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I make the argument that mathematical sociology uniquely contributes to sociological theory through the theoretical models it develops to bridge the gap between the ideas of sociological theorists and data relevant to their empirical evaluation. My work on intergroup association and social integration, the fruit of a long-time collaboration with Fararo and more recently with Karpiński, is used throughout to illustrate my points. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

The article presents an introduction to the paper "Ethnic Preferences, Social Distance Dynamics, and Residential Segregation: Theoretical Explanations Using Simulation Analysis," by Mark Fossett and the commentaries following it.

The method of E-state structuralism provides dynamic models for the evolution and development of networks in small groups. Our interest lies in the kind of social networks that these models produce. We ask the question of whether such models produce "interesting" structure from a network point-of-view, in particular, from the perspective of Holland and Leinhardt who argue that any network that can be modeled adequately using only properties of nodes and dyads has no social structure. We show that E-state structuralism models are models of social structure in this technical sense because they assume a bystander mechanism in the creation of ties. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

While much attention has been paid to the identification and distribution of power in exchange networks, little has been paid to the role information plays in these processes. This is surprising because information availability is one of the key differences between the two mare experimental research paradigms in this field, power-dependence and network exchange/elementary theory. The former investigates power distribution when subjects have no information about network structure while the latter examines the same problem under conditions of full information. We derive specific hypotheses about power devel- opment in ‘strong power’ networks under different information conditions using ‘resistance’ analysis, a set, of orienting ideas found in network exchange/elementary theory. We evaluate these derived functional forms against experimental data. We find that the effect of information on power development is consistent with the general resistance framework even though there is little support for its specific claims. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Narrative analysis is applied to episodes of interaction generated by coupled production systems con- trolling the activity of different processing units. Formal analysis of such coupled systems, conceived of as models of institutionalized social action, has shown that they generate context-free languages of interaction. This note suggests that narrative analysis of interaction strings in such languages has limited analytical utility: it offers neither a method to discriminate between well-formed and malformed strings of interaction nor a procedure to induce the underlying generative rule structure from a corpus of well-formed interaction strings. Therefore, the narrative method holds hale promise as a technique to examine the routinized activity composing a social institution. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Three research traditions that have developed formal representations of action structures are presented in the first part of this paper and preliminary attempts are made to unify them. These three efforts differ more or less substantially in focus: affect control (Heise 1979; 1985), institutionalized social action (Fararo and Skvoretz 1984; 1986) and action feasibility (Nowakowska 1973). In the second part of the paper, we attempt to place these formal models in a more general theoretical context, namely, that of sociological action theory as it has been developed in the work of Talcott Parsons. Our presentation here concentrates on cybernetic imagery in Parsonian action theory, particularly in relation to his famous AGIL scheme of analysis and in relation to his concern with types of actions and corresponding value-standards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay summarizes an inquiry that explores relations between the structure of stratified systems and the processes of vertical mobility. The inquiry considers economic stratification (the distribution of wealth) and is directed to determining whether the structural properties of stratification systems are sufficient to generate basic patterns in vertical mobility observed in empirical research, especially, the rank-distance effect. In particular, the question is whether these patterns can be generated even if movement is constrained by nothing more than the size of the population over which wealth is distributed and the total amount of wealth to be distributed. Our results show that the rank-distance effect emerges even under these minimal assumptions and, further, that rates and distances of vertical mobility are closely related to changes in these boundary parameters of a stratified system. The basic theory developed to relate structure and mobility provides results that are highly consistent with many empirical observations. It also challenges existing claims concerning the nature of the mechanisms determining the relative status immobility of most people in large scale systems. The theory implies that the way in which system structure constrains opportunity for movement is, by itself, sufficient to produce this result and others commonly observed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Presents a response by the authors to the commentaries on their paper "Institutions as Production Systems," that appear in the 1984 issue of the "Journal of Mathematical Sociology." Information on the main criticism of the paper; Assertion of the support on the use of formalisms developed in artificial intelligence and cognitive science to represent systems of social action; Revelation that the production system model with finite set of institutionalized normative rules does have the capability to generate an infinity of normatively acceptable sequences of action that may differ from one another in underlying structures.

This paper proposes a formal mode of representation and a corresponding way of thinking about institutionalized social action. It draws its representational technique and its way of thinking about its subject from several sources, including systems theory, cognitive science, and structuralism. It is based on the idea that a model involves a proposed generative mechanism for observable patterns of action and that such a generator must be a system of rules. We discuss the philosophical and sociological presuppositions of our proposal, then outline in detail and illustrate the idea of a production system model. Following this, we argue that the proposed mode of representation is appropriate for the action frame of reference and then develop a series of specific "problematics" involving the structural analysis of institutionalized social action. We conclude with a discussion of issues an problems for further research. The paper does not include mathematical work found elsewhere, although it tries to indicate its significance. Similarly, it does not include data analyses reported elsewhere, although it tries to show that the models make definite predictions about certain forms of data. In short, the paper strives to be a readable introduction to the conceptual foundations of a line of investigation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]