ABSTRACT
As we have seen (p. 27), the term ‘positivism’ was coined by Auguste Comte, who was not a methodological individualist. Nor were the other positivists among the classical sociologists, with the possible exception of Herbert Spencer. This indicates that there is not a necessary connection between these two doctrines. More recent positivist social science, however, is more indebted to British empiricism and the logical positivism of the Vienna Circle. This influence works in a more individualistic direction.
