Communicative Methodology: Successful actions and dialogic democracy. (March 2014)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Flecha, Ramon; Soler, Marta
• Other Names: Burawoy Michael guest-editor.
• Is Part Of: Current sociology. Volume 62:Number 2(2014:Mar.)
• Page Start: 232
• Page End: 242
• Publication Date: 2014-03
• Subjects: Communicative methodology -- dialogic democracy -- organic public sociology -- Roma research; Démocratie dialogique -- methodologie communicative -- recherche sur la communauté Rom -- sociologie publique organique; Democracia dialógica -- investigación sobre Roma -- metodología comunicativa -- sociología pública; Sociology -- Bibliography -- Periodicals; Social problems -- Bibliography -- Periodicals; 301.05
• DOI: 10.1177/0011392113515141
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0011-3921

Abstract

Framed in a context of questioning of the social sciences by European institutions, this article offers an example of a way of doing organic public sociology for and with civil society. The authors employ the Communicative Methodology, which goes beyond oppositions between descriptive and normative sociology. It does so by using the concept of 'successful actions, ' which brings scientific knowledge into dialogue with the knowledge of people from the communities and institutions involved. Thanks to Communicative Methodology, the European Parliament approved the successful actions from a study of a Roma neighborhood in extreme poverty, leading to the creation of a successful cooperative with sustainable employment. In sum, this public sociology calls for a dialogic democracy accountable to all voices, in which the successful actions that researchers analyze then get recreated in collaboration with the publics, so that society can implement them to improve people's living conditions.