The British Journal of Sociology March 2004 [antikvár]

Editorial foreword This edition of the British Journal of Sociology marks a change of publisher and the relaunch of the Journal. Since the BJS is now ranked fifth among sociological journals, according to the latest Scientific Information Journal Citation Index, we are determined to maintain our position as a major fórum for the very best in sociology. Consequently, we have redesigned the journal and introduced a number of new features that we hope will make the Journal a fórum for national and international debate and discussion. The paper by Lauder, Brown and Halsey on 'Sociology and the political arithmetic' provides a welcome opportunity to discuss a much neglected issue: the relationship between sociology, social policy and government. How important is it that sociology has a voice in modern governance? What role can sociology play in resolving the 'fundamental problems of the 21st century'? To discuss these matters we have invited contributions from practitioners/policy advisors who present somé interesting views while writing in a personal capacity. We welcome further contributions on this subject. This edition alsó includes a book review symposium on Max Steuer's The Scientific Study of Society, an ambitious and abrasive survey of the achievements of the social sciences by a widely-read economist who seeks to defend the idea of a social science. The symposium contains reviews by a leading British sociologist, John Goldthorpe, and by Bob Scott, a leading interdisciplinary scholar from the USA. The symposium closes with a reply from Steuer. Both debates are provocative, deliberately so. They raise important questions about the place of sociology in contemporary social science, its relations with government, how we, as sociologists, view our discipline and how others see us. Readers will doubtless disagree with somé of the contributions. No matter; the ambition is to reflect upon what we do, what we aim to do and whether or not we do it well. After all, this should one of the central tasks of a generál journal like the BJS. While we plan further features of this kind the main purpose of the BJS is of course to publish traditional peer-reviewed articles. To that end, we are pleased to present papers on participation in the political sphere by Evans and Bond and on the relationship between gender, work and family by Uhlmann and Warren.