Generally Speaking: The Logic and Mechanics of Social Pattern Analysis

ion, of course, presupposes conceptualization, and analytical foci usually revolve around ‘‘sensitizing’’ concepts that ‘‘suggest directions along which to look’’ thus providing ‘‘a general sense of relevance and guidance in approaching empirical instances’’ (Blumer, 1954:7). ‘‘Every science,’’ notes Simmel ([1908] 1959:313; [1917] 1950:11, 21), ‘‘rests upon an abstraction inasmuch as it considers the totality of [a] thing ... from the viewpoint of a particular conception’’ in accordance with which it ‘‘extracts only one ... aspect out of [this] totality.’’ ‘‘Sociological phenomena [are thus] factored out of ... reality by means of ... concept[s]’’ that help keep social pattern analysts analytically focused.