Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science?

Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science? PDF Author: Mark I. Lichbach
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472068199
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336

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Book Description
A timely examination of the current "paradigm wars" in political science

Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science?

Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science? PDF Author: Mark I. Lichbach
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 0472068199
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 336

Get Book Here

Book Description
A timely examination of the current "paradigm wars" in political science

The SAGE Handbook of Social Science Methodology

The SAGE Handbook of Social Science Methodology PDF Author: William Outhwaite
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 1446206459
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 641

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Book Description
"An excellent guidebook through different approaches to social science measurement, including the all-important route-maps that show us how to get there." - Roger Jowell, City University "In this wide-ranging collection of chapters, written by acknowledged experts in their fields, Outhwaite and Turner have brought together material in one volume which will provide an extremely important platform for consideration of the full range of contemporary analytical and methodological issues." - Charles Crothers, Auckland University of Technology This is a jewel among methods Handbooks, bringing together a formidable collection of international contributors to comment on every aspect of the various central issues, complications and controversies in the core methodological traditions. It is designed to meet the needs of those disciplinary and nondisciplinary problem-oriented social inquirers for a comprehensive overview of the methodological literature. The text is divided into 7 sections: Overviews of methodological approaches in the social sciences Cases, comparisons and theory Quantification and experiment Rationality, complexity and collectivity Interpretation, critique and postmodernity Discourse construction Engagement. Edited by two leading figures in the field, the Handbook is a landmark work in the field of research methods. More than just a ′cookbook′ that teaches readers how to master techniques, it will give social scientists in all disciplines an appreciation for the full range of methodological debates today, from the quantitative to the qualitative, giving them deeper and sharpen insights into their own research questions. It will generate debate, solutions and a series of questions for researchers to exploit and develop in their research and teaching.

Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science?

Is Rational Choice Theory All of Social Science? PDF Author: Mark I. Lichbach
Publisher: University of Michigan Press
ISBN: 047202485X
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 340

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Book Description
Advocates of rational choice theory in political science have been perceived by their critics as attempting to establish an intellectual hegemony in contemporary social science, to the detriment of alternative methods of research. The debate has gained a nonacademic audience, hitting the pages of the New York Times and the New Republic. In the academy, the antagonists have expressed their views in books, journal articles, and at professional conferences. Mark I. Lichbach addresses the question of the place of rational choice theory in the social sciences in general and in political science in particular. He presents a typology of the antagonists as either rationalist, culturalist, or structuralist and offers an insightful examination of the debate. He reveals that the rationalist bid for hegemony and synthesis is rooted in the weaknesses, not the strengths, of rationalist thought. He concludes that the various theoretical camps are unlikely to accept the claimed superiority of the rationalist approach but that this opposition is of value in itself to the social sciences, which requires multiple perspectives to remain healthy. With its penetrating examination of the assumptions and basic arguments of each of the sides to this debate, this book cuts through the partisan rhetoric and provides an essential roadmap for the future of the discipline. Mark I. Lichbach is Professor of Government and Politics, University of Maryland.

Theories of Choice

Theories of Choice PDF Author: Stefan Grundmann
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0198863179
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 353

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Book Description
This book provides an in-depth discussion of the promises and perils of specific types of theories of choice. It shows how the selection of a specific theory of choice can make a difference for concrete legal questions, in particular in the regulation of the digital economy or in choosing between market, firm, or network.

Pathologies of Rational Choice Theory

Pathologies of Rational Choice Theory PDF Author: Donald Green
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 0300187084
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 415

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Book Description
This is the first comprehensive critical evaluation of the use of rational choice theory in political science. Writing in an accessible and nontechnical style, Donald P. Green and Ian Shapiro assess rational choice theory where it is reputed to be most successful: the study of collective action, the behavior of political parties and politicians, and such phenomena as voting cycles and Prisoner's Dilemmas. In their hard-hitting critique, Green and Shapiro demonstrate that the much heralded achievements of rational choice theory are in fact deeply suspect and that fundamental rethinking is needed if rational choice theorists are to contribute to the understanding of politics. In their final chapters, they anticipate and respond to a variety of possible rational choice responses to their arguments, thereby initiating a dialogue that is bound to continue for some time.

The Handbook of Rational Choice Social Research

The Handbook of Rational Choice Social Research PDF Author: Rafael Wittek
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 0804785503
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 625

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Book Description
The Handbook of Rational Choice Social Research offers the first comprehensive overview of how the rational choice paradigm can inform empirical research within the social sciences. This landmark collection highlights successful empirical applications across a broad array of disciplines, including sociology, political science, economics, history, and psychology. Taking on issues ranging from financial markets and terrorism to immigration, race relations, and emotions, and a huge variety of other phenomena, rational choice proves a useful tool for theory- driven social research. Each chapter uses a rational choice framework to elaborate on testable hypotheses and then apply this to empirical research, including experimental research, survey studies, ethnographies, and historical investigations. Useful to students and scholars across the social sciences, this handbook will reinvigorate discussions about the utility and versatility of the rational choice approach, its key assumptions, and tools.

The Limits of Rationality

The Limits of Rationality PDF Author: Karen Schweers Cook
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226742415
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 436

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Book Description
Prevailing economic theory presumes that agents act rationally when they make decisions, striving to maximize the efficient use of their resources. Psychology has repeatedly challenged the rational choice paradigm with persuasive evidence that people do not always make the optimal choice. Yet the paradigm has proven so successful a predictor that its use continues to flourish, fueled by debate across the social sciences over why it works so well. Intended to introduce novices to rational choice theory, this accessible, interdisciplinary book collects writings by leading researchers. The Limits of Rationality illuminates the rational choice paradigm of social and political behavior itself, identifies its limitations, clarifies the nature of current controversies, and offers suggestions for improving current models. In the first section of the book, contributors consider the theoretical foundations of rational choice. Models of rational choice play an important role in providing a standard of human action and the bases for constitutional design, but do they also succeed as explanatory models of behavior? Do empirical failures of these explanatory models constitute a telling condemnation of rational choice theory or do they open new avenues of investigation and theorizing? Emphasizing analyses of norms and institutions, the second and third sections of the book investigate areas in which rational choice theory might be extended in order to provide better models. The contributors evaluate the adequacy of analyses based on neoclassical economics, the potential contributions of game theory and cognitive science, and the consequences for the basic framework when unequal bargaining power and hierarchy are introduced.

Rational Choice Theory and Organizational Theory

Rational Choice Theory and Organizational Theory PDF Author: Mary Zey
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 9780803951365
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 156

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Book Description
Rational Choice Theory and Organizational Theory is written in response to the neo-classical economic rational choice theories and organizational economic theories which have emerged in the past decade and gained center stage in current organizational analysis.

Understanding Contemporary Society

Understanding Contemporary Society PDF Author: Gary Browning
Publisher: SAGE
ISBN: 9780761959267
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 520

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Book Description
Understanding Contemporary Society: Theories of the Present is a comprehensive textbook to guide students through the complexities of social theory today. Over 30 chapters, written by an international team of contributors, demonstrate clearly the practical applications of social theory in making sense of the modern world. Students are both introduced to the most significant theories and guided through the major social developments which shape our lives. Key features of the book are: clearly structured and readable prose; bullet pointed summaries and annotated further reading for each topic; makes complex issues accessible to undergraduates; focuses on relevance and practicality; chapter lay-out which is ideal for t

Theories of Race and Ethnic Relations

Theories of Race and Ethnic Relations PDF Author: John Rex
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 9780521369398
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 372

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Book Description
This book brings together internationally known scholars from a wide range of disciplines and theoretical traditions, all of whom have made significant contributions to the field of race and ethnic relations. As well as identifying important and persistent points of controversy, the collection reveals a complementary and multifaceted approach to theorisation. The theories represented include contributions from the perspective of sociology. These range from the established perspectives of Marx and Weber through to the more recent interventions of rational choice theory, symbolic interactionism and identity structure analysis.