Philosophical Foundations of the Social Sciences: Analyzing Controversies in Social Research

ISBN-13: 9780521482684 / Angielski / Twarda / 1995 / 302 str.

Harold Kincaid

Opis

This book defends the prospects for a science of society. It argues that behind the diverse methods of the natural sciences lies a common core of scientific rationality that the social sciences can and sometimes do achieve. It also argues that good social science must be in part about large-scale social structures and processes and thus that methodological individualism is misguided. These theses are supported by a detailed discussion of actual social research, including theories of agrarian revolution, organizational ecology, social theories of depression, and supply-demand explanations in economics.

Recenzje

"...well argued and necessary in arguing in many cases what should have been obvious for at least a century, but is still a minority view in contemporary discourse." Aviezer Tucker, Dialogue

Spis treści

1. Issues and arguments; 2. Challenges to scientific rationality; 3. Causes, confirmation, and explanation; 4. Functionalism defended; 5. The failures of individualism; 6. A science of interpretation?; 7. Economics: a test case; 8. Problems and prospects.