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Daniel Little - Varieties of Social Explanation: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Social Science

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Varieties of Social Explanation: An Introduction to the Philosophy of Social Science
Author:
Daniel Little
Publisher:
Westview Press
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Year:
1991
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Professor Little presents an introduction to the philosophy of social science with an emphasis on the central forms of explanation in social science: rational-intentional, causal, functional, structural, materialist, statistical and interpretive. The book is very strong on recent developments, particularly in its treatment of rational choice theory, microfoundations for social explanation, the idea of supervenience, functionalism, and current discussions of relativism.Of special interest is Professor Littles insight that, like the philosophy of natural science, the philosophy of social science can profit from examining actual scientific examples. Throughout the book, philosophical theory is integrated with recent empirical work on both agrarian and industrial society drawn from political science, sociology, geography, anthropology, and economics.Clearly written and well structured, this text provides the logical and conceptual tools necessary for dealing with the debates at the cutting edge of contemporary philosophy of social science. It will prove indispensible for philosophers, social scientists and their students.

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VARIETIES OF SOCIAL EXPLANATION
An Introduction to the Philosophy of Social Science

DANIEL LITTLE Colgate University

Westview Press BOULDER SAN FRANCISCO OXFORD

-iii-

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

Published in 1991 in the United States of America by Westview Press, Inc., 5500 Central Avenue, Boulder, Colorado 80301, and in the United Kingdom by Westview Press, 36 Lonsdale Road, Summertown, Oxford OX2 7EW

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Little, Daniel.

Varieties of social explanation: an introduction to the philosophy of social science / Daniel Little.

p. cm.

ISBN 0-8133-0565-9.--ISBN 0-8133-0566-7 (pbk.) 1. Social sciences--Methodology. 2. Social sciences--Philosophy.

I. Title.

H61.L58 1991 300.1--dc20 90-43602 CIP

Printed and bound in the United States of America

The paper used in this publication meets the requirements + of the American National Standard for Permanence of Paper for Printed Library Materials Z39.48-1984.

10 9 8

-iv-

CONTENTS

List of Examples

List of Figures

Acknowledgments

xiii

1 INTRODUCTION

Plan of the Book ,

Scientific Explanation ,

Notes ,

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

PART I MODELS OF EXPLANATION

2 CAUSAL ANALYSIS

The Meaning of Causal Claims ,

Mechanisms and Causal Laws ,

The Inductive-Regularity Criterion ,

Necessary and Sufficient Conditions ,

Forms of Causal Reasoning ,

Conclusion ,

Notes ,

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

3 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Aggregative Explanation ,

Decision Theory ,

Game Theory and the Prisoners' Dilemma ,

Collective Action Theory ,

Criticisms of Narrow Economic Rationality ,

Conclusion ,

Notes ,

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

-v-

4 INTERPRETATION THEORY

Interpretation and Agency ,

Social Action ,

Models of Social Action ,

Social Variability and the Primacy of Culture ,

Conclusion ,

Notes ,

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

PART II VARIATIONS AND ELABORATIONS

5 FUNCTIONAL AND STRUCTURAL EXPLANATION

Functionalism ,

Structuralism ,

102

Conclusion ,

112

Notes ,

112

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

112

6 MATERIALISM

114

The Guiding Thread ,

115

Technology and Culture ,

117

Class and Property Relations ,

121

Ideology and Class ,

124

Materialism and Rational Choice Theory ,

127

Marxism and Large-scale Predictions ,

132

Notes ,

134

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

135

7 ECONOMIC ANTHROPOLOGY

136

The Formalist Framework ,

138

The Substantivist Paradigm ,

143

Criticisms of the Rational Choice Approach ,

146

Conclusion ,

155

Notes ,

158

Suggestions for Further Reading ,

158

8 STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

159

Quantitative Reasoning in Social Analysis ,

161

Correlation and Regression ,

166

Philosophical Grounds of Statistical Explanation ,

173

Statistical Analysis and Comparative Studies ,

175

Are There Autonomous Statistical Explanations?

177

-vi-

Notes ,

179

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