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Postscript

Rational choice theory continues to hold powerful sway over several social science disciplines, most notably economics and political science. The emphasis that has been central to much sociology and anthropology on the role of normative rules, values and cultural traditions has tended to limit the appeal of rational choice theory in those disciplines.

The work of Lawson (2003a) in economics has provided an important critique of the basic assumptions of mainstream approaches in that discipline. Archer and Tritter (2000) provide an excellent and wide-ranging set of critical evaluations of rational choice theory in relation to central problems of social theory. On the centrality of norms in social life, see Sayer (2009). On the relationship between markets and rational choice, see O’Neill (2007).

The contested issue of the role of causal explanation in the social sciences is addressed in the wide-ranging collection edited by Ruth Groff (2008). See also Hindman and Taylor in Lowndes, March and Stoker (2018) and M. F. Chowdhury (2014).

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Source: Benton T.. Philosophy of Social Science: The Philosophical Foundations of Social Thought.Bloomsbury Academic,2023. — 329 p.. 2023

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  10. Contents