Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the meaning of giftgiving and reciprocity in modern society and thereby following the pointers left by Marcel Mauss. A critique will be made of the dichotomy of self-interest and normatively orientated action that forms the basis of sociology. For this concept...
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Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s000397560600004x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S000397560600004X |
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crcambridgeupr:10.1017/s000397560600004x 2024-06-23T07:57:10+00:00 Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society Adloff, Frank Mau, Steffen 2006 http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s000397560600004x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S000397560600004X en eng Cambridge University Press (CUP) https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms European Journal of Sociology volume 47, issue 1, page 93-123 ISSN 0003-9756 1474-0583 journal-article 2006 crcambridgeupr https://doi.org/10.1017/s000397560600004x 2024-06-12T04:04:27Z The purpose of this paper is to discuss the meaning of giftgiving and reciprocity in modern society and thereby following the pointers left by Marcel Mauss. A critique will be made of the dichotomy of self-interest and normatively orientated action that forms the basis of sociology. For this conceptual dichotomization has caused forms of social interaction that cannot be localized either on the side of self-interest or on that of morality. It is the logic of the gift and the reciprocity thus evoked that in our view accompanies and structures all forms of interaction, from the social micro to the macrolevel. It is shown that in modern societies gifts and reciprocities form their own orders of interaction, and not only on a microsocial level. The principle of reciprocity even accompanies as a rule transfers owing to (state) compulsion as well as economic, selective exchange. As a basic principle of processes of sociation it is, fundamentally, present everywhere and in some areas it is explicitly and openly in effect (for example in welfare state transfers). Sociology has for too long overlooked the fact that this principle cannot be traced back either to normativist or to utilitarian explanations and nevertheless represents a principle of construction of modern societies. Article in Journal/Newspaper The Pointers Cambridge University Press European Journal of Sociology 47 1 93 123 |
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Cambridge University Press |
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English |
description |
The purpose of this paper is to discuss the meaning of giftgiving and reciprocity in modern society and thereby following the pointers left by Marcel Mauss. A critique will be made of the dichotomy of self-interest and normatively orientated action that forms the basis of sociology. For this conceptual dichotomization has caused forms of social interaction that cannot be localized either on the side of self-interest or on that of morality. It is the logic of the gift and the reciprocity thus evoked that in our view accompanies and structures all forms of interaction, from the social micro to the macrolevel. It is shown that in modern societies gifts and reciprocities form their own orders of interaction, and not only on a microsocial level. The principle of reciprocity even accompanies as a rule transfers owing to (state) compulsion as well as economic, selective exchange. As a basic principle of processes of sociation it is, fundamentally, present everywhere and in some areas it is explicitly and openly in effect (for example in welfare state transfers). Sociology has for too long overlooked the fact that this principle cannot be traced back either to normativist or to utilitarian explanations and nevertheless represents a principle of construction of modern societies. |
format |
Article in Journal/Newspaper |
author |
Adloff, Frank Mau, Steffen |
spellingShingle |
Adloff, Frank Mau, Steffen Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
author_facet |
Adloff, Frank Mau, Steffen |
author_sort |
Adloff, Frank |
title |
Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
title_short |
Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
title_full |
Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
title_fullStr |
Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
title_full_unstemmed |
Giving Social Ties, Reciprocity in Modern Society |
title_sort |
giving social ties, reciprocity in modern society |
publisher |
Cambridge University Press (CUP) |
publishDate |
2006 |
url |
http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s000397560600004x https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S000397560600004X |
genre |
The Pointers |
genre_facet |
The Pointers |
op_source |
European Journal of Sociology volume 47, issue 1, page 93-123 ISSN 0003-9756 1474-0583 |
op_rights |
https://www.cambridge.org/core/terms |
op_doi |
https://doi.org/10.1017/s000397560600004x |
container_title |
European Journal of Sociology |
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47 |
container_issue |
1 |
container_start_page |
93 |
op_container_end_page |
123 |
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1802650683577466880 |