Howard S. Becker (1928–2023) is one of the most influential sociologists of the 20th century. With groundbreaking works such as Outsiders (1963) and Art Worlds (1982), the American sociologist, jazz musician and photographer changed our understanding of society. In numerous methodology books, he promoted qualitative field research and developed Tricks of the Trade (1998), which sociologists can use to critically examine and develop their research work. This introduction presents his work and situates it in the context of sociological history (Second Chicago School, Symbolic Interactionism), contemporary history (counterculture of the 1960s) and geography (USA, France).

The author highlights the relevance of Becker's studies for the sociology of education, professions and work, the sociology of deviance and crime, the sociology of art and the sociology of science, and demonstrates the significance of his 70-year career for the cultural and social sciences of the present day.

Dr Dagmar Danko is a sociologist of art and culture, currently working at the Freiburg University of Music. Following studies in sociology, art history and European law, she obtained a doctorate in sociology with a thesis on the significance of contemporary art in social theories. Since then, she has lived and worked in Berlin and Paris and published several works, including an introduction to the sociology of art (2012, available in German and in Turkish).