Bojí sa sociológia biológie?
Is Sociology Afraid of Biology?

Summary/Abstract: Is Sociology Afraid of Biology? Socio-biology became in the last quarter of this century the most controversial new paradigm of social sciences and humanities. Ideologically uncharged critique of socio-biology is usually nothing more than the apology of so called standard model of social sciences, which defines human behaviour as exclusively cultural phenomenon, hence essentially explainable only by its social and cultural causes. Daly and Wilson considered under the term “sociological bio-phobia” the tendency of sociologists to ignore the importance of biological factors for the explanation of human social behaviour. Bio-phobia of social scientists in Slovakia is well represented by their common usage of the term “biologisation” with pejorative connotation. Marxists understand socio-biology as a rude vulgarisation, transmitting the biological terminology into the social sphere. Such attitude makes the Marxism fully compatible with the typical approach of social sciences. However, socio-biology does not search for social phenomena at the peak of the ontological hierarchy, it perceives them in horizontal perspective. Sociality is then the measure of mutual interactions between the individuals of the same species. The degree of sociality is then derived from the extent of limitations of autonomy and ego-centrism of behaviour. The causes of bio-phobia can be distinguished as general and specific. To general causes of bio-phobia belongs “hypersensitiveness” of social scientists to any form of reductionism and their fear from interdisciplinarity. Ellis points at the specific causes of bio-phobia such as ossificated adherence to Durkheim’s these, according to which social phenomena (facts) are explainable only by social causes. Other sources of bio-phobia include the minimum acquaintance of sociologists with modern biology and species racism considering social phenomena as exclusive for Homo sapiens species only. Important source of bio-phobia is also a fear of sociologists from potential moral and political consequences. Article further explores the main principles of socio-biology. Hamilton’s theory of kin selection as well as theory of group selection fallacy is explained by the paradox of altruist behaviour. Author mentions a well-known theory of selfish gene, explaining the socio-biological perspective about the family as the basic social unit. Family is viewed within this perspective as a space for conflict of interests of sexes (genders) and generations. Author also reviews the newest contributions to the controversial issue of what is really forming a human substance – environment versus genes, nature versus nurture. Sociológia 1999 Vol 31 (No. 4: 375-396)

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