PeRsPectives On SoCiaL PrObLemS..

Although the study of social problems has long been a central sociological concern, the field has undergone a renewal and transformation over the past decade. Change is partly evident in the declining interest of sociologists of social problems in positivist and functionalist paradigms that dominated the field (and sociology) during most of the post World War II period. The declining interest in traditional paradigms has not been associated with the emergence of a new paradigmatic consensus, however. Rather, the contemporary sociology of social problems is oriented to a series of debates focusing on the most fundamental assumptions and concerns of the field, including whether there can be a sociology of social problems that is distinct from other subfields of the discipline.One purpose of Perspectives on Social Problems is to foster such debates by providing a forum where sociologists of social problems can present and argue opposed positions on epistemological, moral, and political issues that are central to the field. We want to encourage the application and elaboration of diverse sociological perpectives on social problems through analyses of aspects of contemporary societies. Each paper published in this series will address one or more of these issues. This is a statement of our general orientation to many of the concerns now being debated by sociologists of social problems. We claim no comprehensive, definitive, or final position on the issues, but merely suggest how the sociology of social problems might be further developed. In doing so, we hope to cultivate dialogue between sociologists of social problems focusing on the most fundamental purposes and concerns of the field.