Social Sciences

A Dying Fire

Kléber Ghimire

• Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited
• Year: 2021
• ISBN:
  9781801170437
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Sociology
• Index: Social Sciences

What are some of the most distinctive features of the crisis characterising the social sciences learning today? Can a crisis of this deep-rooted and extremely wide-ranging nature be delimitated to a few specific areas? Can the social sciences diverse dilemmas be reduced to the feature of crisis alone?
This book argues that the social sciences are in a deep state of crisis. Kléber Ghimire analyzes how some of the basic problems began from the very inception: uncritical use of empiricism and experimentation methods emulating the natural sciences, internal fragmentation of knowledge along narrow disciplinary lines, and near-exclusive emphasis on the experience of industrial societies. As these difficulties persist, more recent evolutions have brought additional troubles. With a focus on Europe, North America and Asia, Kléber Ghimire examines the effects of university reforms that give prominence to expertise-oriented research, economic rationality and occupational skill development, leading to a widespread marginalisation of the social and human studies.
The book ends with a call to reflect upon opening a new horizon for these fields of learning, especially by inventing a new era of social sciences pedagogy, leaving natural sciences for humanities and recognizing the value of culture as a crucial reservoir of social knowledge.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• Chapter 1. Introducing the Key Elements of Crisis
• Chapter 2. Efforts to Reflect on Factors Intrinsic to Crisis
• Chapter 3. Structural as Well as More Contemporary Problems Facing the Social Sciences in Europe and North America
• Chapter 4. Asia as a Centre of New Impulsion in Social Sciences’ Renovations?
• Chapter 5. A New Context of Marginalisation of Social and Human Studies
• Chapter 6. Concluding Discussion
• Bibliography
• Index