ABSTRACT
Although scientists attempt to reduce uncertainty through the predictive power of their assertions, some uncertainty will always remain, which is why people write about assertions rather than facts. Uncertainty should be taken as a given in sociology, but it is also quite evident in psychology. Over several decades sociologists and criminologists have studied variation in the homicide rate (HR). Their findings have consistently suggested a positive association between a population's HR and the amount of income inequality within the population. Situational assessments, whether statistical or ethnographic, are currently far more common in sociology than are testable, theory-based assertions of uniformities across situations. Social scientists can gather data on how the process works and whether the adopted policy or law results in the anticipated consequences. It is a grievous mistake, however, to think that beyond identifying predictive implication and possible actual consequences, social science can dictate priorities or value judgments.
