Analytical Realism-Research On The Parsons’s Methodology Of Voluntarism Action Theory

This article analyzed the methodology-analytical realism. This methodology was put forward by Parsons putting in the book Structure of Social Action. And in the meanwhile I promoted the investigation of his voluntaristic theory of action. In the analysis of realism, a scientific theory is not only independent variable, or dependent variable, the theory must be met in order to correct the first objective facts, in turn, determines the theory of "objective facts" to the observer significance. Parsons’ analytical realism was firstly enunciated that Kant’s methodology of dualism empiricism, the methodology debate over the new institutional economics and the new classical economics method, and the surplus category of Pareto were his methodology foundation. Emphasizing the interdependency of the theoretical and empirical facts was the trait of this methodology. Then, basic premises of Parsons ’s action theory——the rationality of the action and the relationship of action and order were interpreted so as to demonstrate how Parsons can synthesize the theory of individualism and collectivism for his voluntaristic theory of action and thus, taking it as the reference system,to discuss few ideologists’ theories of action under the Positivism and the Idealism traditions.The empirical validation of his voluntaristic theory was thereafter conducted in accordance with the abovementioned reference system. Parsons came to the conclusion of voluntaristic theory of action by verifying the action of theory with the fact. Last but not least was the author’s criticism and reflection on analytical realism. As a kind of methodology, the analytical realism served as a link between past and future; it was the transcendence and synthesis of the classical sociologists’ methodologies and those at the same era, and thus impacted lots of scholars including Alexander, Giddens, Luhmann, etc; its improvement in methodology made significant contribution on the rise of sociology from the humanities as well as the synchronous progress with the nature science.