Llewellyn Gross

An Epistemological View of Sociological Theory

Sociological theory is made known through one or more schemes of language, natural, formal, empirical, or some combination of them. The permanent choice of any one at the expense of others gives rise to questionable assumptions about objective reality, to surmount which sociological theory should foster the concurrence of salient elements in the diverse languages. Three complementary approaches are suggested: the co-ordination of language schemes through mutual feedback of information, the formulation of metalinguistic principles or methodological rules for defining reality and justifying claims of scientific adequacy, and the rephrasing of all language schemes to fit the criteria of goal-directed behavior.