Explaining Social Behavior

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AuthorJon Elster
PublisherCambridge University Press
PublishedJul 25 2015
Book FormatPaperback
ISBN-139781107416413
Dimensions9.4 X 6.5 X 2.1 inches
Weight 1.55 pounds
BISAC
CategoriesPhilosophy > Political
LanguageEnglish

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Book Description

In this new edition of his critically acclaimed book, Jon Elster examines the nature of social behavior, proposing choice as the central concept of the social sciences. Extensively revised throughout, the book offers an overview of key explanatory mechanisms, drawing on many case studies and experiments to explore the nature of explanation in the social sciences; an analysis of the mental states - beliefs, desires, and emotions - that are precursors to action; a systematic comparison of rational-choice models of behavior with alternative accounts, and a review of mechanisms of social interaction ranging from strategic behavior to collective decision making. A wholly new chapter includes an exploration of classical moralists and Proust in charting mental mechanisms operating 'behind the back' of the agent, and a new conclusion points to the pitfalls and fallacies in current ways of doing social science, proposing guidelines for more modest and more robust procedures.

Author Bio

Before coming to Columbia University, he taught in Paris, Oslo and Chicago.

His publications include Ulysses and the Sirens (1979), Sour Grapes (1983), Making Sense of Marx (1985), The Cement of Society (1989), Solomonic Judgements (1989), Nuts and Bolts for the Social Sciences (1989), Local Justice (1992) and Political Psychology (1993).

His research interests include the theory of rational choice, the theory of distributive justice and the history of social thought (Marx and Tocqueville). He is currently working on a comparative study of constitution-making processes from the Federal Convention to the present and on a study of retroactive justice in countries that have recently emerged from authoritarian or totalitarian rule. Research interests include Theory of Rational Choice and the Theory of Distributive Justice.

Research Interest

Theory of Rational Choice

Theory of Distributive Justice

Robert K. Merton Professor of the Social Sciences

Political Science

Ph.D., University of Paris (1972)

Source: Columbia University