Author: Ted Benton
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1137285214
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 271
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Book Description
Philosophers and social scientists share a common goal: to explore fundamental truths about ourselves and the nature of the world in which we live. But in what ways do these two distinct disciplines inform each other and arrive at these truths? The 10th anniversary edition of this highly regarded text directly responds to such issues as it introduces students to the philosophy of social science. While staying true to the writing of the late Ian Craib, this perennial text has been brought up to date by Ted Benton. This new edition includes previously unpublished personal insights from both authors, incorporates new commentaries on classic content and features an additional chapter on recent developments in the field. The book: • Addresses critical issues relating to the nature of social science • Interrogates the relationship between social science and natural science • Encompasses traditional and contemporary perspectives • Introduces and critiques a wide range of approaches, from empiricism and positivism to post structuralism and rationalism. Written in an engaging and student-friendly style, the book introduces key ideas and concepts while raising questions and opening debates. A cornerstone text in the Traditions in Social Theory series, this book remains essential reading for all students of social theory.
Author: Martin Hollis
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1316101770
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 284
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Book Description
This textbook by Martin Hollis offers an exceptionally clear and concise introduction to the philosophy of social science. It examines questions which give rise to fundamental philosophical issues. Are social structures better conceived of as systems of laws and forces, or as webs of meanings and practices? Is social action better viewed as rational behaviour, or as self-expression? By exploring such questions, the reader is led to reflect upon the nature of scientific method in social science. Is the aim to explain the social world after a manner worked out for the natural world, or to understand the social world from within?
Author: Gerard Delanty
Publisher: U of Minnesota Press
ISBN: 9780816631278
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 180
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Book Description
It is argued that the conception of social science emerging today is one that involves a synthesis of radical constructivism and critical realism. The crucial challenge facing social science is a question of its public role: growing reflexivity in society has implications for the social production of knowledge and is bringing into question the separation of expert systems from other forms of knowledge.
Author: Michael Martin
Publisher: MIT Press
ISBN: 9780262631518
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 818
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Book Description
the first comprehensive anthology in the philosophy of social science to appear since the late 1960s
Author: Mario Bunge
Publisher: Yale University Press
ISBN: 9780300066067
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 458
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Book Description
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Author: Daniel Little
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN: 1783487410
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 303
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Book Description
Philosophy matters for the social sciences. Our world faces ever more complex and hazardous problems and, social science ontology and methods need to be adequate to the changing nature of the social realm. Imagination and new ways of thinking are crucial to the social sciences. Based on Daniel Little's popular blog, this book provides an accessible introduction to the latest developments and debates in the philosophy of social science. Each chapter addresses a leading issue in the philosophy of the social sciences today. Little advocates for an 'actor-centred sociology', endorsing the idea of meso-level causation and proposing a solution to the problem of 'mechanisms or powers?'. The book draws significant conclusions from the facts of complexity and heterogeneity in the social world. The book develops a series of arguments that serve to provide a new framework for the philosophy of social science through deep engagement with social scientists and philosophers in the field. Topics covered include: - the heterogeneity and plasticity of the social world; - the complexity of social causation; - the nuts and bolts of causal mechanisms; - the applicability of the theory of causal powers to the social world; - the intellectual coherence of the perspective of scientific realism in application to social science.
Author: Nancy Cartwright
Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA
ISBN: 0199645108
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 353
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Book Description
This is a much-needed new introduction to a field that has been transformed in recent years by exciting new subjects, ideas, and methods. It is designed for students in both philosophy and the social sciences. Topics include ontology, objectivity, method, measurement, and causal inference, and such issues as well-being and climate change.
Author: Garry Potter
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317331842
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 490
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Book Description
Now in its second edition, this comprehensive textbook offers an exceptionally accessible yet in-depth introduction to the philosophy of social science. Students with no previous knowledge will find themselves taken on an engaging philosophical journey: the book’s unique dialogue format anticipates their most frequently asked questions and provides clear explanations of specialised terminology and essential contextualisation of contemporary debates. Encompassing both traditional and contemporary perspectives, the book explores the questions and debates raised by all the major theoretical positions in the philosophy of social science, including positivism, empiricism, rationalism, hermeneutics, feminist epistemology, postmodernism and critical realism. The first edition of this book had a Eurocentric bias, as does virtually all other textbooks covering this subject matter. This has been corrected in the second edition and includes a new chapter on the contributions of Islam to philosophy, natural science social science including sociology. The second edition also has a newly written chapter on pragmaticism and neo-pragmaticism, as well as strengthened coverage of hermeneutics, postmodernism and critical realism. The book‘s rich pedagogic support includes: point-by-point summaries introducing the scope of every chapter; discussion questions; further reading lists; and a glossary of key terminology. This excellent textbook is designed to provide every student with a clear understanding of important and complex issues. It is essential reading for all students of philosophy of social science, whether at undergraduate or Masters level and regardless of their disciplinary background.
Author: Mark Risjord
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1136627529
Category : Philosophy
Languages : en
Pages : 303
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Book Description
The Philosophy of Social Science: A Contemporary Introduction examines the perennial questions of philosophy by engaging with the empirical study of society. The book offers a comprehensive overview of debates in the field, with special attention to questions arising from new research programs in the social sciences. The text uses detailed examples of social scientific research to motivate and illustrate the philosophical discussion. Topics include the relationship of social policy to social science, interpretive research, action explanation, game theory, social scientific accounts of norms, joint intentionality, reductionism, causal modeling, case study research, and experimentation.
Author: Peter T. Manicas
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139457063
Category : Social Science
Languages : en
Pages : 7
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Book Description
This introduction to the philosophy of social science provides an original conception of the task and nature of social inquiry. Peter Manicas discusses the role of causality seen in the physical sciences and offers a reassessment of the problem of explanation from a realist perspective. He argues that the fundamental goal of theory in both the natural and social sciences is not, contrary to widespread opinion, prediction and control, or the explanation of events (including behaviour). Instead, theory aims to provide an understanding of the processes which, together, produce the contingent outcomes of experience. Offering a host of concrete illustrations and examples of critical ideas and issues, this accessible book will be of interest to students of the philosophy of social science, and social scientists from a range of disciplines.
