Explaining Social Processes: Perspectives from Current Social Theory and Historical Sociology

This textbook considers understanding social processes to be the main task of sociology. From this perspective its authors demonstrate and explain problems which they consider to be crucial for contemporary social science. These are topics of a theoretical and epistemological nature, which are nevertheless closely connected with social development and issues arising from it. The book moves from the more general theoretical questions and dilemmas raised by key social thinkers, such as those connected with the concepts of actor, agency, institutions, structures and systems. It then leads to theoretical reflections on long-term developmental processes associated with the phenomena of power and life in current societies, including globalization, identities, migration, etc. It provides a comprehensive approach to the essential questions of sociology. Lucidly written and including the latest sociological perspectives, this book will find wide appeal among social science students and researchers, and is also for the socially aware general reader.

Jiří Šubrt is an associate professor at the Faculty of Humanities, Charles University, Prague. He studied sociology and economics at the same university, and since 1990, he has lectured at Charles University. In 2009, he founded and has since been leader of the Department of Historical Sociology at the Faculty of Humanities at the university. He is a member of the editorial board of the Historical Sociology: A Journal of Historical Social Sciences and several other sociological journals. In the area of historical sociology he has focused on the problems of the civilization process, civilizational comparative analysis and multiple modernities. Over the longer term he has also given attention to the issues of time and memory, recently implementing a 3-year project focused on the empirical research of the historical consciousness of the Czech population. He is the author and editor of several books published in the Czech, English and Russian languages, which mainly deal with the theme of contemporary sociological theory, particularly with regard to issues of action, structure, social systems and social change.

Alemayehu Kumsa is an assistant professor in the sociology of organization management at Škoda Auto University in Mladá Boleslav, Czech Republic.  He received his MA and PhD from the Faculty of Philosophy at Charles University, Prague. He taught for many years, first at the Institute of Middle East and African Studies, and later at the Institute of Ethnology of Charles University. His interest areas include: theories of nationalism; African society and culture; the sociology of development and transformation; the sociology of terrorism; the sociology of globalization; and organization management. He has published more than 20 book chapters, along with articles in international journals and conference papers. He is a member of the editorial board of the Historical Sociology: A Journal of Historical Social Sciences

Massimiliano Ruzzeddu is tenured researcher in sociology at Niccolò Cusano University, Rome, Italy. He is Vice-President of the World Complexity Science Academy (WCSA). He is also co-director of the WCSA Book Series and co-director of the journal System Research and Behavioral Science. He has authored several scientific works in the epistemology of social science and social theory.  Among his most recent works is Between Rationality and Irrationality (co-edited with Andrea Millefiorini), L’Harmattan Paris.