A Middle Way Way of Emptying Dualism in Social Theory

A variety of theories in the social science, as profound as they may seem, cannot break away from “either-or” dualism. In which, many of them assume dualistic substantialisms in terms of the dichotomies like: methodological individualism vs. methodological collectivism; positivistic sociology vs. intepretivist sociology; agency vs. structure, and so on. In addition to that, there is also another kind of dualistic dichotomy, that is, universalism vs. relativism, or nihilism. Many sociological theories are ensnared into one of these views and cling to it as the only right one. What I am trying to articulate in this paper is to submit an application of Buddhist middle way perspective to the critique of dualism, substantialism and nihilism in social theory. I try to articulate the core concepts in middle way, which are emptiness, dependent co-arising and nominal designation, as well as three related ways of thinking, non-dualtiy, relationality and processuality, and thereby their implications for social theory.