It is argued that the discussions of the concept of strategy in papers by Crow (1989) and Morgan (1989) ignore the military origins of strategic thinking, and that more attention needs to be given to its diffusion from military to general social usage, as well as to specifically sociological uses. The paper then outlines a critique of strategic studies derived from the sociology of war. It argues that sociologists can learn, from the problems and current controversies of strategic studies, some of the limitations of strategic analysis as an approach in sociology.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Ashworth, A. 1981. Trench Warfare 1914-18: The Live and Let Live System. Basingstoke: Macmillan.
2.
Ayton, J. 1989. A Register of New Words. London: Longman.
3.
Buzan, B. 1988. Introduction to Strategic Studies. London: International Institute for Strategic Studies.
4.
Clausewitz, K. von. (edited and translated by Howard, M. and Paret, P.). 1976. On War. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press.
5.
Concise Oxford Dictionary. 1964. Oxford: The Clarendon Press.
6.
Crow, G.1989. `The Use of the Concept of “Strategy” in Recent Sociological Literature'. Sociology23: 1-24.
7.
Elster, J. 1983. Sour Grapes. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
8.
Elster, J. (ed.) 1986. Rational Choice. Oxford: Basil Blackwell.
9.
Freedman, L.1988. Review of Buzan (1988) in International Affairs. June.
10.
Luckham, R.1984. `Of arms and culture'. Current Research on Peace and ViolenceVII, 1:1-64.
11.
Mills, C. W. 1958. The Causes of World War Three. London: Secker and Warburg.
12.
Morgan, D. H. J.1989. `Strategies and Sociologists: A Comment on Crow'. Sociology23:25-29.
13.
Oxford English Dictionary. 1888. Oxford: The Clarendon Press.
14.
Oxford English Dictionary. 1986. A Supplement to the OED. Oxford: The Clarendon Press.
15.
RIIA (Royal Institute for International Affairs). 1989. New Directions in Strategic Studies?London: RIIA.
16.
Shaw, M. 1988. Dialectics of War: An Essay on the Social Theory of War and Peace. London: Pluto Press.
17.
Shaw, M. (forthcoming). Post-Militarism: Demilitarised Societies in a Militarised World. Oxford: Polity Press.
18.
Thompson, E. P. 1982. `Notes on Exterminism, The Last Stage of Civilisation', in Thompson et al. Exterminism and Cold War, 1-34. London: Verso Press.
19.
Williams, R. 1976. Keywords. London: Fontana.
20.
Williamson, J.1989. `Even New Times change'. New Statesman and Society2, 57:32-35.
