Rational choice theory in sociology: A survey
Summary :
Table of Contents
- Introduction.
- Rational choice theory: Antecedents and origins.
- The basic model: Restrictions and preferences.
- The model of man: Limitations, alternatives and extensions.
- What are norms?
- A general hypothesis.
- The effective realization of social norms.
- Conclusion.
Abstract
rational choice (RC) is a proliferating research program in the social sciences. It is the dominant theoretical perspective in economics and an influential approach in political theory. In sociology, there are an increasing number of people working in this tradition, in particular among American and European sociologists. The sketch of an explanation of conjoint social norms demonstrated that in principle social order emerges among self-interested rational actors if appropriate social conditions are given. It is even the case that social structural conditions with a somewhat shorter "shadow of the future" allow for the endogenous enforcement of conjoint norms in dilemma situations. This is so because there may be multilateral reputation effects in social networks that serve to compensate the lack of a large "shadow of the future". However, this general approach to social norms is incomplete. RC theory is quite a recent development in sociology. Methodological individualism is the thesis or proposal that collective phenomena can or should be explained by using assumptions about individual behavior.
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