ABSTRACT
In this definition, Weber indicates his belief in the need to integrate two apparently competing conceptions of the social sciences: the naturalist insistence upon causal explanation, and the anti-naturalist demand for the interpretive understanding of subjective meanings. Weber wishes to establish a sociology that combines both of these elements, and much of his writing, substantive and methodological, is directed towards this aim. We will begin by considering how he tries to do this, and go on, in later sections, to examine a number of issues that are raised by his attempt.1
