Determinism
The theory that the world, or nature, is everywhere subject to causal law, that every event in it has a cause. If it is true, then every event that actually happens has to happen, since it logically follows from a description of the conditions of its occurrence, together with the relevant laws of nature, that it occurs. In social theories, contrasted with voluntarism.
Empiricism
The theory (1) that all concepts are derived from experience and (2) that all statements claimimg to express knowledge depend for their justification on experience.
Epistemology
The philosophical theory of knowledge, which seeks to define it, distinguish its principal varieties, identify its sources, and establish its limits.
Ethnomethodology
The sociological study of everyday activities, however trivial, concentrating on the methods used by individuals to report their commonsense practical actions to others in acceptable rational terms.
Idiographic
The study of particular cases (e.g. persons, social groups, works of art). Contrasted with nomothetic.
Interpretive sociology
Any sociological theory or approach that emphasises that humans give meaning to social reality before deciding how they are going to act, requiring explanations to refer to the subjective states of social actors.
Logical Positivism
Body of philosophical doctrine asserting the meaninglessness of propositions that are neither verifiable by empirical observation nor demonstrable by analysis. Metaphysical utterances are thereby rendered meaningless.
Nominalism
A denial of the existence of abstract entities of any kind, i.e. those which cannot be accommodated within the natural world of concrete things existing in space and time and subject to causality. Contrasted with realism.
Nomothetic
The search for general laws or theories which will cover whole classes of cases. Contrasted with idiographic.
Normative
Concerned with rules, recommendations or proposals, as contrasted with mere description of the statement of matters of fact.
Ockham's razor
The principle of ontological economy, usually formulated as 'Entities are not to be multiplied beyond necessity'.
Occamin partaveitsestä voidaan puhua yksinkertaisuusperiaatteena, jonka mukaan ei tule olettaa enempää kuin on tarpeen. Laajemman yksinkertaisuusperiaatteen mukaan yksinkertaisin selitys on aina paras.
Ontology
The theory of existence itself: it differentiates between 'real existence' and 'appearance' and investigates the different ways in which entities belonging to various logical categories (physical objects, numbers, abstractions, etc.) may be said to exist.
Phenomenology
Method of philosophical enquiry, developed by Husserl, starting from a scrupulous inspection of one's own mental, particularly intellectual, processes. Assumptions about causes, consequences and wider significance of the mental processes are excluded ('bracketed').
Positivism
The view that all true knowledge is scientific. So named by French philosopher Auguste Comte (1798 - 1857). A scientifically oriented form of empiricism. Commonly used as an abbreviation for logical positivism.
Realism
The view that universals have a real substantial existence, independently of being thought. Contrasted with nominalism.
Reliability
A measure of how consistently coding against indicator variables is carried out (e.g. by different people and/or at different times).
Symbolic interaction
The process of seeing yourself as others see you, a necessary condition of playing social roles.
Validity
A measure of how accurately theoretical, concept variables are depicted in empirical, indicator variables: 'a measure of the extent to which you are measuring what you think you are measuring' (Brown & Dowling, 1998).
Voluntarism
Any theory that emphasises the role of the will in mental life. In social theories it emphasises the individual choice in decision-making, which it considers as not entirely determined by external conditions. Contrasted with a deterministic view of human behaviour.