The Demand for the “Typological Turn” in Empirical Sociology

The Demand for the “Typological Turn” in Empirical Sociology


Tatarova G.G.

Dr. Sci. (Sociol.), Prof., Chief Researcher, Institute of Sociology of FCTAS RAS, Moscow, Russia. tatarova-gg@rambler.ru

Kuchenkova A.V.

Cand. Sci. (Sociol.), Senior Researcher, Institute of Sociology of FCTAS RAS, Moscow, Russia. a.v.kuchenkova@gmail.com

ID of the Article:

Rubric: Methodology and methods of sociological studies

For citation:

Tatarova G.G., Kuchenkova A.V. The Demand for the “Typological Turn” in Empirical Sociology. Sotsiologicheskie issledovaniya [Sociological Studies]. 2022. No 7. P. 28-40


 Full Text.


Abstract

In the process of the development of sociological methodology, there periodically arises a need to update the issues of explicating ideas about the “old” classical concepts. For concepts from the “methodological area”, such “turns” contribute to the capacity expansion of well-known tools, increasing the heuristic potential of concepts not “fashionable” in current realities. This article proposes “typological turn” metaphor to describe the demand for developing typological method of social understanding. In empirical sociology, theoretical and methodological problems of implementing the method are associated with a special type of multidimensional data analysis – typological one. It is interpreted both as a specific research strategy, or as a means of conceptualization, and as a way of diagnosing social reality. In recent years, the demand for “typological turn” has been discussed not so much in the field of sociological research, but rather in areas related to sociology. Therefore, special attention is paid to the analysis of these ideas in the article. The rationale for the turn to a typological approach in studying social phenomena is also based on the authors’ own long-term investigation of the development of methodological solutions for conducting typological analysis in various research situations.


Keywords
typological turn; typological method; typological analysis; factorization; typologization; correlational thinking; typological thinking; qualitative homogeneity; overcomplication / oversimplification of the typological model

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Content No 7, 2022