Drawing on models of the interaction order, we describe how planning is an inherently social activity. We argue that planning as a practice involves five core elements: mirroring, identifying, coordinating, timing, and surmounting. Specifically, planning depends on (1) a realization of likely responses of others, (2) a recognition of communal understandings, grounded in local cultures, (3) a commitment to collaborative engagements with allies, (4) an adjustment to temporal sequences involving the use of “in time” strategies and tactics, and (5) an ability to overcome or avoid obstacles and blocking moves set by competitors and adversaries. Planning is evident in micro-, meso-, or macro-level domains. To demonstrate how planning is a social accomplishment, we analyze three distinct ethnographic sites: the world of competitive chess, dependent on the micro-interactions of two competitors; the meso-level process of homebuying, requiring the aid of real estate agents as allies; and macro-level structures in directing social movement activism in a contentious action field. Planning extends beyond cognitive achievement and is central to a sociology of the future.

利用交互顺序模型，我们描述了计划如何成为一种内在的社会活动。我们认为，计划作为一种实践涉及五个核心要素：镜像、识别、协调、时机和超越。具体而言，计划取决于 (1) 意识到其他人可能的反应，(2) 对基于当地文化的共同理解的认可，(3) 对与盟友合作参与的承诺，(4) 对时间序列的调整，包括“及时”战略和战术的使用，以及 (5) 克服或避免竞争对手和对手设置的障碍和阻挡动作的能力。规划在微观、中观或宏观层面的领域中很明显。为了证明计划是一种社会成就，我们分析了三个不同的民族志网站：国际象棋竞技世界，取决于两个竞争对手的微互动；购房的中观过程，需要房地产经纪人作为盟友的帮助；在有争议的行动领域指导社会运动激进主义的宏观结构。规划超越了认知成就，是未来社会学的核心。