COMMENSURATION AS A SOCIAL-PROCESS

Although it is evident in routine decision-making and a crucial vehicl e of rationalization, commensuration as a general social process has b een given little consideration by sociologists. This article defines c ommensuration as the comparison of different entities according to a c ommon metric, notes commensuration's long history as an instrument of social thought, analyzes commensuration as a mode of power, and discus ses the cognitive and political stakes inherent in calling something i ncommensurable. We provide a framework for future empirical study of c ommensuration and demonstrate how this analytic focus can inform estab lished fields of sociological inquiry.