«In the various sciences (hence, social sciences, too), a general theoretical schema that determines and qualifies the structure of the entire system is indispensable. Such a schema requires a rigorous definition of the underlying postulates; indeed, no application can be attempted unless one is sure that those postulates characterize the concrete structures to which the schema should apply.
We point out two inaccuracies in the methodological approach to the social sciences. The first one is confusing the problem of the empirical or unempirical character of postulates with the quite different problem of formulating an abstract, univocal, and consistent theory. The second one relates to the fact that no distinction is made between a given social system characterized by a particular structure (hence, by specific postulates) and other types of social systems; it follows the claim to apply the structure of a given social system to concrete behaviors which are indeed social, but not in the proper sense of that system, as different formal schemes characterize them.»
«These considerations suggest the need for a unitary social theory, namely, an integration between the different formal sciences dealing with (individual and social) behavior based on a formal or general theory of behavior.» IT
(Strutture teoriche e scienze sociali [Theoretical structures and the social sciences], pp. 46, 59)
Strutture teoriche e scienze sociali
[Theoretical structures and the social sciences]
[Theoretical structures and the social sciences]
- Schemi teorici e scienze sociali
[Theoretical schemata and social sciences] - La prospettiva metodologica delle scienze sociali
[The methodological perspective of the social sciences] - Linguaggio teorico e livelli di astrazione
[Theoretical language and levels of abstraction] - Verificabilità empirica delle strutture astratte; rapporti tra diverse strutture linguistiche
[Empirical verifiability of abstract structures; relation between different language structures] - Il ruolo della teoria generale nelle scienze sociali
[The role of a general theory in the social sciences] - Rapporti tra teoria economica e scienza sociale; il problema del sottosviluppo
[Relations between economic theory and social science; the problem of underdevelopment] - L’integrazione delle scienze sociali e la teoria generale del comportamento sociale
[The integration of the social sciences and the general theory of social behavior]
Braithwaite R.B., Scientific Explanation: A Study of the Function of Theory, Probability and Law in Science, Cambridge, 1953
Braithwaite R.B., Axiomatizing a Scientific System by Axiom in the Form of Identifications, in L. Henkin, P. Suppes, A. Tarski (eds.), The Axiomatic Method with Special Reference to Geometry and Physics, Amsterdam, 1959
Braithwaite R.B., Models in the Empirical Science, in E. Nagel, P. Suppes, A. Tarski (eds.), Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science, Stanford, California, 1962
Brodbeck M., Models, Meaning and Theories, in L. Gross (ed.), Symposium on Sociological Theory, Evanston, Ill., 1959
Brunswich E., The Conceptual Focus of Systems, in M.H. Marx (ed.), Psychological Theory, New York, 1951
Carnap R., Logical Foundations of Probability, Chicago, 1950
Carnap R., Empiricism, Semantics and Ontology, in L. Linsky (ed.), Semantics and the Philosophy of Language, Urbana, Ill., 1952
Carnap R., The Interpretation of Physics, in H. Feigl, M. Brodbeck (eds.), Readings in the Philosophy of Science, new York, 1953
Carnap R., The Methodological Character of Theoretical Concepts, in H. Feigl, M. Scriven (eds.), Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy of Science, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1958, vol. I
Courant R., Robbins H., Che cos’è la matematica?, Torino, 1961
Debreu G., Theory of Value: An Axiomatic Analysis of Economic Equilibrium, New York, 1959
Edel A., The Concept of Levels in Social Theory, in L. Gross (ed.), Symposium on Sociological Theory, Evanston, Ill., 1959
Faggiani D., La struttura logica della fisica, Torino, 1957
Feigl H., Some Remarks on the Meaning of Scientific Explanation, in H. Feigl, W. Sellars (eds.), Readings in Philosophical Analysis, new York, 1949
Heisenberg W., I principi fisici della teoria dei quanti, Torino, 1963
Hempel C.G., Deductive-Nominological vs. Statistical Explanation, in H. Feigl, G. Maxwell (eds.), Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy of Science, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1958, vol. III
Hempel C.G., La formazione dei concetti e delle teorie nella scienza empirica, Milano, 1961
Hempel C.G., Oppenheim P., The Logic of Explanation, in H. Feigl, M. Brodbeck (eds.), Readings in the Philosophy of Science, New York, 1953
Kaufmann F., The Methodology of the Social Sciences, New York, 1944
Gross, Theory Construction in Sociology: A Methodological Inquiry, in L. Gross (ed.), Symposium on Sociological Theory, Evanston, Ill., 1959
Maxwell G., Meaning Postulates in Scientific Theories, in H. Feigl, G. Maxwell (eds.), Current Issues in the Philosophy of Science, New York, 1961
Myrdal G., Teoria economica e paesi sottosviluppati, Milano, 1959
Northrop F.S.C., The Importance of Deductively Formulated Theory in Ethics and Social and Legal Science, in P. Henle, H.M. Kallen, S.K. Langer (eds.), Structure, Methods and Meaning: Essay in Honor of Henry M. Sheffer, New York, 1951
Pagani A., Comportamento razionale e comportamento economico, in: “Bollettino del centro per la Ricerca Operativa”, serie sociologica, n. 1-2, gennaio agosto 1961
Popper K.R., The Logic of Scientific Discovery, New York, 1959
Preti G., Linguaggio comune e linguaggi scientifici, Roma-Milano, 1953
Scriven M., Definitions, Explanations and Theories, in H. Feigl, M. Scriven, G. Maxwell (eds.), Minnesota Studies in the Philosophy of Science, Minneapolis, Minnesota, 1958, vol. II
Sellars W., The Language of Theories, in H. Feigl, G. Maxwell (eds.), Current Issues in the Philosophy of Science, New York, 1961
Simon H.A., Definable Terms and Primitives in Axiom Systems, in L. Henkin, P. Suppes, A. Tarski (eds.), The Axiomatic Method with Special Reference to Geometry and Physics, Amsterdam, 1959
Suppes P., Models of Data, in E. Nagel, P. Suppes, A. Tarski (eds.), Logic, Methodology and Philosophy of Science, Stanford, California, 1962
Szmielew W., Foundations of Geometry, Amsterdam, 1960
Timasheff N.S., Order, Causality, Conjuncture, in L. Gross (ed.), Symposium on Sociological Theory, Evanston, Ill., 1959
Woodger H., Biology and Language, Cambridge, 1952
Zelditch M., A Note on the Analysis of Equilibrium Systems, in T. Parsons, R.F. Bales, Family, Socialization and Interaction Process, Glencoe, Ill., 1955
Zetterberg H., On Axiomatic Theories in Sociology, in P.F. Lazarsfeld, M. Rosenberg (eds.), The Language of Social Research, Glencoe, Ill., 1957
Zeuthen F., Economic Theory and Method, London, 1957