Tra storia e scienze sociali: ponti, porte e finestre

The relationship between history and social sciences, which has always been central to «Meridiana», is acquiring a new relevance, especially if it is declined by addressing the question of interdisciplinarity. This introductory essay proposes an itinerary of themes and problems, which focuses attention on the relationships between different disciplinary fields. The main topics discussed are: the connection between particular and general, the different levels of scale, the problem of the explanation, the study of social change, the different regimes of temporality, the public and applied dimension of historical and social research. In conclusion, the conditions that make interdisciplinary research practices possible are problematized. To this end, the «bridges» are certainly needed, but the «doors» are even more useful, allowing for more fruitful cooperation between different kinds of knowledge.