A.N. Alekseev’s Personal Knowledge of Sociology and Society as Described in the Author’s Self-Reflection

The aim of this article is to identify the methodological and moral-ideological underpinnings of the project by Andrei Nikolaevich Alekseev (1934–2017), and to show how he conceptualized, developed and advocated for it, working outside the generally accepted epistemological and institutional framework of sociology. With this goal in mind, the author of this article cites Alekseev’s own reflections on his contribution to the discipline that were inspired by his colleagues’ critiques, while avoiding making any judgments of her own. The original social knowledge developed by Alekseev can be described as personal (in the words of M. Polanyi), but while containing elements of self-reflexivity and reflexivity, as well as actionism.The initial portion of the text gives a brief summary on the making of a “working sociologist”. Also Alekseev’s key ideas and methods are touched upon, those contained within two segments of the field that he established — within “dramatized sociology” and “sociological autoreflection”, also the specifics of these concepts and genres are described. The second part of the article includes excerpts from discussions between the star of this article and his scientific opponents. Typically the article would refer to reviews and letters addressed to Alekseev in which his colleagues would express their doubt or criticize “dramatized sociology” and “sociological autoreflection”. Shown are Alekseev’s self-reflective responses to his opponents — L.G. Grigoryev, V.A. Yadov, D.N. Shalin, D.M. Rogozin, particularly on the topic of methodology and research ethics. It also outlines Alekseev’s perspective when it comes to how his project fits into the established system of social-humanitarian knowledge, what are the methodical and substantive similarities and differences when comparing to existing directions in this field — auto-ethnography, biographics, public sociology, as well as the connection to literature and journalism.

A.N. Alekseev (1934–2017), “dramatized sociology”, “sociological autoreflection”, auto-ethnography, observational participation, “protocols for life”, diaries, letters, working sociologist, tester-sociologist, worker-experimenter