POLS 110 Lecture Notes - Lecture 2: Inductive Reasoning, Uncertainty Principle, Corporatism
17 Nov 2015
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Document Summary
Establishes facts about humans in relation to society that could inform theory. Most frequently used in economics- that individuals will make the best choices as consumers- best good at lowest cost, for example. All people try to maximize their own benefit and minimize their cost. Uses individuals as unit of analysis, assumes this is true of all individuals. Believes it is possible to reason from these assumption to their logical conclusions in human society. Multiple variables, axioms, hypothese- trying to find reproducible knowledge through experimentation. Search for generalizable regularities (e. g. in populations that show more affluence, people vote more for centrist parties) Desire to make social science that could parallel the achievements of science. Ex of sociology, economics, anthro, poli sci all turning to positivist approaches to try. The subjects and their context is always changing. The questions we ask and the ways in which we frame those questions have a crucial bearing on the answers we get back .
