Social Mindscapes: An Invitation to Cognitive Sociology

by Eviatar Zerubavel

Why do we eat sardines, but never goldfish; ducks, but never parrots? Why does adding cheese make a hamburger a "cheeseburger" whereas adding ketchup does not make it a "ketchupburger"? By the same token, how do we determine which things said at a meeting should be included in the minutes and which ought to be considered "off the record" and officially disregarded?

In this wide-ranging and provocative book, Eviatar Zerubavel argues that cognitive science cannot answer these questions, since it addresses cognition on only two levels: the individual and the universal. To fill the gap between the Romantic vision of the solitary thinker whose thoughts are the product of unique experience, and the cognitive-psychological view, which revolves around the search for the universal foundations of human cognition, Zerubavel charts an expansive social realm of mind--a domain that focuses on the conventional, normative aspects of the way we think.

With witty anecdote and revealing analogy, Zerubavel illuminates the social foundation of mental actions such as perceiving, attending, classifying, remembering, assigning meaning, and reckoning the time. What takes place inside our heads, he reminds us, is deeply affected by our social environments, which are typically groups that are larger than the individual yet considerably smaller than the human race. Thus, we develop a nonuniversal software for thinking as Americans or Chinese, lawyers or teachers, Catholics or Jews, Baby Boomers or Gen-Xers. Zerubavel explores the fascinating ways in which thought communities carve up and classify reality, assign meanings, and perceive things, "defamiliarizing" in the process many taken-for-granted assumptions.

Genres: Sociology, Theory, Psychology, Nonfiction, Philosophy

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 15, 1998

Reviews

[Atiyeh.n · Rating 4 out of 5]

در این کتاب زروباول پیوند میان جامعه‌شناسی و علوم‌شناختی را نشان می‌دهد و لزوم وجود میان‌رشته‌ای به نام جامعه‌شناسی شناختی را یادآور می‌شود.
زروباول از ضرورت پرداختن به علوم شناختی با رویکردی جامعه‌شناسانه می‌گوید و شناخت را صرفا پدیده‌ای فردی یا واقعیتی جهان‌شمول که در میان همه انسان‌ها یکسان عمل می‌کند نمی‌داند، بلکه نشان می‌دهد شناخت انسانی از فرهنگ و جامعه‌ای که فرد در آن زندگی می‌کند اثر می‌پذیرد.
علاوه بر این کتاب نگاه جدیدی را در جامعه‌شناسی ارائه می‌کند، نگاهی که در مطالعات اجتماعی در ایران به خصوص رشته جامعه‌شناسی به شدت غایب است و خلأ وجودش را رویکردهایی فلسفی که درصدد توضیح شناخت انسان هستند پر کرده‌اند، در حالی که علوم شناختی با به کارگیری روش‌های علمی، به صورت دقیق‌تری می‌تواند ما را به فهم شناخت انسانی نزدیک کند.
ترجمه کتاب روان است و به گمان من خواندن آن برای دوست‌داران یا دانشجویان علوم اجتماعی مفید خواهد بود.

[Luis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Chévere el tema, pero muy básico. Señala la importancia de no ver la toma de decisiones como algo individual sino como un proceso social

[szymborskalyte · Rating 3 out of 5]

Everything Zerubavel writes seems like a prolegomenon.

[Delaram · Rating 3 out of 5]

انگار مقدمه، موخره و محتوای هرفصل رو با خوندن فصل اول می‌شد حدس بزنی. باگ هم زیاد داشت. اما دید خوبی داد.

[Cara · Rating 3 out of 5]

I agree that this book presents easily accessible sociological information, much of it eye-opening or thought provoking concepts that we may think about in small pieces but never put together into cohesive ideas like this novel does. Though, it's more of a compiling of sociological data, research, and writings presented by Zeruvabel with many of his own coined terms and ideas. However, as with many of his writings, his excessive use of examples tends to be more hindering than helpful, as it becomes overwhelming, and more annoyingly so, repetitive. Over all this book was an easy read, and half of it is dedicated to notes and references, as it is a work of analysis with many other peoples' contributions. It was interesting, but capable of being skimmed after the initial concepts of each chapter were understood.

[Ivana · Rating 2 out of 5]

Accessibly written piece of sociological imagination. However, too many examples mostly blur explanation and even some of them are not that applicable as the author claims.
But still interesting perspective on cognition and social order.