Avoiding philosophy as a trump-card in sociological writing. A study from the discourse of evidence-based healthcare
Abstract
In this article I explore a situation where health sociologists encounter pure-philosophical reasoning in the fabric of social life. Accounts of the relationship between philosophy and sociology tend to be framed in abstract theory, so there is a need for practical ways to anchor philosophical reasoning in sociological writing. I consider the use of philosophies as strategic tools for socially grounded understanding, rather than rhetorical trump-cards which bypass socio-political questions. I present my understanding in two stages: first, I discuss my example topic of Evidence-Based Healthcare (EBHC), reviewing some philosophical contributions by writers in that discourse. These niche-writings I contextualise briefly in relation to other academic meetings between philosophy and sociology. Second, I offer three philosophical perspectives on the topic of EBHC, and outline their significance for understanding it sociologically. I conclude that to navigate the difficult ground where philosophy and sociology meet, sociologists can entrain pure-philosophical argumentation to the purpose of critical, socially situated understandings.
Citation
Reid , B 2017 , ' Avoiding philosophy as a trump-card in sociological writing. A study from the discourse of evidence-based healthcare ' , Social Theory and Health , vol. 15 , no. 4 , pp. 369-387 . https://doi.org/10.1057/s41285-017-0033-6
Publication
Social Theory and Health
Status
Peer reviewed
ISSN
1477-8211Type
Journal article
Collections
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