To Simmel, sociology alone is the science capable of analyzing social developments and processes. Simmel is concerned with the empirical observation of society. The focus is primarily on the interaction between people and groupings. These various forms of interaction are conceived by Simmel as forms of "socialization." With regard to space, Simmel is therefore concerned with the question of which spatial characteristics determine the respective forms of interaction between individuals. The following aspects are in the foreground: proximity and distance, fixation in one place, influence of spatial boundaries on the processes of interaction. For Simmel, space comes into being only through the experience and perception of human beings. It is the interactions that turn the previously abstract, empty space into a social space.