Actionalist Sociology, or Sociology of Action, is the intellectual product of French sociologist Alain Touraine. At the beginning of his career, Touraine conducted a series of empirical studies of the working class, and the first such research was published in the book The Development of Workers' Work at the Reno Factory (in French 1955). In these researches, he established that there was no bourgeoisization of the working class in post-war France and that conflicts between labor and capital are still present. However, unlike Marxists, he did not think that workers had the potential to change the social system. This research contributed to his development of actionalist sociology.

In the books Sociology of Action (in French 1964) and The Self-Production of Society (1977, in French 1973), he presents the theory of action, which emphasizes the system of collective actors who shape their actions through cultural orientations and clearly defined intentions, within broader social relations. He rejects the importance of metasocial factors, such as the role of history in Marxism, for the study of society. He introduces the term "historicity" to explain how society influences its own social and cultural practices. Historicity consists of three elements: 1) the mode of knowledge that gives a picture of society, 2) methods to decide how to invest accumulated economic surpluses into noneconomic ventures 3) the cultural model that refers to the ability of society to act only on itself and achieve social transformation.

In Touraine's theoretical model, collective behavior takes place on three hierarchical levels: social organizations (collective means that serve to interact with the environment), political-institutional system (system of coercion and legitimacy), while history is at the highest level. At that level, there are three elements: economic activity, the system of class relations, and the system of historical action. The system of historical action consists of four elements: cultural model (production), mobilization (organization of work), hierarchization (distribution of resources), and consumer needs. Class relations, in Touraine's theory, encompass both economic relations of production and relations of rule and domination. The ruling class (capitalists, managers, technocrats, political elite) establishes power and domination over the "people's class".

Books:

Touraine. Sociologie de l'action (1964);

     -     The Post-Industrial Society (1971, in French 1969); 

     -     The Self-Production of Society (1977, in French 1973); 

     -     The Academic System in American Society (1974, in French 1972); 

     -     The Voice and the Eye (1981, in French 1978);

     -     Return of the Actor: Social Theory in Postindustrial Society (1988, in French 1984);

     -     New Paradigm for Understanding Today's World (2007, in French 2005);

     -     Thinking Differently (2009, in French 2007).