№ 4 - 2003
Сартори Дж.
Искажение концептов в сравнительной политологии (II)

В публикуемой в этом номере части статьи (начало см. “Полис”, 2003, № 3) выдвигается и обосновывается модель “a ladder of abstraction”. Констатировав, что there is no hard and fast dividing line between levels of abstraction и что the number of slices into which the ladder is divided largely depends on how fine one’s analysis needs to be, автор выделяет три основных уровня абстрагирования: high, medium and low. High level categorizations obtain universal conceptualizations: whatever connotation is sacrificed to the requirement of global denotation – either in space, time, or even in both. Descending a step, medium level categorizations fall short of universality and thus can be said to obtain general classes: at this level not all differentiae are sactificed to extensional requirements/ Finally, low level categorizations obtain specific, indeed configurative conceptualizations: here denotation is sacrificed to accuracy of connotation. Иными словами, перемещаясь по лестнице абсракции, мы либо make a concept more abstract and more general by lessing its properties or attributes, or specify it by the addition (or unfolding) of qualifications, i.e., be augmenting its attributes or properties.