ABSTRACT
The Schwendingers have offered a radical analysis of the formative years of American sociology, 1883-1922. Actual usage of the notion of paradigm in sociology does not commend it for its temporal, historical signification. By contrast, some persuasive arguments can be offered for investigating the theory of earliest American sociology and for attempting to apply the scheme to demark the beginning and ending of this period. Certainly, the appropriate point of departure for the eventual development of a comprehensive sociology of the history of sociological theory in the United States is a study of early American theory. Intellectual dissensus, heterogeneity, and heterodoxy have become increasingly evident, as witness the rise of social exchangist, conflictual-neo-marxist-critical, ethnomethodological-phenomenological, and even structuralist orientations. Nisbet is the only sociologist who analyzes the sociological tradition through basic unit-ideas or major notions. The chapter also presents an overview on the key concepts discussed in this book.
