The research project studies 20th century New Confucian philosophy by deploying a sociological perspective for philosophical aims. New Confucianism is a prominent and contested subject in contemporary East Asian academic and political debates, with advocates, critics and scholars arguing about its relevance. Since the beginning of this century, New Confucianism has received much attention in European-language scholarship as well, and has been particularly understood as a philosophy. The existing scholarship, however, has often chosen an approach that is either historical, as in the genre of intellectual history, or philosophical, tuned towards showing the contemporary philosophical relevance of New Confucianism. The current project builds on recent studies that add to these established approaches by offering sociological perspectives on New Confucianism. The ambition of the project is to pursue this perspective, but examine its potential for markedly philosophical readings of New Confucianism. The project hence breaks new ground in terms of its disciplinary approach beyond the specific context of New Confucianism. Drawing on work done in Sociology, the research project explores the possibilities of a Sociology of Philosophy approached as a philosophical sub-discipline.