A1 Journal article (refereed)
Two traditions of cognitive sociology : an analysis and assessment of their cognitive and methodological assumptions (2022)

Kaidesoja, T., Hyyryläinen, M., & Puustinen, R. (2022). Two traditions of cognitive sociology : an analysis and assessment of their cognitive and methodological assumptions. Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour, 52(3), 528-547. https://doi.org/10.1111/jtsb.12341

JYU authors or editors

Publication details

All authors or editors: Kaidesoja, Tuukka; Hyyryläinen, Mikko; Puustinen, Ronny

Journal or series: Journal for the Theory of Social Behaviour

ISSN: 0021-8308

eISSN: 1468-5914

Publication year: 2022

Publication date: 26/02/2022

Volume: 52

Issue number: 3

Pages range: 528-547

Publisher: Wiley-Blackwell

Publication country: United Kingdom

Publication language: English

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1111/jtsb.12341

Publication open access: Openly available

Publication channel open access: Partially open access channel

Publication is parallel published (JYX): https://jyx.jyu.fi/handle/123456789/80022

Abstract

Cognitive sociology has been split into cultural and interdisciplinary traditions that position themselves differently in relation to the cognitive sciences and make incompatible assumptions about cognition. This article provides an analysis and assessment of the cognitive and methodological assumptions of these two traditions from the perspective of the mechanistic theory of explanation. We argue that while the cultural tradition of cognitive sociology has provided important descriptions about how human cognition varies across cultural groups and historical periods, it has not opened up the black box of cognitive mechanisms that produce and sustain this variation. This means that its explanations for the described phenomena have remained weak. By contrast, the interdisciplinary tradition of cognitive sociology has sought to integrate cognitive scientific concepts and methods into explanatory research on how culture influences action and how culture is stored in memory. Although we grant that interdisciplinary cognitive sociologists have brought many fresh ideas, concepts and methods to cultural sociology from the cognitive sciences, they have not always clarified their assumptions about cognition and their models have sketched only a few specific cognitive mechanisms through which culture influences action, meaning that they have not yet provided a comprehensive explanatory understanding of the interactions between culture, cognition and action.

Keywords: sociology; cognitive science; cultural sociology; interdisciplinary research; mechanisms; cognition; social cognition

Free keywords: cognitive sociology; cultural cognition; cultural sociology; inter-disciplinarity; mechanisms; social cognition

Contributing organizations

Ministry reporting: Yes

Reporting Year: 2022

Preliminary JUFO rating: 2