The Social Organization of Sociological Knowledge: Modeling the Intersection of Specialties

Abstract

A coherent structure underlies the diverse topics that sociologists study. I model this structure by examining the pattern of shared membership linking specialties in American sociology in 1990. Cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling reveal seven coherent clusters focusing on deviance and control, setting and context, political and macrosociology, theory and culture, numbers, stratification and work, and social psychologylgenderlmedical sociology. The hierarchy of clustering reveals convergences, divergences, and potential influences among them. Centrality in the field corresponds to size of specialty, while dimensions of differentiation reflect shared substantive content.