Macrosociology

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{{Short description|Sociological theories and approaches that focus on large-scale aspects of society}}
{{Sociology}}
'''Macrosociology''' is a large-scale approach to [[sociology]], emphasizing the analysis of [[social system]]s and [[population]]s at the [[social structure|structural level]], often at a necessarily high level of theoretical abstraction.<ref>Calhoun, Craig, ed. 2002. "Macrosociology." ''Dictionary of the Social Sciences''. New York: [[Oxford University Press]].</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last =Bottomore |first =Tom |date =1975 |title =Competing Paradigms in Macrosociology |url =https://www.jstor.org/stable/2946044 |journal =Annual Review of Sociology |volume =1 |pages =191–202 |issn =0360-0572}}</ref> Though macrosociology ''does'' concern itself with individuals, families, and other constituent aspects of a [[society]], it does so in relation to larger social system of which such elements form a part. The macrosociological approach can also analyze generalized [[social collectivity | collectivities]] (such as "''the'' [[city]]" or "''the'' [[christian Church|church]]").<ref>Scott, John, and Gordon Marshall, eds. 2000. ''Dictionary of Sociology''. New York: [[Oxford University Press]].</ref>

In contrast, [[Microsociology|''micro''sociology]] focuses on the individual social [[agency (sociology)|agency]]. Macrosociology, however, deals with broad societal trends that can later be applied to smaller features of society, or ''vice versa''. To differentiate, macrosociology deals with issues such as [[war]] as a whole; 'distress of [[Third World|Third-World]] countries'; [[poverty]] on a national/international level; and environmental deprivation, whereas microsociology analyses issues such as (for example) the individual features of war (e.g. [[Comrade|camaraderie]], one's pleasure in violence, etc.); the role of [[women]] in third-world countries; poverty's effect on "the [[family]]"; and how [[immigration]] impacts a country's environment.<ref name="lenski1982" />

A "society" can be considered as a collective of [[population|human population]]s that are [[Political freedom|politically autonomous]], in which members engage in a broad range of cooperative activities.<ref name="lenski1982">[[Gerhard Lenski|Lenski, Gerhard]]. 1982. ''Human societies: An Introduction to Macrosociology''. McGraw-Hill. {{ISBN|0-07-037176-8}}.</ref> The people of [[Germany]], for example, can be deemed "a society", whereas people with [[German language|German]] heritage as a whole, including those who populate other countries, would not be considered a society ''per se''.<ref name="lenski1982" />

==Theoretical strategies==

There are a number of theoretical strategies within contemporary macrosociology, though four approaches, in particular, have the most influence:

*'''Idealist Strategy''': Attempts to explain the basic features of social life by reference to the creative capacity of the human mind. "Idealists believe that human uniqueness lies in the fact that humans attach symbolic meanings to their actions."<ref name="sanderson1988">Sanderson, Stephen K. 1988. ''Macrosociology: An Introduction to Human Societies.'' [[Harper & Row]].</ref>
*'''Materialist Strategy''': Attempts to explain the basic features of human social life in terms of the practical, material conditions of their existence, including the nature of a physical environment; the level of technology; and the organization of an economic system.<ref name="lenski1982" />
*'''Functionalist Strategy''' (or [[structural functionalism]]): Functionalism essentially states that societies are complex systems of interrelated and interdependent parts, and each part of a society significantly influences the others. Moreover, each part of society exists because it has a specific function to perform in contributing to the society as a whole. As such, societies tend toward a state of equilibrium or homeostasis, and if there is a disturbance in any part of the society then the other parts will adjust to restore the stability of the society as a whole.<ref name="lenski1982" />
*'''Conflict Theoretical Strategy''' (or [[Conflict Theory|conflict theory]]): Rejects the idea that societies tend toward some basic consensus of harmony in which the features of society work for everyone's good. Rather, the basic structure of society is determined by individuals and groups acquiring scarce resources to satisfy their own needs and wants, thus creating endless conflicts.<ref name="lenski1982" />

== Historical macrosociology ==

Historical macrosociology can be understood as an approach that uses ''historical knowledge'' to try to solve some of the problems seen in the field of macrosociology.<ref name="lenski1982" /> As [[globalization]] has affected the world, it has also influenced historical macrosociology, leading to the development of two distinct branches:
* '''Comparative and historical sociology''' (CHS): a branch of historical macrosociology that bases its analysis on states, searching for "generalizations about common properties and principles of variation among instances across time and space."<ref>Arrighi, Giovanni. 2000. Globalization and Historical Macrosociology. ''Sociology for the Twenty-First Century.'' pp. 117–33.</ref> As of recently,{{When|date=April 2022}} it has been argued that globalization poses a threat to the CHS way of thinking because it often leads to the dissolution of distinct states.<ref name="lenski1982" />
* '''Political Economy of the World-Systems''' (PEWS): a branch of historical macrosociology that bases its analysis on the systems of states, searching for "generalizations about interdependencies among a system's components and of principles of variation among systemic conditions across time and space."<ref name="lenski1982" />

Historical macrosociologists include:<ref name="lenski1982" />
* [[Charles Tilly]]: developed theory of CHS, in which analysis is based on national states.
* [[Immanuel Wallerstein]]: developed world systems theory, in which analysis is based on world capitalist systems.

== Linking micro- and macro-sociology ==
Perhaps the most highly developed integrative effort to link micro- and macro-sociological phenomena is found in [[Anthony Giddens]]'s [[theory of structuration|theory of ''structuration'']], in which "social structure is defined as both constraining and enabling of human activity as well as both internal and external to the actor."<ref name="borgatta1992">Borgatta, Edgar F. 1992. ''Encyclopedia of Sociology'' 3. [[Simon & Schuster|Simon & Schuster Macmillan]].</ref>

Attempts to link micro and macro phenomena are evident in a growing body of empirical research. Such work appears to follow Giddens' view of the constraining and enabling nature of social structure for human activity and the need to link structure and action. "It appears safe to say that while macrosociology will always remain a central component of sociological theory and research, increasing effort will be devoted to creating workable models that link it with its microcounterpart."<ref name="borgatta1992" />

==See also==
{{Portal|Society}}
* [[Base and superstructure]]
* [[Cliodynamics]]
* [[General systems theory]]
* [[Modernization theory]]
* [[Sociocybernetics]]
* [[Structure and agency]]
* [[Systems philosophy]]

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
*[[Charles Tilly|Tilly, Charles]]. 1995. "[http://professor-murmann.info/tilly/1995_Macrosoc_Past_Future.pdf Macrosociology Past and Future]." In ''Newsletter of the Comparative & Historical Sociology'' 8(1&2):1,3–4. [[American Sociological Association]].
*Francois, P., J. G. Manning, [[Harvey Whitehouse]], Rob Brennan, et al. 2016. "A Macroscope for Global History. Seshat Global History Databank: A Methodological Overview." ''Digital Humanities Quarterly Journal'' 4(26).

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[[Category:Methods in sociology]]

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Macrosociology