当我们说社会学“理论”时，theory指的应该/是什么？（Abend2008）

Original 高行云 Sociological理论大缸 2021-02-04

Abend,Gabriel. 2008. “The Meaning of ‘Theory.’” Sociological Theory 26 (2):173–99. doi:10.1111/j.1467-9558.2008.00324.x.

当我们在说“理论”的时候，我们指的到底是什么？

当我们在说“理论”的时候，它到底应该指的是什么？

(a) what does ‘theory’ mean in thesociological language?;

and (b) what ought ‘theory’ to mean in the sociological language?

1. 问题系

Abend提出了关于theory本身思考的问题系，它们分别是语义、存在论、评估和目的论问题：

what does “theory” mean?

—‘semantic question’ (SQ)

—sociologists frequently use the word ‘theory,’

What is theory?

—the ontological question

—metaphysics, reality, essences, being, and the like

What is a good theory?

— the evaluative question

—predicate

What is theory for?

—the teleological question

—the nature and aims of sociology.

从语义讲，实际上，当我们在说“理论”二字的时候，搞不清到底指的是什么？

比如，被问到how should theory be judged?

A会说：和经典文本对话an ongoing dialogue with some classic texts

B会说：if ..then..的命题the construction of propositions of the form ‘if p then q.’

C会说：发展些关于这个世界的概念the development of lexica and schemata with which to talk about the social world.

——A, B, and C havea substantive disagreement about how theory should be judged, but rather that they are talking about different things.

2. 社会学里的使用情况

到底社会学界在使用theory这个词时，有几种经验上的类型上呢？

Theory1 关于变量的普遍命题

it is a general proposition, or logically-connected system of general propositions,which establishes a relationship between two or more variables.

Theory2经受起反事实检验，对特定社会现象的，指定conditions和factors的“解释”

A theory2 is an explanation of a particular social phenomenon

并且，从Hempel角度，No.1包括No.2：In this view, then, one or more theories1 logically entail acertain theory2

Theory3 诠释地理解世界中的经验——it asks: ‘whatdoes it mean that P?,’ ‘is it significant that P?,’ ‘is it really the case that P?,’ ‘what is P all about?

the main goal of a theory3 is to say something about empiricalphenomena in the social world….

Theory4 重/解读大师作品——they may ask what theauthor of a text ‘really’ meant the study of and the students of the writings of authors…reconstructthe logic of these arguments.

Theory5 世界观——e.g. ‘postmodern theory,’ ‘poststructuralist theory’这些词中的THEORY

A theory5 is a Weltanschauung, …, theories5 are not aboutthe social world itself, but about how to look at, grasp, and represent it.

Theory6带规范性主张的“政治主张”（political account）

‘critical theory,’ ‘feminist theory,’ and ‘postcolonial theory’are explicitly normative ones, which usually reject the fact/value dichotomy,

Theory7 涉及到这些问题的——suchas the ‘micro-macroproblem,’ the ‘problem of structure and agency,’ or ‘the problem of social order.’

往往会涉及到Theory4，也Theory5也关系密切

3. 警惕苏格拉底的错误

Abend批评，认为社会学家会认为犯下“苏格拉底的错误”（Socratic error）——去问 whatis X?，比如，什么是“理论”？这实际上是认为理论=object=thing= the word ‘theory’ supposedly picks out, or should pick out。

而对苏格拉底那样的追问的回答，要基于以下的假设：

——意义明确单一

——有本质的

——关于本质这么回事的实在主义的假定

——这个本质能被搞清楚

First, we must assume that the word X is univocal. Second, we mustassume that the thing X has an ‘essence.’ Third, we must make some sort ofrealist assumption about the ontological status of this ‘essence.’ And, fourth,we must assume that this ‘essence’ is not a ‘primary element’ but has astructure that can be explicated; for otherwise we must already know what X isin asking the question in Socrates’ sense.

而实际上，theory这个词，在社会学里根本不满足这样的要求，就好比，人们指责历史/定性研究，的small-N问题——少数个案凭什么推出普遍理论。

Can small-N studies (e.g., ethnographic and historical studies)yield ‘theoretical’ gains?

实际上，定性研究得出的理论是Theory2或3，而批评者可能指的又是其它什么呢？

4. 解决方案：协商民主式

Abend最后将这样情况称之为THE SEMANTIC PREDICAMENT

怎么解决呢？他的方案是：

（1）实践/“政治”上还是要多交流多讨价还价，甚至从组织、权力上大家讲定一些规则。

how to establish standards of validity andmerit for arguments, methods, and evidence that aim at settling this semanticdivergence.

（2）存在论和认识论上的多元主义要“越少越好”，Abend不愿让theory一词和存在论和认识论扯上关系，因为他认为那二者只是信仰、观点，会让社会学变成要对这些信仰与观点发起审判。

I believe that a satisfactory solution to SP should make as fewontological and epistemological demands as possible. The set ofconditions under which the word ‘theory’ can be correctly used should not have too much built-in ontological and epistemological baggage.

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