Why Unitary Social Science? - Head Work

Why Unitary Social Science? pleads for a comprehensive appraisal of social reality. Tracing the visionary and transformative paths of reality from the subjective to the objective points of view, Mukherjee argues that it is precisely the division of social science into discrete compartments as disciplines that thwarts the emergence of an objective science of society. Social science is seen here as unitary with diverse specialisations emerging from a single base but proliferating endlessly as knowledge advances; neither as different social science disciplines nor as the unified social sciences.

Ramkrishna Mukherjee received his M.Sc. from Calcutta University and his Ph.D from Cambridge. He was a member of the Executive Committee of the International Sociological Association and spent his professional life with the Indian Statistical Institute, Calcutta, as Distinguished Scientist. He was Professor at Humboldt University, Berlin and Binghamton University, U.S.A. He was also associated with the London School of Economics, HMG Social Survey, U.K. and the Central Statistical Office, Turkey. Associated in a steering capacity with social indicators and the quality of life research in India and with UNESCO, Paris, Ramkrishna Mukherjee is the author of numerous best selling books and the recipient of several national and international awards. He lives in Kolkata, India.