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Dubious cycles: a methodological critique of the Namenwirth/Weber thesis on cultural change with an introduction into filter design methods

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Abstract

In a series of studies based on content analyses of political documents, J. Zvi Nam-wirth and Robert Ph. Weber have advanced the thesis that in modern society culture changes in theoretically meaningful cyclical patterns. In our article we question the empirical evidence presented by these authors and look at some of the more general methodological and technical problems involved in identifying cycles with time series data.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institut für Soziologie, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, 06099, Halle (Saale), Germany

    Helmut Thome & Thomas Rahlf

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  1. Helmut Thome
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  2. Thomas Rahlf
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Thome, H., Rahlf, T. Dubious cycles: a methodological critique of the Namenwirth/Weber thesis on cultural change with an introduction into filter design methods. Qual Quant 30, 427–448 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00170146

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