Description
Book SynopsisThis landmark volume brings together some of the titans of social movement theory in a grand reassessment of its status. For some time, the field has been divided between a dominant structural approach and a cultural or constructivist tradition. The gaps and misunderstandings between the two sidesas well as the efforts to bridge themclosely parallel those in the discipline of sociology at large. This book aims to further the dialogue between these two distinct approaches to social movements and to show the broader implications for sociology as a whole as it struggles with issues including culture, emotion, and agency.
Trade Review[This book] is a most welcome and useful assessment of recent theory, one that will contribute to regenerating the field of social movements and contentious politics. * Contemporary Sociology *
This volume should be particularly valuable reading on social movements for academics and those with an advanced knowledge of social movement theories. True to its title, the book engages several important topics in these fields and gives one the feeling of being privy to discussions on the state-of-the-art of new research in an increasingly important body of work. * Political Studies Review, (Uk) *
Table of ContentsChapter 1 Introduction Part 2 I Political Process Theory: Opportunity or Constraint? Chapter 3 Caught in a Winding, Snarling Vine: The Structural Bias of Political Process Theory Chapter 4 Wise Quacks Chapter 5 Paradigm Warriors: Regress and Progress in the Study of Contentious Politics Chapter 6 Tending the Vineyard: Cultivating Political Process Research Chapter 7 Political Opportunity Structure: Some Splitting to Balance the Lumping Chapter 8 Trouble in Paradigms Part 9 II Beyond Dominant Paradigms Chapter 10 Culture Is Not Just in Your Head Chapter 11 The Post-Structuralist Consensus in Social Movement Theory Chapter 12 The Intellectual Challenges of Toiling in the Vineyard Chapter 13 Knowledge for What? Thoughts on the State of Social Movements Studies Chapter 14 Passionate Political Processes: Bringing Emotions Back into the Study of Social Movements Chapter 15 Why David Sometimes Wins: Strategic Capacity in Social Movements Part 16 III Concluding Reflections Chapter 17 Rethinking Political Process Theory Chapter 18 Reflections on Social Movement Theory: Criticisms and Proposals Chapter 19 Hot Movements, Cold Cognition: Thinking about Social Movements in Gendered Frames
