Gesellschaft Denken. Eine erkenntnistheoretische Standortbestimmung der Sozialwissenschaften

The collective volume "Gesellschaft Denken" endeavours an interdisciplinary and international assessment of the social sciences` location at the turn of tile century from an epistemological point of view. In 20 contributions, philosophers and social scientists from various countries (Austria, Germany, France, Israel, Italy, United Kingdom, United States), disciplines (economics, mathematics, political sciences, law, sociology) and philosophical traditions (analytical philosophy, constructivism, marxism, phenomenology, transcendental philosophy) take the floor to elucidate the social scientist`s peculiar problem of knowledge both from a systematic and from a historical perspective. Clustered round four great thematic focuses (problems of model-building in the social sciences, mathematization and affinity to the natural sciences, methodological peculiarities of the social sciences, historical paradigms), this mosaic of individual statements gives a compact portrayal of the contemporary state of self-reflexion in the social sciences, and also displays the main perspectives of the dialogue between the various traditions and disciplines. The reader may use the volume both as a survey of the current state of the debate, and as a source of inspiration for further reflection.