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Structure and Social Action in Stein Rokkan's Work

Per Selle

The article discusses Stein Rokkan's research strategy, i.e. that of retrospectively explaining structural variations, in the light of the crucial problem of modern social science, namely: how to reconcile the sociology of structures and the sociology of action. The authors' hypothesis is that Rokkan, who takes as his point of departure how contexts influence and guide human action does not succeed in his efforts to combine these levels of analysis. Through an analysis of the role played by the `counter cultures' in Rokkan's analyses of Norwegian political development the authors argue that Rokkan's lack of success in this respect is a logical consequence of his structural functional models combined with his retrospective method. Even though Rokkan attributes decisive weight to goal-oriented actions of social groups, their intentions and meaning are introduced post festum, and Rokkan never undertakes any real analysis of the ideologies, resources and strategic choices of political groups.

Key Words: retrospective method • structural variation • historical sociology • political culture • nation-building

Journal of Theoretical Politics, Vol. 2, No. 2, 131-149 (1990)
DOI: 10.1177/0951692890002002001


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