On the Sociological Research of the Individual

Abstract

The individual, without exception, is an independent entity having a distinctive personality. Each individual is the culmination of the way he has been formed socially. Furthermore, at any given point in time he is regulated by society even while he is in turn acting autonomously to regulate society.
Heretofore, sociology has avoided dealing empirically with this independent, distinctive individual. However, the study of individuals is not only possible but absolutely necessary in sociology, and it can be achieved if we treat individuals' social situations coupled with personal life histories.
I wrested unsuccessfully with this problem from the time I wrote my first article, published in the 1948 issue of this journal. Between 1968 and 1978 I was able to achieve prospects as to a method to solve it (see articles published between October 1968 and October 1978). I acquired confidence in this method during two field studies conducted around 1980.
Even in the analysis of the life of only one individual we gain an opportunity to broaden and deepen our sociological knowledge of the realities of the society in which that person has lived.
If we do not reinforce our knowledge of the autonomy of individuals having distinct personalities, sociology is in danger of inadvertently losing sight of living human beings and producing nothing but stereotypes. Only by means of new images of man gained through contacts with individuals, can sociological researchers, each in his own field, continue to renew and revitalize their thinking. There has been a tendency for primary importance to be placed on the development of research techniques and on efficiency in research, to the detriment of human contacts.
In the latter half of this paper I will discuss this method with reference to the precedent set by a sociologist already familiar to many, Aruga Kizaemon.