Michael W. Raphael
Graduate Center of the City University of New York, Sociology, Graduate Student
- John Jay College of Criminal Justice, Sociology, AdjunctNortheastern University, College Of Criminal Justice, Alumnus, and 2 moreadd
- Sociology of Law, Cognitive Sociology, Sociological Theory, Policing, Philosophy of Social Science, Cultural Criminology, and 39 moreSociology, Criminal Justice, Pedagogy, Phenomenology of Chess, Metasociology, Security, Security Studies, Philosophy of Chess, Social and Political Thought, Cognitive Science, Philosophy of Mind, Philosophy Of Law, Jurisprudence, Social Control, Social Cognition, Chess, History of Ideas, History of Chess, Strategic Interaction, Sociology of Identity, Law, Law and Society, Law and Politics, Philosophy, Justice, Game Theory, Rationality, Social Order, Epistemology of the Social Sciences, Sociology of Crime and Deviance, Criminology, Sociology of Sport, Chess As a Sociological Ontology, Emile Durkheim, Science and Technology Studies, Computer Networks, Databases, Software, and Public Policyedit
- Michael W. Raphael is in the Sociology Department at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York specializ... moreMichael W. Raphael is in the Sociology Department at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York specializing in cognitive sociology and the sociology of law, with an emphasis on the politics of tacit knowledge. He holds a master's degree in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University where his thesis concerned the problem of learning informal skills as it pertains to the implementation of community policing.
His dissertation, “Freedom, Causation and the Inequality of Contract” investigates how sociality mediates experience and the implications it has for decision-making, with a particular emphasis on contract and intellectual property law and internet policy. His inquiry emphasizes an examination of Erving Goffman's work in relation to political and socio-legal theory. Raphael sees this as part of a larger project concerning the necessity of a cognitive sociology of law, particularly in the internet age where shifts in commerce affects the reification of privacy.
Raphael has earned grants for conducting archival research and for ethnographic research. His publications include An Academic Expedition to Northern Ireland: The Ethnographic Report (2010), a visual ethnography that attempts to capture historical sites relevant to the sectarian conflict, the 231-volume series ReViewing Chess (2011-2011), an operationalization of studies conducted in the cognitive sociology of memory and pedagogy, and Phenomenological Theories of Crime (2012), co-authored with Peter K. Manning.
He teaches courses in the sociology of law and criminology at John Jay College of Criminal Justice.
In his free time, he enjoys playing chess, creating fine art photography and the pursuit of other artistic endeavors.edit
This proposed project examines the divergences, if any, between the impersonal logic of law as how the law is theorized, taught, & learned and how the law is practiced as the process of legal decision making. Traditionally, law is... more
This proposed project examines the divergences, if any, between the impersonal logic of law as how the law is theorized, taught, & learned and how the law is practiced as the process of legal decision making. Traditionally, law is governmental social control. It aims to tame individuals who are ‘rational actors’ that calculate and evaluate whether or not to decide a case one way or another or to engage in rule-breaking behavior. However, these models of the ‘rational actor’, emphasized in law, criminology, cognitive science and behavioral economics, do not account for the sociological conditions that inform the cognitive processes in which individuals think in the legal institution. Relying upon the theoretical framework of cognitive societalization, this approach seeks to develop a cognitive sociological model of the actor in the legal institution. This development will inform how order is indicated, sustained, and/or changed in the context of a legal decision. Drawing on 40 in-depth interviews with law students, at different stages of the professional juris doctorate and graduate curriculum, the broader impact of this research will enable more effective policy recommendations for reducing the social inequalities that result from contemporary legal practice.
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The metaphorical applications of chess to life date back prior to the thirteenth century and are still operating in modern narratives across many disciplines. The definition of "chess" varies across these narratives – some of which are... more
The metaphorical applications of chess to life date back prior to the thirteenth century and are still operating in modern narratives across many disciplines. The definition of "chess" varies across these narratives – some of which are problematic for moving beyond the mere "chess" metaphor. Based on the authorities found in the John G. White Collection at the Cleveland Public Library, this thesis explores the problem of defining "chess" such that the sociological/phenomenological form of "chess" is developed and intelligible enough to show that it cannot be translated by a theory of games. Rather, it should be understood as a preface to the development of a social logic that can enlighten scholars about social interaction and social life in general.
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The goal of many self-help books on interpersonal relationships is for the reader to learn how to "just act natural." There are certain processes that interfere with one's ability to follow such advice, namely, the imposition of... more
The goal of many self-help books on interpersonal relationships is for the reader to learn how to "just act natural." There are certain processes that interfere with one's ability to follow such advice, namely, the imposition of calculation of what is `natural' will not generate a reality where the "just natural" interaction that is occurring is believed. This thesis examines several implications of this as it relates to the social organization of experience and the limitations of self-help books in aiding in the learning production of that experience of expression games in informal interaction. These implications and limitations are examined through (1) an analysis of how the learning of expression games occurs through informal socialization. This is followed by (2) a brief content analysis of a sample of 50 self-help books on interpersonal relationships that purport to teach informal interaction. This informs (3) a systematic pilot study of a selected subsample that presents the limitations inherent in the authors' advice as formalized by the advice's characteristic content and rule-like quality; which is followed by an analysis of the reactions of readers to the subsample. The thesis concludes with suggestions for future research and considerations for scholars and policymakers in terms of how `expression games' are an integral feature in the generation of solidarity among social interactants and its relation to societal social order.
Research Interests: Sociology, Social Sciences, Social Identity, Emile Durkheim, Interpersonal Relationships, and 10 moreErving Goffman, Solidarity, Cognitive Sociology, Social Order, Personal Development & Self Help Books, Algorithmic Heuristic, Expression Games, Informal Pedagogy, Shaman's Condition, and Strategic Informal Interaction
This adventure details an account of a student who turned short-term study-abroad program into a "reconnaissance" mission in Belfast and Dublin by gathering information, photographing sites of interest and making contacts. Through the... more
This adventure details an account of a student who turned short-term study-abroad program into a "reconnaissance" mission in Belfast and Dublin by gathering information, photographing sites of interest and making contacts. Through the course of the mission, he finds himself in police stations, castles, two prisons, a royal garden, the opera and of course, a night or two at the tavern.
Includes over 100 pages of photos and the Museum of Free Derry.
More info: http://www.createspace.com/3490388 or http://www.amazon.com/dp/1453871888
Includes over 100 pages of photos and the Museum of Free Derry.
More info: http://www.createspace.com/3490388 or http://www.amazon.com/dp/1453871888
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This series reverts back to a nineteenth century printing technique, cinéma des échecs, to reinvent the chess book as a training tool. Based on a method that not only understands the problems facing those whom attempt to study the game... more
This series reverts back to a nineteenth century printing technique, cinéma des échecs, to reinvent the chess book as a training tool. Based on a method that not only understands the problems facing those whom attempt to study the game but addresses these problems head on by realizing a framework that eliminates the social obstacles (i.e. friends, family, life in general;) preventing players from recognizing the joy and intellectual satisfaction the study of chess inspires.
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Cognitive sociology is the study of the conditions under which meaning is constituted through processes of reification. Cognitive sociology traces its origins to writings in the sociology of knowledge, sociology of culture, cognitive and... more
Cognitive sociology is the study of the conditions under which meaning is constituted through processes of reification. Cognitive sociology traces its origins to writings in the sociology of knowledge, sociology of culture, cognitive and cultural anthropology, and more recently, work done in cultural sociology and cognitive science. Its central questions revolve around locating these processes of reification since the locus of cognition is highly contentious. Researchers consider how individuality is related to notions of society (structures, institutions, systems, etc.) and notions of culture (cultural forms, cultural structures, sub-cultures, etc.). These questions further explore how these answers depend on learning processes (socialization, acculturation, etc.) which vary according to the position one takes on the role of language in cognition. It is from these positions that we operationalize a theory of human nature and construct a justification for the organization of the state of human affairs and the related conceptualizations of identity, self, and the subject. In this way, cognitive sociology seeks to establish the minimal model of the actor (the ontology) that underpins not only other subfields of sociology but also the human sciences in general. In this way, cognitive sociology analyzes the series of interpersonal processes that set up the conditions for phenomena to become “social objects,” which subsequently shape thinking and thought. In classical cognitive sociology, the historical traditions of the sociology of knowledge and phenomenology are emphasized, with the work of Bourdieu and Goffman given special treatment, given their contributions as precursors to many of the contemporary contingencies and consequences of debates in culture and cognition. The principle organizing the more contemporary literature are the paradigmatic assumptions concerning the locus of cognition, which have been organized into five ideal-types. These elucidate the points of agreement and disagreement in the field by addressing how thematic concerns (e.g., knowledge, rationality, embodiment, practices, discourse, etc.) highlight the priority of individuality in modeling society, to illustrate what makes cognitive sociology at once interdisciplinary yet contentiously distinct in addressing the politics of “tacit knowledge.”
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One of the few basic premises that sociological analysis assumes is a general answer to the question of how society is organized according to some sort of agreement or contract. In what follows, it is shown that this question is still... more
One of the few basic premises that sociological analysis assumes is a general answer to the question of how society is organized according to some sort of agreement or contract. In what follows, it is shown that this question is still unsettled through an exploration of how several prominent thinkers have considered what the basis for society is and how it is related to the basis for justice, the source of rights, their view of human nature and the cognitive sociological basis of individuality. Drawing on the cognitive and cultural turn, this critique offers a revision of the structure-agency problem and examines the implications for a sociological conception of freedom and a corresponding concept of causation for the human sciences.
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Studying the sociology of law as a scholar is difficult enough: the lack of coherence between legal and socio-legal discourse is already profound, never minding all the institutional difficulties that are now faced in undertaking this... more
Studying the sociology of law as a scholar is difficult enough: the lack of coherence between legal and socio-legal discourse is already profound, never minding all the institutional difficulties that are now faced in undertaking this course of study. Teaching sociology of law, even at an abstract level, is seemingly made even more difficult by this disjointedness – despite the similarly shared between the core questions of jurisprudence and sociological theory. Recognizing what can be accomplished in a single course is limited, this paper reflects on the problems of making these seemingly lofty ideas approachable to students. Rather than presenting ideas about the relation between law and institutions; the centrality of the legal profession; and the law, punishment, and social control directly, this is done by using the Socratic Method to walk through a critical examination of Goffman’s Behavior in Public Places (1963) to help students recognize what is going on within interaction and how interaction makes itself vulnerable to legal claims. The paper concludes with an elaboration of how students from three different courses handled performing courtroom observations.
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The legal myth of thirds is the belief that each graduating class of law students can be divided into thirds where the top third end up becoming law professors, the middle third become judges and the bottom third become lawyers. Such... more
The legal myth of thirds is the belief that each graduating class of law students can be divided into thirds where the top third end up becoming law professors, the middle third become judges and the bottom third become lawyers. Such discourse is indicative of a meritocratic society and a 2014 survey done at a small New England law school found that 36.9% of respondents (N=92) have indeed heard that this was the case. The authors feel that the mere existence of such a rumor suggests that there is concern regarding intra-professional stratification. Using data from the American Bar Foundation’s After the J.D. (AJD) study we seek to evaluate this rumor empirically and determine whether it is in fact a myth or whether such intra-professional stratification is limited to certain types of legal employment. Based on the second wave, our findings indicate that this myth indeed lacks any factual basis. However, beyond investigating the validity of the legal myth of thirds itself, we also seek to illuminate what trends, if any, exist within intra-professional stratification that affects meritocratic social organization. Thus, the implications of this study go beyond the scope of the mythic theory-judicial-practice divide. Our work also makes important contributions to theoretical arguments about meritocracy and equal opportunity through educational attainment, long seen as the primary means to overcoming adversity and achieving the American dream.
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One of the few basic premises that sociological analysis assumes is a general answer to the question of how society is organized according to some sort of agreement or contract. Elucidating how this question is still unsettled requires an... more
One of the few basic premises that sociological analysis assumes is a general answer to the question of how society is organized according to some sort of agreement or contract. Elucidating how this question is still unsettled requires an exploration of how several prominent thinkers have considered what the basis for society is and how it is related to justice founded in the cognitive sociological basis of individuality. Drawing on the cognitive and cultural turn, this critique offers a revision of the structure-agency problem and examines the implications for a sociological conception of freedom and a corresponding concept of causation for the human sciences.
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The cultural turn within cognitive social theory seeks to emphasize the promise of interpretive explanation on understanding how groups collectively understand the social world. However, if one forgoes the taking of this turn for the... more
The cultural turn within cognitive social theory seeks to emphasize the promise of interpretive explanation on understanding how groups collectively understand the social world. However, if one forgoes the taking of this turn for the moment, the distance between the classical cognitive sociology of Erving Goffman and the contemporary cultural cognitive sociology of Eviatar Zerubavel is wider than it appears at one’s first glance. And, it is within this space that I propose a critical turn, in the rhetorical sense, by the presentation of this prospect. Through the sketch of an ongoing critical examination of Goffman’s work, a prospective theoretical framework emerges for a cognitive sociology that reevaluates the necessity of the cultural turn – not by the elimination of a strong program in culture but by reconsidering how culture is conceptualized within this prospect. Following this, this prospect continues with the extension of this framework to the philosophy and sociology of law. That is, how law ultimately relies upon a cognitive sociology not only in legal reasoning but also in legal practice and process. This examination concludes with an outline of the implications of the presented critique.
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The goal of many self-help books on interpersonal relationships is for the reader to learn how to “just act natural.” There are certain processes that interfere with one’s ability to follow such advice, namely, the imposition of... more
The goal of many self-help books on interpersonal relationships is for the reader to learn how to “just act natural.” There are certain processes that interfere with one’s ability to follow such advice, namely, the imposition of calculation of what is ‘natural’ will not generate a reality where the “just natural” interaction that is occurring is believed. This raises the question of authenticity in social interaction and its significance for rapport-building, trust and solidarity. Erving Goffman addresses this issue throughout his work. However, a majority of critiques place Goffman’s work in symbolic interactionist, rational choice and game-theoretical perspectives. This raises certain challenges for Goffman’s work to be applicable to this area of research, specifically in regard to Goffman’s notion of ‘strategic interaction’. In this respect, this paper offers a revision to Goffman’s notion of ‘strategic interaction’ by clarifying how social interaction operates under (1) strategic, yet non-calculative conditions; and (2) strategic and calculative conditions. This paper then addresses the practical and theoretical consequences to this revision – the question of Shaman’s Condition. This is to say that the need to produce authenticity is the need to operate under strategic and calculative conditions in a social situation regulated under strategic, yet non-calculative conditions, which is the need to operate under Shaman’s Condition. Thus, this paper addresses how Shaman’s Condition deals with the need to “just act natural.”
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The metaphorical applications of chess to life date back prior to the thirteenth century and are still operating in modern narratives across many disciplines. The definition of "chess" varies across these narratives – some of which are... more
The metaphorical applications of chess to life date back prior to the thirteenth century and are still operating in modern narratives across many disciplines. The definition of "chess" varies across these narratives – some of which are problematic for moving beyond the mere "chess" metaphor. Based on the authorities found in the John G. White Collection at the Cleveland Public Library, this presentation explores the problem of defining "chess" such that the phenomenological form of "chess" is developed and intelligible enough to show that it cannot be translated by a theory of games. Rather, it should be understood as a preface to the development of a social logic that can enlighten students and scholars about social interaction and social life in general.
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In learning social skills, we build pattern and relational recognition (or, what psychologists, chess players, athletes, cops, et. al. refer to as ‘instinct’, ‘intuition’, or ‘gut-feeling’). This relational-pattern recognition dimension... more
In learning social skills, we build pattern and relational recognition (or, what psychologists, chess players, athletes, cops, et. al. refer to as ‘instinct’, ‘intuition’, or ‘gut-feeling’). This relational-pattern recognition dimension of social interaction learns how to key the definition of the situation. The data the cognitive heuristic learns from are the various configurations of nonverbal cues, verbal cues and the immediate social action that follows from the interaction of the nonverbal and verbal configurations. One of the most important configurations that one’s heuristic relational-pattern recognition must learn is keying whether the definition of the situation is characteristically formal or informal. It is this attribution that feeds back for the next move or subsequent social interaction of the encounter. In determining the social action that will occur in the ongoing social interaction, one’s heuristic relational-pattern recognition relies on this formal or informal characterization to determine whether to resort to learned/past heuristics or learned/past algorithms of social action. This poster will show how this distinction is problematic for formally learning social skills.
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Anto Brennan, a political artist in Belfast, Northern Ireland created a painting of Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley playing chess on November 26, 2003. Through a retrograde analysis of the position presented, a possible game is produced based... more
Anto Brennan, a political artist in Belfast, Northern Ireland created a painting of Gerry Adams and Ian Paisley playing chess on November 26, 2003. Through a retrograde analysis of the position presented, a possible game is produced based upon the identification of the social variations of chess tactics and strategies within the continuation of the Irish-Anglo conflict from 2001-2003, thus tracing the positional origins represented in Brennan's painting through the major socio-political events of a two year period. This game analogically represents the societal conflict at hand, “Sinn Féin a.k.a. Catholics a.k.a. Nationalists” versus “Democratic Unionist Party a.k.a. Protestants a.k.a. Loyalists.” This approach has possible applications to other conflicts, like the “Israeli-Palestinian,” the “Hindu-Muslim” and any other sectarian conflict.
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I went to the John G. White Collection at the Cleveland Public Library in search of a prima facie authority for ‘chess’ that grounds chess to go beyond mere metaphor and can enlighten scholars about life in general. I found that chess is... more
I went to the John G. White Collection at the Cleveland Public Library in search of a prima facie authority for ‘chess’ that grounds chess to go beyond mere metaphor and can enlighten scholars about life in general. I found that chess is historically invoked to allegorize life and morality through the use of symbolism, analogy and metaphor. I also found that this practice is so widespread that it tempting to conclude that the game, its rules and nomenclature arise within and are reflections of socio-histories and social life.
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Visual sociology is crucial for exploring the indexical meanings that thick description cannot capture within a cultural setting. This paper explores how such meanings are created within a subset of the domain of photography. Using data... more
Visual sociology is crucial for exploring the indexical meanings that thick description cannot capture within a cultural setting. This paper explores how such meanings are created within a subset of the domain of photography. Using data gathered over several years, I constructed the semiotic code ‘horizon’ photographers use when “in the field” for photographing periods of twilight. This code explains the relevance of subject matter to the photograph’s aesthetics. Specifically, I detail how “the horizon” communicates the potential for the photographer to “capture” the index of a symbol that later permits the photographer culturally mark scenes with “light”. As the means of production of photographs becomes increasingly automated, this paper concludes with how this process of cultural marking is changing and why the agency of “the photographer” still matters for the resulting photograph.
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At more than 400 undergraduate programs in the United States, there are three courses a sociology major is likely required to take, Introduction to Sociology, Social Theory, and a methods course. In each of these courses, students are... more
At more than 400 undergraduate programs in the United States, there are three courses a sociology major is likely required to take, Introduction to Sociology, Social Theory, and a methods course. In each of these courses, students are likely to hear the word 'theory' in many different contexts. While some might organize social theory by school, by how "grand" it is, or by the subject of its empirical analysis, the source of sociology's diversity which is a certain strength for researchers, there is a divide in regard to sociology's core identity and a lack of agreement on what a social relation is or the phenomenological form it takes in everyday life. This presentation evaluates a set of questions that could be of use in assessing sociological merit of a particular study as well as comparing the most basic elements of sociological theories.
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Reading comprehension depends on how students approach texts. Too often students are not told or forget why they have to read what is assigned to them. This can lead to a lot of frustration. After all, reading critically is very different... more
Reading comprehension depends on how students approach texts. Too often students are not told or forget why they have to read what is assigned to them. This can lead to a lot of frustration. After all, reading critically is very different from reading for facts. Analyzing descriptions is also very different from analyzing analysis. Sociological texts, like Marx’s Economic and Philosophical Manuscripts of 1844, Weber’s Economic & Society (1978), Durkheim’s Rules of the Sociological Method (1982) and Goffman’s Behavior in Public Places (1963), cannot be read like a newspaper. This guide aims to assist undergraduates seeking a critical education in learning how to tackle reading the kind of writing that is dense as a necessity of the arguments themselves. Rather than seeking to reduce it to “plain language”, students can break in down into its orders and classes of abstraction such that the arguments reveal themselves. Instead of emphasizing the instrumental task of coursework, as in the idea of higher education as “knowledge factories”, through briefing, this pedagogy offers a means of showing students how to read for understanding and patience. This prepares students for class discussions where instructors can have students compare their points of confusion, interpretations, and contrast the outlines the students produce. Sample briefs are provided to illustrate the differences formatting makes in sharing understanding with others. By showing students these samples, it is hoped that students will understand that expectations are set high not because instructors are trying to be difficult or “hard graders”, but because of the obligation to assist students in learning to think for themselves. This concludes with a grading analysis of the sample briefs to give students insight into the challenges of evaluation faculty face when grading.
Research Interests: Critical Theory, Sociology, Teacher Education, E-learning, Critical Pedagogy, and 16 moreTextual Criticism, Cognition, Critical Thinking, Reading, Pedagogy, Qualitative Research, Reading Comprehension, Sociological Theory, Critical Thinking and Creativity, Critical Reading (Education), Textual Criticism and Editing, Classroom Discourse, Teaching sociology, Guidelines, Research skills, and Outline
This course provides an overview of the theoretical frameworks and data-collection methods that sociologists use to analyze political trends, economic developments, and cultural changes in society. It investigates the many ways that a... more
This course provides an overview of the theoretical frameworks and data-collection methods that sociologists use to analyze political trends, economic developments, and cultural changes in society. It investigates the many ways that a society may influence the attitudes and actions of individuals and entire groups. In particular, this course examines social institutions like families and school systems; social stratification in the form of racial and ethnic groups, privileged groups, and social classes; cultural norms such as gender roles; organizations like bureaucracies and corporations; and social processes such as discrimination, de-industrialization, globalization and militarization. Divisive issues and social problems (such as poverty and crime) that spark social conflicts, generate movements, and raise questions of social justice will be explored.
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This course introduces students to the subject of criminology by discussing the main theoretical perspectives and issues. It focuses on the problems of definition and measurement and the main ways in which crime can be explained and... more
This course introduces students to the subject of criminology by discussing the main theoretical perspectives and issues. It focuses on the problems of definition and measurement and the main ways in which crime can be explained and controlled. In addition, the course considers how crime is represented, for example, by the mass media, the unequal distribution of crime within society; the relationship between victims and offenders, and the social and political context of debates on crime and social control.
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An understanding of the place of legal systems within social systems from the perspective of social theory. Systems of jurisprudence, both civil and criminal, will be explored for their social meaning and use as instruments of social... more
An understanding of the place of legal systems within social systems from the perspective of social theory. Systems of jurisprudence, both civil and criminal, will be explored for their social meaning and use as instruments of social control. Manifest and latent functions in the administration of justice, the interactions of lawyers, police, prosecutors, and judges as well as their relations with the public will be studied.
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Sociological studies of culture provide three basic conceptualizations that help us understand the meaning of participation in culture for artificial intelligence. In this position paper, we argue that human-machine collaboration in... more
Sociological studies of culture provide three basic conceptualizations that help us understand the meaning of participation in culture for artificial intelligence. In this position paper, we argue that human-machine collaboration in culture is limited until a machine has the capacity for artificial intelligibility; otherwise, we risk confusing and conflating the use of a tool for cultivation and the use of a tool for rationalization in which art becomes disenchanted from its own purposes.