The SAGE Handbook of the Philosophy of Social Sciences
Purchase
Description
- What is the relationship between the social sciences and the natural sciences?
- Where do today's dominant approaches to doing social science come from?
- What are the main fissures and debates in contemporary social scientific thought?
- How are we to make sense of seemingly contrasting approaches to how social scientists find out about the world and justify their claims to have knowledge of it?
In this exciting Handbook, Ian Jarvie and Jesús Zamora-Bonilla have put together a wide-ranging and authoritative overview of the main philosophical currents and traditions at work in the social sciences today.
Starting with the history of social scientific thought, this Handbook sets out to explore that core fundamentals of social science practice, from issues of ontology and epistemology to issues of practical method. Along the way it investigates such notions as paradigm, empiricism, postmodernism, naturalism, language, agency, power, culture, and causality.
Bringing together in one volume leading authorities in the field from around the world, this book will be a must-have for any serious scholar or student of the social sciences.
Contents
Introduction: Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences: Paradigms, Methodology and Ontology
Introduction: Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences: Paradigms, Methodology and Ontology
PART ONE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF SOCIAL SCIENCE
- The Philosophy of Social Science from Mandeville to Mannheim
- Continental Philosophies of the Social Sciences
- The Philosophy of Social Science in the 20th Century: Analytic Traditions: Reflections on the <i>Rationalitätstreit
PART TWO: CENTRAL ISSUES IN SOCIAL ONTOLOGY
- Naturalism: The Place of Society in Nature
- Language and Society
- Social Minds
- Rational Agency
- Individualism, Collective Agency and the 'Micro-Macro Relation'
- Rules, Norms and Commitments
- Systems Theory
- The Concept of Culture as Ontological Paradox
- Power and Social Class in the 21st Century
- Causality, Causal Models and Social Mechanisms
PART THREE: A PHILOSOPHER'S GUIDE TO SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS
- Rational-Choice Theory
- Game Theory
- Social Networks
- Normative Criteria of Social Choice
- Analytical Sociology
- Institutions
- Evolutionary Approaches
- Functionalism and Structuralism
- Phenomenology, Hermeneutics and Ethnomethodology
- Pragmatism and Symbolic Interactionism
- Social Constructionism, Postmodernism and Deconstructionism
- Theories of Culture, Cognition and Action
- Communicative Action and Critical Theory
PART FOUR: METHODOLOGY: ASSESSING AND USING SOCIAL THEORIES
- Facts, Values and Objectivity
- Idealized Representations, Inferential Devices and Cross-Disciplinary Tools: Theoretical Models in Social Sciences
- Empirical Evidence: Its Nature and Sources
- Experiments
- Mathematics and Statistics in the Social Sciences
- Artificial Worlds and Agent-Based Simulation
- Explanation in the Social Sciences
- Prediction
- Science and Technology Studies and Social Epistemology: The Struggle for Normativity in Social Theories of Knowledge
- Expert Judgment
- Social Technology
- EPILOGUE: Rationality in the Social Sciences: Bridging the Gap
Description
- What is the relationship between the social sciences and the natural sciences?
- Where do today's dominant approaches to doing social science come from?
- What are the main fissures and debates in contemporary social scientific thought?
- How are we to make sense of seemingly contrasting approaches to how social scientists find out about the world and justify their claims to have knowledge of it?
In this exciting Handbook, Ian Jarvie and Jesús Zamora-Bonilla have put together a wide-ranging and authoritative overview of the main philosophical currents and traditions at work in the social sciences today.
Starting with the history of social scientific thought, this Handbook sets out to explore that core fundamentals of social science practice, from issues of ontology and epistemology to issues of practical method. Along the way it investigates such notions as paradigm, empiricism, postmodernism, naturalism, language, agency, power, culture, and causality.
Bringing together in one volume leading authorities in the field from around the world, this book will be a must-have for any serious scholar or student of the social sciences.
Contents
Introduction: Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences: Paradigms, Methodology and Ontology
Introduction: Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences: Paradigms, Methodology and Ontology
PART ONE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF SOCIAL SCIENCE
- The Philosophy of Social Science from Mandeville to Mannheim
- Continental Philosophies of the Social Sciences
- The Philosophy of Social Science in the 20th Century: Analytic Traditions: Reflections on the <i>Rationalitätstreit
PART TWO: CENTRAL ISSUES IN SOCIAL ONTOLOGY
- Naturalism: The Place of Society in Nature
- Language and Society
- Social Minds
- Rational Agency
- Individualism, Collective Agency and the 'Micro-Macro Relation'
- Rules, Norms and Commitments
- Systems Theory
- The Concept of Culture as Ontological Paradox
- Power and Social Class in the 21st Century
- Causality, Causal Models and Social Mechanisms
PART THREE: A PHILOSOPHER'S GUIDE TO SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS
- Rational-Choice Theory
- Game Theory
- Social Networks
- Normative Criteria of Social Choice
- Analytical Sociology
- Institutions
- Evolutionary Approaches
- Functionalism and Structuralism
- Phenomenology, Hermeneutics and Ethnomethodology
- Pragmatism and Symbolic Interactionism
- Social Constructionism, Postmodernism and Deconstructionism
- Theories of Culture, Cognition and Action
- Communicative Action and Critical Theory
PART FOUR: METHODOLOGY: ASSESSING AND USING SOCIAL THEORIES
- Facts, Values and Objectivity
- Idealized Representations, Inferential Devices and Cross-Disciplinary Tools: Theoretical Models in Social Sciences
- Empirical Evidence: Its Nature and Sources
- Experiments
- Mathematics and Statistics in the Social Sciences
- Artificial Worlds and Agent-Based Simulation
- Explanation in the Social Sciences
- Prediction
- Science and Technology Studies and Social Epistemology: The Struggle for Normativity in Social Theories of Knowledge
- Expert Judgment
- Social Technology
- EPILOGUE: Rationality in the Social Sciences: Bridging the Gap
Reviews
The SAGE Handbook of the Philosophy of Social Sciences
February 2011 | 772 pages | Sage UK
| Format | Published Date | ISBN | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hardcover | 31/03/2026 | 9781847874009 | $220.00 |
| Lifetime | 07/05/2024 | 9781446209714 | $132.00 |
| 180 Day Ebook | 07/05/2024 | 9781446209714 | $91.00 |
- What is the relationship between the social sciences and the natural sciences?
- Where do today's dominant approaches to doing social science come from?
- What are the main fissures and debates in contemporary social scientific thought?
- How are we to make sense of seemingly contrasting approaches to how social scientists find out about the world and justify their claims to have knowledge of it?
In this exciting Handbook, Ian Jarvie and Jesús Zamora-Bonilla have put together a wide-ranging and authoritative overview of the main philosophical currents and traditions at work in the social sciences today.
Starting with the history of social scientific thought, this Handbook sets out to explore that core fundamentals of social science practice, from issues of ontology and epistemology to issues of practical method. Along the way it investigates such notions as paradigm, empiricism, postmodernism, naturalism, language, agency, power, culture, and causality.
Bringing together in one volume leading authorities in the field from around the world, this book will be a must-have for any serious scholar or student of the social sciences.
Table Of Contents:
- Introduction: Philosophical Problems in the Social Sciences: Paradigms, Methodology and Ontology
- PART ONE: THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE PHILOSOPHY OF SOCIAL SCIENCE
- The Philosophy of Social Science from Mandeville to Mannheim
- Continental Philosophies of the Social Sciences
- The Philosophy of Social Science in the 20th Century: Analytic Traditions: Reflections on the <i>Rationalitätstreit
- PART TWO: CENTRAL ISSUES IN SOCIAL ONTOLOGY
- Naturalism: The Place of Society in Nature
- Language and Society
- Social Minds
- Rational Agency
- Individualism, Collective Agency and the 'Micro-Macro Relation'
- Rules, Norms and Commitments
- Systems Theory
- The Concept of Culture as Ontological Paradox
- Power and Social Class in the 21st Century
- Causality, Causal Models and Social Mechanisms
- PART THREE: A PHILOSOPHER'S GUIDE TO SOCIAL SCIENCE PARADIGMS
- Rational-Choice Theory
- Game Theory
- Social Networks
- Normative Criteria of Social Choice
- Analytical Sociology
- Institutions
- Evolutionary Approaches
- Functionalism and Structuralism
- Phenomenology, Hermeneutics and Ethnomethodology
- Pragmatism and Symbolic Interactionism
- Social Constructionism, Postmodernism and Deconstructionism
- Theories of Culture, Cognition and Action
- Communicative Action and Critical Theory
- PART FOUR: METHODOLOGY: ASSESSING AND USING SOCIAL THEORIES
- Facts, Values and Objectivity
- Idealized Representations, Inferential Devices and Cross-Disciplinary Tools: Theoretical Models in Social Sciences
- Empirical Evidence: Its Nature and Sources
- Experiments
- Mathematics and Statistics in the Social Sciences
- Artificial Worlds and Agent-Based Simulation
- Explanation in the Social Sciences
- Prediction
- Science and Technology Studies and Social Epistemology: The Struggle for Normativity in Social Theories of Knowledge
- Expert Judgment
- Social Technology
- EPILOGUE: Rationality in the Social Sciences: Bridging the Gap