MarkFoster.NETwork: Methodology for a Sociology Project in Online Media

Dictionary Definitions

syn·chro·nous
Pronunciation: 'si[ng]-kr&-n&s, 'sin-
Function: adjective
Etymology: Late Latin synchronos, from Greek, from syn- + chronos time
Date: 1669
1 : happening, existing, or arising at precisely the same time
2 : recurring or operating at exactly the same periods
3 : involving or indicating synchronism
4 a : having the same period; also : having the same period and phase b : GEOSTATIONARY
5 : of, used in, or being digital communication (as between computers) in which a common timing signal is established that dictates when individual bits can be transmitted, in which characters are not individually delimited, and which allows for very high rates of data transfer

asyn·chro·nous
Pronunciation: (")A-'si[ng]-kr&-n&s, -'sin-
Function: adjective
Date: 1748
1 : not synchronous
2 : of, used in, or being digital communication (as between computers) in which there is no timing requirement for transmission and in which the start of each character is individually signaled by the transmitting device
- asyn·chro·nous·ly adverb

Medium
plural usually media...a channel or system of communication, information, or entertainment

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary

Methodology

The methodology is participant observational, content analytical, historical, phenomenological, and existential. Explorations of structurization processes on the Internet will be explored through active engagement in, and utilization of, online communications media. Structurization, discussed below, is taken as heuristics and, in the social construction of online lifeworlds, as praxis. For instance, one behavior to be explored is applied textual reasonings in situated settings.

The Internet will be regarded as a metasociety, analogous to the concept of virtual communities. It is, in other words, a society beyond individual societies and is structured entirely in the minds of its participants.

As philosophy of science, the project utilizes pragmatism (Thomas Kuhn and Richard Rorty):

[Richard] Rorty, something of a Pragmatist, brought together the works of Davidson and Kuhn to form Pragmatism in accordance with the new focus on language. His deflationary view of language runs along with his expansionistic view of Pragmatism. Verifiability operates in time-sectioned paradigms, thus lending itself to relativity in "truth." More importantly, Rorty's gap between man and the world is not to be overcome with language, leaving man and science permanently separated from the actual condition of the world. This does not bother Rorty; he sees it simply as a part of the human condition, something that man has had to deal with since the beginning of time. While his views are intriguing, Rorty appears to have moved away from the foundation of traditional Pragmatism, placing and emphasis on relativity and metaphysics rather than on strict verifiability.
http://organizations.oneonta.edu/philosc/abstracts01.html

and conventionalism:

Unlike conventionalism, a philosophy of science that regards scientific laws and theories as freely chosen constructs that are simply devised by the scientist for the purpose of describing reality, Realism holds that laws and theories have determined and real counterparts in things.
-- "Realism," Encyclopedia Britannica

Conceptual (Preoperational) Definitions

The framework utilized here is Structurization Theory™ .

The methodology and praxis is a revolutionary, deconstructive, constructive, and culture-specific conflict sociology, i.e., the deconstruction of oppressive narratives.

For the purposes of the present participant-observational research project, synchronous telecommunications, or media, structures would include real-time chat rooms and instant messaging.

Conversely, asynchronous computer telecommunications, or media. structures would include those created through email (including listservs), message (or bulletin) boards, and most web sites (those without live chat).

In this project, media (pl. of medium) is used broadly to refer to modes of communication, and their contents, not only to mass media.

The methodology is influenced by various approaches to pragmatism, a nominalist philosophy of science. The utility of any statement or set of statements (logic, theories, hypotheses, etc.) can only be evaluated by its/their relative success in making predictions and solving problems. For instance, according to Thomas Kuhn's pragmatism, theories and methods must be judged in relation to a specific paradigm.

Primary substantive focuses include the sociology of religion, clinical sociology, theory, the Bahá'í Faith, historical sociology, and journalism.

Theoretical and Metatheoretical Definitions

Structurization Theory™, the theoretical and metatheoretical orientation explored in this project, is designed as a sociological and metasociological counterpart to certain theologies of liberation. Its post-Marxism criticalizes the radical sociology of the 1960s and 1970s into the sociopolitical constructs of the twenty-first century and opposes the recent drift of much of the Left into a post-radical accommodationism with the capitalist intelligentsia.

From the standpoint of this revised framework, the coexistence of an engaged radical metatheory, expressive of religious or spiritual commitment, with a grounded sociological theory, averse to global capitalism and to the terrorisms, is posited. The requisite distinction lies in the juxtaposition of value and fact.

To the question, "Could the social world be arranged differently," the nominalist would reply in the affirmative. The volitional, for instance, is accidental, not essential. It is possible that we can deconstruct groups which are oppressive and construct liberatory ones.

Methodologically, religion and science must each operate within their own grounded spheres of authority, while respecting the other's core competencies. The alternative would be the development of contemporary social scientific versions of such monstrosities as Auguste Comte's Religion of Humanity and Felix Adler's Ethical Culture (making religion scientific), on the one hand, or Creation Science and Islámic science (making science religious), on the other.

The post-Marxism in the radical sociology of religions refers to an axiological and a teleological, not a propositional, revolutionary program for transformative social action. In other words, while the metatheoretical values and direction for this paper come, properly, from religion, not from social science, its theoretical foundations originate in social science, not in religion.

Given that the metatheory of Structurization Theory is inevitably rooted in the specific religious or spiritual hermeneutic of the individual sociologist, a reflexive sociology must be among its integral components. Dynamically, transmodern sociology can be both socially transformative and intensely personal.

A significant mode of reflexive praxis is voice. Personal forms of discourse which are socially, politically, and economically emancipatory are advocated. Accordingly, free speech must refer exclusively to such forms of self-expression as are fundamentally free of oppressive content and do not promote false consciousness. Society should educate its members to rigorously avoid establishmentarian language which champions the subjugation and enslavement of others.

As Structurization Theory is developed, it will incorporate various theoretical perspectives. These are discussed elsewhere on this site.

This project will use various forms of praxis, including opinion journalism.

For further information, see my paper entitled, An Anti-Terrorist Manifesto. This section of the present page is adopted from that paper.

Definition of Clinical Sociology

For definntions of clinical sociology, sociological practice, and applied sociology, see my ClinicalSociology.com portal.

Links

Building Asynchronous and Synchronous Teaching-Learning Environments

Journal of Asynchronous Learning Networks

Synchronous Online Learning