Talcott Parsons' Economic Sociology

Abstract

Talcott Parsons' important legacy in the field of economic sociology still remains underestimated. The paper pays Parsons his due, without avoiding criticism. The paper focuses on his most mature work in this field, i.e. "Economy and Society", co-authored with Neil Smelser. Many weaknesses in Parsonian approach are rooted in his methodological outlook, in particular his anti-empricism that leads him to prefer conceptual methods over the facts, which preference, in turn, is responsible for many substantive omissions and errors Parsons commits. Nevertheless, some of his ideas, such as an input-output paradigm, or even his famous AGIl scheme have proved to be mor fruitful. Many critical points made by Parsons' opponents are, therefore, found to be irrelevant or misplaced. This refers in particular to an interesting and innovative in a number of respects theory of money.