Professions in Theory and History

Book excerpt: The professions are currently the focus of vigorous debate within sociology and social history. This book and its companion volume (The Formation of Professions) bring together researchers from continental Europe and from the English-speaking world to highlight the contrasting perspectives of the two traditions and to emphasize what they can learn from each other. The present volume concentrates on the theory and historical development of professions. The authors identify critical problems of method and theory, such as the reliance on single-profession case studies, the separation of professions from their social and political contexts, the assumption of a uniform professional strategy, the neglect of inter-professional relations and above all the overwhelming Anglo-American bias embedded in the categories and concepts used. They then propose ways in which comparative and historical analysis might be better equipped to study the professions in a wide variety of social and political settings. The discussion encompasses the market and employment context, comparison of professions with other kinds of authority relations and other types of occupation, and exploration of historical discontinuities and variations in strategy.