Soziologie

Sociology: In the 19^th century L. von Stein, Baron K. von Vogelsang and A. Schäffle adhered to the theory of the German school of Romantic Organicism. This theory, which applied phenomena encountered in organic nature to society, was used around 1900 by the founders of social studies in the Austro-Hungarian monarchy to explain conflicts between classes, estates and nations. In so doing, they were, however, influenced by Positivism, Social Darwinism and Marxism (Ethno-sociology: L. Gumplowicz, G. Ratzenhofer, R. Thurnwald; Sociology of knowledge: W. Jerusalem, K. Mannheim, G. von Lukács; Sociology of law: E. Ehrlich, G. Jellinek; Moral statistics: T. Masaryk, E. von Philippovich, F. Savorgnan, O. Neurath). R. Goldscheid, C. Grünberg, K. Renner, L. Brentano, W. Jerusalem and others founded a "Sociological Society in Vienna" in 1907. The further development of this discipline was rather slow due to political circumstances. The flourishing of the concept of sociology in the First Republic was initiated by neighbouring disciplines such as economics and philosophy or occurred on a non-academic level (Austro-Marxism: M. Adler, O. Bauer, R. Hilferding, K. Renner; psychoanalysis: A. Adler, J. L. Moreno; liberalism: G. von Wieser, J. A. Schumpeter, K. Popper; organicism and left-wing catholicism: A. Günther, O. Spann, A. Orel, E. K. Winter, A. M. Knoll). Austrian sociology really came into its own after 1939 thanks to the work of Austrian emigrés abroad. More than 100 Austrians in exile became holders of chairs in social sciences in their host countries, e.g. H. Kelsen, K. Polanyi, P. Lazarsfeld, S. E. Voegelin, A. Schütz, M. Jahoda, H. Zeisel, F. A. von Hayek and W. Stark. In Austria the first Chair of Social Sciences was not established until 1950. Today all universities in Austria have Chairs of Social Sciences, and there are also non-academic research institutions and an "Austrian Society for Sociology", which publishes its own magazine.

Literature: M. R. Lepsius (ed.), Soziologie in Deutschland und Österreich 1918-45, 1981; J. Langer (ed.), Geschichte der österreichischen Soziologie, 1988.