EMPIRICAL-ANALYTICAL

APPROACHES IN THE
SOCIAL SCIENCES
Micro level approaches in the social
sciences
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Is a powerful tool in making

sense of why people act or
behave in the way they do.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

It is not a comprehensive
theory that can fully
account for one’s behavior
or action.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

The essence of rational choice

theory is that when faced with
several course of action, people,
usually do what they believe is likely
to have the best overall outcome.
- Elster 1989
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Individuals’ actions are based on

their preferences, beliefs, feasible
strategies
- Ward
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

It needs other perspective to help

explain why individuals have the interest
they do, how they perceive those
interests, and the distribution of rules,
powers and social roles that determine
the constraints on their actions.
- Ward
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Behavioral Movement

- behavioralist or scholars following

the behavioral tradition or persuasion
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Behavioral Movement

- Influenced by the positivist tradition

in the social sciences.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Behavioral Movement

- It adopt the view of positivism about

the nature of empirical theory and
explanation.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Behavioral Movement
Believe that:
1. Observable behavior, whether it is at
the level of the individual or the social
aggregate, should focus of analysis.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY

Behavioral Movement
Believe that:
2. Any explanation of that behavior
should be susceptible to empirical
testing.
 RATIONAL CHOICE THEORY
(RCT)

While RCT traces its beginnings to the

BM, RCT draws on the methodology of
economics in contrast to behavioralist
who drew on sociology or psychology.
 Game Theory (GT)

It is the economist who carried out

largely early work in RTC.
The most important tool used is the
GAME THEORY
 Game Theory (GT)

Central to GT is strategic
interdependence, a situation where
others’ choice of strategy affects an
individual’s best choice and vice versa.
 3 Pillars of individual’s action RCT

1. Strategies or courses of action open

and available to them.
 3 Pillars of individual’s action RCT

2. Their preferences over the end-states

to which combinations of actions
chosen by the various players lead.
 3 Pillars of individual’s action RCT

3. Their belief about important

parameters such as other’s
preferences.
 Rational Choice Theory

In making predictions, RCT proceeds by

applying logic and mathematics to a set
of assumptions.
 Rational Choice Theory

The assumption:
Every individuals have all the rational
capacity, time and emotional
detachment necessary to choose the
best course of action, no matter how
complex the choice.
 Rational Choice Theory

Is silent about whether preferences of

an individual are benevolent or evil.
 Rational Choice Theory

RCT does not explain where preference

come from and how these are mediated
or negotiated.
 Rational Choice Theory

It only assumes that individuals pursue

self-serving goals by doing a rational
calculation of what is strategically best
among alternatives to achieve their goal.
 RCT criticism:

1. The Heretics
2. The Sociologists
3. The Psychologists
4. The Mainstream political Science
 RCT criticism:

1. The Heretics
- Critiques who wish to emphasize
bounded rationality
 RCT criticism:

The Sociologists
- critique the tendency to play down
social structure and holistic modes of
explanations
 RCT criticism:

The Psychologist
- critique the main assumption that
individuals often act rationally.
 RCT criticism:

The Mainstream Political Science

- critique on the basis of the
implausibility of the assumptions made
and the predictive failures of the model.
UNDER PRESSURE ACTIVITY