The value judgment controversy (German:''Werturteilsstreit'') is a ''
Methodenstreit
''Methodenstreit'' (German for "method dispute"), in intellectual history beyond German-language discourse, was an economics controversy commenced in the 1880s and persisting for more than a decade, between that field's Austrian School and the (Ge ...
'', a quarrel in German
sociology
Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of empirical investigation an ...
and
economics
Economics () is the social science that studies the production, distribution, and consumption of goods and services.
Economics focuses on the behaviour and interactions of economic agents and how economies work. Microeconomics anal ...
, around the question whether the
social sciences
Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of so ...
are a normative obligatory statement in politics and its measures applied in political actions, and whether their measures can be justified scientifically.
Hans Albert
Hans Albert (born 8 February 1921) is a German philosopher. Born in Cologne, he lives in Heidelberg.
His fields of research are Social Sciences and General Studies of Methods. He is a critical rationalist, paying special attention to rational ...
: ''Ökonomische Ideologie und politische Theorie'', Göttingen 1972. p. 10.
The quarrel took place in the years before World War I, between the members of the ''
Verein für Socialpolitik
The Verein für Socialpolitik (), or the German Economic Association, is an important society of economists in the German-speaking area.
History
The Verein was founded in Eisenach in 1872 as a response to the "social question". Among its founde ...
''. Main opponents were
Max Weber
Maximilian Karl Emil Weber (; ; 21 April 186414 June 1920) was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist, who is regarded as among the most important theorists of the development of modern Western society. His ideas p ...
,
Werner Sombart
Werner Sombart (; ; 19 January 1863 – 18 May 1941) was a German economist and sociologist, the head of the "Youngest Historical School" and one of the leading Continental European social scientists during the first quarter of the 20th century. ...
and
Gustav Schmoller.
The ''Zweite Werturteilsstreit'' is the debate between the supporter of the ''
Kritische Theorie'' and the ''
Kritischer Rationalismus'' during the 1960s — better known as ''
Positivismusstreit''.
References
Further reading
*
Hans Albert
Hans Albert (born 8 February 1921) is a German philosopher. Born in Cologne, he lives in Heidelberg.
His fields of research are Social Sciences and General Studies of Methods. He is a critical rationalist, paying special attention to rational ...
and
Ernst Topitsch (editor) – ''Werturteilsstreit'' –, Darmstadt 1971
* ''Äußerungen zur Werturteilsdiskussion im Ausschuß des Vereins für Socialpolitik.'' – printed as manuscript 1913.
*
John Dewey
John Dewey (; October 20, 1859 – June 1, 1952) was an American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer whose ideas have been influential in education and social reform. He was one of the most prominent American scholars in the fi ...
– ''Logik. Die Theorie der Forschung'' –, 1986 (Published in German 2002 as "Sozialforschung")
*
Christian von Ferber – ''Der Werturteilsstreit 1909–1959. Versuch einer wissenschaftlichen Interpretation.'' – In: Ernst Topitsch (editor) – ''Logik der Sozialwissenschaften.'' – , Kiepenheuer & Witsch, Köln, 8. Auflage 1972, or
*
Dirk Kaesler – ''Einführung in das Studium Max Webers'' –, München 1979
* Dieter Lindenlaub – ''Richtungskämpfe im Verein für Socialpolitik. Wissenschaft und Sozialpolitik im Kaiserreich vornehmlich vom Beginn des “Neuen Kurses“ bis zum Ausbruch des Ersten Weltkrieges (1890–1914)'' –, part I + II., Wiesbaden 1967 (Beihefte zur Vierteljahresschrift für Sozial- und Wirtschaftsgeschichte Nr. 52/53)
*
Jürgen Mittelstraß – ''Werturteilsstreit'' –, in: ''Enzyklopädie: Philosophie und Wissenschaftstheorie'', 1996
*
Wolfgang Schluchter
Wolfgang Schluchter (born 4 April 1938 in Ludwigsburg, Germany) is a German sociologist and, as of 2006, professor emeritus at the University of Heidelberg. Schluchter is recognized as a leading sociologist of religion and an authority on the hi ...
– ''Wertfreiheit und Verantwortungsethik'' –, Tübingen 1971
*
Gustav von Schmoller
Gustav Friedrich (after 1908: von) Schmoller (; 24 June 1838 – 27 June 1917) was the leader of the "younger" German historical school of economics.
He was a leading '' Sozialpolitiker'' (more derisively, '' Kathedersozialist'', "Socialist of t ...
– ''Die Volkswirtschaft, die Volkswirtschaftslehre und ihre Methode'', 1893 (Frankfurt am Main 1949)
* ''Verhandlungen des Vereins für Socialpolitik in Wien, 1909'' –, Leipzig 1910. (Schriften des Vereins für Socialpolitik, Band 132)
*
Max Weber
Maximilian Karl Emil Weber (; ; 21 April 186414 June 1920) was a German sociologist, historian, jurist and political economist, who is regarded as among the most important theorists of the development of modern Western society. His ideas p ...
and
Johannes F. Winckelmann (editor) – ''Gesammelte Aufsätze zur Wissenschaftslehre'' -, Tübingen 1988,
{{Authority control
German words and phrases
Economic controversies
Ideological rivalry
Positivism
Max Weber