Sociology and the Unintended: Robert Merton Revisited

This collection of essays aims to revive the sociological debate on the unintended, unanticipated and unexpected consequences of social action, as started by Robert K. Merton in a classic study of 1936. The contributing authors provide insights on both Merton's work and the reception it received in the academia. They also go beyond his original formulations to encompass new theoretical perspectives and empirical interests that have emerged in the intellectual circumstances different from, or opposed to, his functionalist theory. The contributing authors delve into fields as diverse as education, law, politics, financial markets, consumption, risks and accidents, systemic transformation, organizations and institutional work, innovations, and Polish studies.

Contents: Adriana Mica: Introduction - Raymond Boudon: Individual Reasons as the Causes of Collective Phenomena - Colin Campbell: Limits to Agency: Exploring the Unintended (and Unattended) Consequences of Action - Jean-Pascal Daloz: Elitist Consumption: Revisiting the Question of Utilitarian vs. Symbolic Motives - Piotr Sztompka: Existential Uncertainty and its Remedies. On the Shoulders of Robert K. Merton - Jocelyn Pixley: What about a Sociology of Uncertainty? - Steve Matthewman: Waiting to Happen: The Accident in Sociology - Adriana Mica: How Non-Linear is the Linear Model of Innovation? Treatment of Consequences in Diffusion and Translation Models - Arkadiusz Peisert: Introduction - Mike Zajko: Climate Change and Extreme Weather as Risk and Consequence - Klaus Birkelbach: Teacher Evaluations over the Life Course: Valid Prognosis or Self-fulfilling Prophecy? - Federico Farini: Affectivity, Expertise, and Inequality: Three Foundations of Trust in Education. Reflections on Presuppositions, (Unintended) Consequences, and Possible Alternatives - Francisco Linares: Self-defeating Prophecies and Social Conflict: A Case Study and Some Theoretical Considerations - Klaus Bachmann: Pluralistic Ignorance in Action: The Puzzle of Unintended Consequences during Poland's Transition to Democracy - Michal Luczewski: Nation as a Perverse Effect - Jan Winczorek: Introduction - Karl-Dieter Opp: The Beneficial and Unintended Consequences of False Beliefs about Norm Violation. When Is there a "Preventive Effect of Ignorance"? - Jacek Kurczewski: Amending the Amendments: Whether There Are Any Intended Effects of the Law at All? - Jan Winczorek: Why Do Procedures Have Unexpected Outcomes? - Ivo Domingues: Unintended Consequences in Normalization Processes: The Case of Certification of Quality Management Systems in the Social Sector - Mikolaj Pawlak: Unintended Consequences of Institutional Work - Richard Vernon: Foreseeably Unforeseeable Risk: Why Unintended Consequences Matter in Political Theory too.