On Durkheim's Rules of Sociological Method

Bol Partner

This book provides the first in depth interpretation of how to understand the causes of ethnic residential segregation, across Western European countries and the USA. In many countries, ethnic minorities have obtained low quality housing and may be concentrated in certain parts of cities. This book asks to what extent ethnic segregation can be assigned to special preferences for housing and neighbourhoods among ethnic minorities. Is it the behaviour of the native majority, or is it a result of housing and urban policies? Ethnic segregation differs much across European countries and cities. Chapters discuss to what extent these differences can be explained by welfare state systems, levels of immigration, and the ethnic composition of minorities. The book also considers the impact of housing policy and the spatial structure of urban housing markets created by urban planning and policies. This book will appeal to teachers, students and researchers working with segregation, urban sociology and geography. It will also be valuable to civil servants in central and local governments who are working with measures to combat ethnic segregation and its consequences.

Bol

This radical appraisal of Durkheim's method, first published in 1988, argues that fundamental errors have been made in interpreting Durkheim. Mike Gane argues that to understand The Rules it is necessary also to understand the context of the French society in which the book was written. He explores the cultural and philosophical debates which raged in France during the period when Durkheim prepared the book and establishes the real and unsuspected complexity of Durkheim's position: its formal complexity, its epistemological complexity, and its historical complexity.