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Norbert Elias's theory of civilising processes has been received only marginally in the USA, one of the obstacles being the absence of figurational or process studies of American society. In the first decade of this century this situation was changed by the publication of Stephen Mennell's The American Civilizing Process (2007) and Cas Wouters' Sex and Manners (2004) and Informalization (2007). By 2012, Randall Collins had reviewed the first and the third books in two essays (2009, 2011). His claims and criticism of civilising and informalisation theory are discussed in this paper by placing them in the context of the reception history of Elias's work since the 1960s, when a first round of discussion centred on criteria to be used for determining the direction of civilising processes. A second round was in the 1990s, and in this paper we contribute to a new round by presenting a summary of earlier critical discussions in an attempt to establish a more solid and subtler body of criteria for studying civilising processes. We use this in critically discussing Collins's contributions, linking them to symbolic interactionism, American National Ideology, and blind spots in American sociology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article analyzes the American presence in two journals of the Bucharest School of Sociology, as well as the information provided in these journals with regard to the American sociological models and their evolution. The data reviewed demonstrate not only a strong academic connection, but also an active cooperation and consistent exchange of academic knowledge between the two countries. The paper builds on a quantitative study of the full archives of the two journals - Arhiva pentru Ştiinţa şi Reforma Socială (Archive for Science and Social Reform) and Sociologie Romanească (Romanian Sociology); its final part is dedicated to the Romanian monographic activity of the U.S. sociologist Ph. Mosely. The conclusion is that the development of the Romanian school of sociology was in line not only with what was happening in the greatest schools of sociology in Europe, but also with the theoretical developments of the American sociology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Copyright of Revista Colombiana de Sociologia is the property of Universidad Nacional de Colombia, Facultad de Ciencias Humanas, Departamento de Sociologia and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Intersecoes: Revista de Estudios Interdisciplinares is the property of Editora da Universidade do Estado do Rio de Janeiro (EdUERJ) and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Some of the most significant growth of the field of sociology and the use of social analysis were realized outside the university setting, and before the institutionalization of sociology within these institutions, thanks to a myriad of women researchers, settlement representatives, religious and industrial philanthropists. At that time, within academia, Thomas and Zaniecki's The Polish Peasant became the first great theoretical and empirical work, whose leading author was expelled from the university by way of a too conservative institution and contradictory ethical evaluations. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The discipline of sociology observes the intertwining of social dynamics and social tendencies in relation to institutional power. How this observation becomes social knowledge concerns different areas: from empirical methodologies to philosophical reflexivity that can orient the starting question. However, sociology is not only a descriptive kind of science, but also a critical one. Through hermeneutics and activity, as well as active observation, sociology fulfill its role among other sciences. My thesis here is that in order to keep up with this role, in order to be able to absolve this role also in contemporary society, sociology has to become again the study of large-scale historical processes and structures, starting from the historical context in which are situated also in a comparative way. Also, problematizing the social sciences paradigm to which sociology itself is referring to so to relate it to the big changes in politics and economy from the '70s up to now. This essay will try to develop a critical view towards sociological knowledge recurring to some modern sociologist of the American and European tradition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]