The structure and function of fatalism as a social belief system: A cross-national study of collective consciousness (Emile Durkheim, Max Weber)

The dissertation offers one of the first comparative and purely "sociological" studies of fatalism. The aim of the project is to evaluate the distinct Weberian and Durkheimian theoretical perspectives on the subject of fatalism and offer a more comprehensive analytical formulation from which to empirically examine fatalistic attitudes and belief systems. I will argue that fatalistic worldviews not only develop in response to structural forces of over-regulation but also as a result of collective belief systems that lead adherents to accept the inevitable regardless of the structural regulation that is present. By taking a theoretical cue from two of sociology's founders, I will argue that a major analytical shortcoming present in the fatalism literature---research that primarily draws from non-sociological disciplines---is that fatalism is conceptualized as a one-sided cognitive state and not as the multifaceted condition that it is. After proposing a multidimensional model of fatalism, the dissertation analyzes survey data from over 30 countries and argues that fatalism not only results from oppressive structural forces but that fatalism can also be understood as a cultural attribute of "national character"---countries which were once fatalistic tend to remain fatalistic even if their economic conditions improve, non-fatalistic countries remain non-fatalistic even in difficult times. Data sources include publicly held data such as the World Values Survey, the International Social Survey Program, as well as the privately accessed 2002 Gallup Poll of the Islamic World. I argue that the contrast between Durkheim and Weber is in terms of their respective theories of causation and not that they propose distinct theories of fatalism. For Durkheim fatalism is a result of structural forces, while Weber saw the combination of structure and culture as leading to either the presence or absence of fatalism. A central contribution from the thesis will be to identify the specific factors that account for each fatalism type.