Relational sociology and research on schools, colleges, and universities

Abstract

"Relational sociology was conceived by theorists frustrated by what they viewed as an incomplete accounting of social reality. Torn between notions of structural rigidity on the one hand and rational choice individualism on the other, relational sociologists have sought new units of analysis. Social reality, they have argued, is manufactured through relationships. People are who they are, and society is what it is, not because of some individual or collective "essence," but rather because of the networks that social beings build amongst one another. Relational Sociology and Research on Schools, Colleges, and Universities demonstrates the value of introducing new relational methods and epistemologies in educational research. Across seven original chapters, the editors, William G. Tierney and Suneal Kolluri, and a series of leading and emerging scholars in the field examine the roles and significance of ongoing transactions among connected social actors-students, peers, families, teachers-in a variety of institutional contexts. The book explores various uses and applications of relational sociology in education while highlighting its promise to provide fresh insight into intractable problems of inequity in United States schools"--