies.     

Constitutional Reform and Canadian Social Policy

It is generally accepted that Governments, with a neo-conservative or more properly a Victorian neo-liberal bent will, through various means and mechanisms, try to dismantle aspects of the Welfare State. While these mechanisms usually take the form of privatization, reductions in expenditures, de-indexing and the like, a much more subtle process currently is underway in Canada. Two broad initiatives — Constitutional Change and Free Trade — of the Mulroney government seriously threaten the future of the Canadian Welfare State. The Welfare State is not the direct target in either of these initiatives but the implications, in the view of the authors, are profound. This article examines the question of constitutional reform and the consequences for Canadian social policy.     

Developing From Tranditional Microscale Chemistry to Microscale Green Chemistry

Microscale chemistry is appealing to all levels of education.In contrast to conventional macroscale chemistry,only minute amount of chemicals are required to undertaking a chemical investigation.     

Transformations in social work: From help towards social inclusion to the management of exclusion

The debate about the forms of increasing social exclusion in the developed western industrialized nations is the starting-point of this paper. This is followed by a discussion of the possible and likely consequences of social exclusion for social work theory and practice. It is suggested that on the social-theoretical basis of Luhmanns Systems Theory, social work can be investigated as the practice of averting exclusion, facilitating inclusion, and the management of exclusion in functionally differentiated societies. Against this background it is argued that social work as a form of secondary protection, both theoretically and practically, has to be related to the modes of inclusion and exclusion of social systems and organizations. In order to provide a theoretical clarification of the social tasks and opportunities of social work it is therefore necessary to conduct a precise analysis of the structures, forms, and processes of social inclusion and exclusion. At present it seems likely that, because of general societal developments, the increasing extent of exclusion and the intensification of exclusionary effects will lead to a situation in which social work will be restricted to the function of the management of exclusion.