The study of sociology must look backward to the history of the field and outward to the current state of specialization in order to grasp the evolution of the field of sociology and gain a sense of where it is headed. One method to measure this evolutionary process is by analyzing the presidential addresses delivered by the presidents of the American Sociological Association. These addresses are printed usually in the February issues of the American Sociological Review.
For the purposes of this research, a series of presidential addresses have been collected and analyzed to show patterns of change in the field of sociology over the last 20 years. Many of the most fundamental changes in the discipline occurred in earlier decades, especially since World War II. For comparison sake, one earlier presidential address, which summarized the growth of the field of sociology, is included in this study.
Most students of sociology agree that the history of the field during the first third of the century was strictly guided by the Department of Sociology at the University of Chicago, known as the "Chicago School." A journal out of the University of Chicago, the American Journal of Sociology, functioned as the official voice of the American Sociological Association until 1936, giving the Chicago school extraordinary control over the direction of scholarship. In the course of the 1930s, however, the discipline of sociology began to expand, embracing numerous scholars specializing in a variety of special interests and sub-fields. This expansion naturally led to intra-field squabbling within sociology and fractionalized the field. Much of the intra-field battles were aimed at the Chicago school. In 1936, this hostility peaked when the American Sociological Association decided to publish an independent journal, the American Sociological Review.
At the beginning of each year, the president of the American Sociological Association delivers a...