从经典到后经典的西方社会科学方法论的范式转换及其启发意义

The Paradigm Shift of Western Social Science Methodology from the Classic to the Post-classical and Its Inspirational Significance

19世纪后半叶堪称西方社会科学方法论的“经典时代”。那时涌现出马克思、孔德、穆勒、涂尔干、韦伯等杰出的社会理论家,他们开创了诸如历史唯物论、实证主义、诠释学、理解社会学等丰富多彩的方法论,用于社会研究。20世纪,帕森斯、舒茨、布鲁默等人接着上述经典的社会理论建立他们各自的学说,因此被称为“后经典”的社会理论家。他们分别建立了结构功能论、现象学、符号互动论等社会研究的方法论。阐明西方社会科学方法论从经典到后经典的范式转换需要将它们串联起来看,在它们的互相辩难和理论实践的成败中加以考察。厘清这些内涵对于构建中国特色哲学社会科学具有启发意义。

The second half of the nineteenth century can be called the classical era of social science methodology. At that time emerged Marx, Comte, Mill, Durkheim, Weber and other outstanding social theorists, and they created a variety of methodologies for social research such as historical materialism, positivism, hermeneutics,and interpretive sociology. In the 20th century Parsons, Schutz, Blumer and other social theorists followed these classical social theories to establish their own theories, so they are called “post-classical” social theorists. They respectively established structural functionalism, phenomenology, symbolic interactionism and other social research methodology. To elucidate the paradigm transformation of western social science methodology from classical to post-classical, we need to link them together and examine them in their mutual defense and the success or failure of theoretical practice. Clarifying these will also be instructive to the construction of social sciences with Chinese characteristics.