Talcott Parsons

Esta colección de ensayos documenta las tendencias principales de la carrera intelectual de Talcott Parsons durante su última década de vida, lo que ya se había iniciado en su obra predecesora ´Siste

EL sistema social, una de las máximas elaboraciones teóricas de Talcott Parsons, constituye una síntesis plenamente representativa de su pensamiento, expuesta con gran rigor conceptual y elevado nivel de abstraccion. Su proposito explicito es reunir en forma sistematica y generalizada los elementos principales de un esquema conceptual para el analisis de la estructura y proceso de los sistemas sociales, centrado en la delimitacion de roles institucionalizados y en los procesos motivacionales organizados en torno a ellos.

A Collection of essays which studies the theoretical problem of relationships between social structure and personality, and how these different relationships merit distinct treatment for particular purposes. Parsons concludes that in the larger picture, their interdependencies are so intimate that bringing them together in an interpretive synthesis is imperative if a balanced understanding of the complex as a whole is to be attained.

Talcott Parsons needs little introduction to anyone acquainted with the literature of sociology. Few men have dominated their fields so much as Dr. Parsons does his. In this collection of nineteen essays, Dr. Parsons focuses his attention on subjects ranging from the social structure of Japan to propaganda and social control, from sociological aspects of Fascist movements to the place of psychoanalysis in society. Also dealt with are such topics as: The role of ideas in social action, the motivation of economic activities, American social structure, social classes and class conflict, and the prospects for contemporary sociological theory. The whole body of essays presented here belongs in the broad field of "application" of sociological theory. It stands in the line of scientific development of the most advanced techniques for sociological investigation and evaluation of data.