Ma`rifat Farhangi Ejtemaei

Methodology is one of the prominent issues in the philosophy of social sciences and the issue of methodological individualism and collectivism is one of the controversial issues as well. Social philosophers in a formulation can be classified into three categories: individualistic, methodological collectivist, and integrated, each of which has substantiated their methodological claims. The main issue of this research is to examine the views of Ayatollah Mesbah in this formulation. The main question is: which of these three approaches is close to Ayatollah Mesbah's social ideas? Using a content analytical method this paper argues that despite the professor's defense of the individual's authenticity and denial of the true existence of society, his views can be formulated in an integrated approach. In other words, he organizes his theoretical reflections in the field of society and social phenomena through methodological individualism and collectivism. His anthropological principles about how society is formed and the role of will and authority in the development of personality, confirm the individualistic approach. But structural analyzes and the role of society in the flourishing of personality in his view show that he has adopted a holistic approach.