Invitation to Sociology

Invitation to Sociology: A Humanistic Perspective is a 1963 book about sociology by the sociologist Peter L. Berger, in which the author sets out the intellectual parameters and calling of the scientific discipline of sociology. Many of the themes presented in the book were later developed in his 1966 book The Social Construction of Reality, coauthored with the sociologist Thomas Luckmann.[1]

Invitation to Sociology: A Humanistic Perspective
Cover of the first edition
AuthorPeter L. Berger
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
SubjectSociology
PublisherDoubleday
Publication date
1963
Media typePrint (Hardcover and Paperback)
Pages191
ISBN9780385065290

Background

Berger was a student of social scientist Alfred Schütz, and was influenced by Schutz's approach to sociology.[2]

Summary

Berger addresses which types of questions sociologists may seek to answer (such as the consequences of religious belief) and those which they cannot address (for example, the existence of God).[3] Berger argues that the various uses of sociology do not reflect the actual nature of the science, and that those who use the information provided by sociologists "[have] nothing to do with the character of the information itself."[4] Berger argues that sociology should emphasize its humanistic aspects.[5][6] Berger discusses Black pride, stating that it is "building up a counter-formation of a black racism that is but a shadow of its white prototype."[7]:179

Influence and reception

Many of the themes presented in Invitation to Sociology: A Humanistic Perspective were later developed in Berger's 1966 book The Social Construction of Reality, coauthored with Thomas Luckmann.[1] The philosopher Helmut R. Wagner called Invitation to Sociology a "very readable discussion of the field of sociology".[2]

References
  1. Hunter, James Davison, Albert J. Bergesen, and Edith Kurzweil. Cultural Analysis: The Work of Peter L. Berger, Mary Douglas, Michel Foucault and Jürgen Habermas. Vol. 5. Routledge, 2009.
  2. Wagner, Helmut R. (1983). Phenomenology of Consciousness and Sociology of the Life-world: An Introductory Study. Edmonton: The University of Alberta Press. pp. 216–7. ISBN 0-88864-032-3.
  3. Davis, Nancy J. "Bringing it all together: The sociological imagination." Teaching Sociology (1993): 233-238.
  4. Wood, Stephen, and John Kelly. "Towards a critical management science." Journal of Management Studies 15, no. 1 (1978): 1-24.
  5. Hammond, Phillip E. "Peter Berger's Sociology of Religion: An Appraisal." Soundings 52, no. 4 (1969): 415-424.
  6. Ahern, Annette Jean. "Berger's dual-citizenship approach to religion." PhD diss., 1989.
  7. Berger, Peter. Invitation to Sociology. Pelican Press. 1966.
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