Global Social Sciences - Under and Beyond European Universalism

The European social sciences tend to absorb criticism of their approach and re-label it as a part of what the critique opposes; thus criticism of European social sciences by subaltern social sciences, their 'talking back, ' has become a frequent line of reflection. The relabeling of the critique of the European approach as a critique from 'Southern' social sciences of 'Western' social sciences has in effect turned 'Southern' as well as 'Western' social sciences into competing contributors to the same 'globalizing' social sciences. Both are no longer arguing about the European approach to social sciences but about which social thought from which part of the globe should prevail. If the critique becomes a part of what it opposes, one might conclude that the European social sciences are adaptable and capable of learning. One might, however, also raise the question whether there is anything wrong with the criticism of the European social sciences, or, for that matter, whether there is anything wrong with the European social sciences themselves. The contributions in this book discuss these questions from different angles: They revisit the mainstream critique of the European social sciences, and they suggest new arguments criticizing social science theories that may be found as often in the 'Western' as in the 'Southern' discourse.

Stiintele sociale europene tind sa absoarba critica abordarii lor si sa o re-eticheteze ca parte a ceea ce critica se opune; astfel, critica stiintelor sociale europene de catre stiintele sociale subalterne, „revenirea lor”, a devenit o linie de reflectie frecventa. Reetichetarea criticii abordarii europene ca o critica din stiintele sociale „sudice” ale stiintelor sociale „occidentale” a transformat efectiv stiintele sociale „sudice” si „occidentale” in contribuabili concurenti la aceleasi stiinte sociale „globalizante”. .