Quality paperback edition of this foundational work. The classic study by Harvard's Talcott Parsons on social systems and the "theory of action," as theorized and applied in a variety of settings, including the medical profession, kinships and role-socialization, psychological relationships, and religious organization. This foundational work is available from Quid Pro Books (with red cover) in a high-quality, introduced, and modern format-but nonetheless features embedded page numbers from the original, to make it easy to cite, reference, or assign to classes. This feature also provides continuity with the eBook and hardcover editions from Quid Pro (both of which also embed standard pagination). Now the book may be assigned and referenced with confidence, and read without the formatting anachronisms of previous offerings. Note, for example, that "classic reprint" editions from other presses are merely photocopies of a used, marked-up, and thoroughly underlined copy. This foundational work deserves better than such a poor reproduction, and their eBook versions are not produced accurately, as reviewers note.This Classics of the Social Sciences edition from Quid Pro also includes a substantive, analytical new Foreword by Neil J. Smelser, the renowned senior professor of sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. In his 2012 introduction, Dr. Smelser places the original work in its historical and critical context and examines the themes and legacy of this great book.[Publisher's note: Although this description may appear under editions or used copies offered by other publishers or sellers, only the Quid Pro edition (with red cover and new introduction) features the modern rendition of text and embedded pagination from the original print edition, as well as the analytical Foreword by Dr. Smelser.]