The Sociological Literature on Nuclear Issues*

In this paper we address the question of the existing and potential role of sociologists in the nuclear debate by first sketching some of the major nuclear issues, second by guaging the extent of professional attention which sociology has focused on nuclear issue. Our focus is on the professional sociological literature. In addition to it there is a vast peace literature which ranges from academic studies to newsletters and propaganda pieces. Sociologists may contribute heavily to the peace literature and be active in the peace or relatede campaigns, but we exclude these activities from our study. We view them as actions which sociologists do in their roles of concerned citizens. Our focus here is on the professional sociological literature and our comments pertain solely to it. We select thirteen journals to represent various aspects of this literature and review all issues from 1945 to the present to guage the coverage of nuclear issues in the sociological literature.