Cultural Studies

Raymond Boudon

Beiträge zur allgemeinen Theorie der Rationalität

Übers. v. Felix Wolter

[Contributions to the General Theory of Rationality.]

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Published in German.
Raymond Boudon addresses one of the most important questions in social science: How can social phenomena, understood as a product of human behavior, be explained in a satisfactory manner? The author argues that social theory finds itself in a deep crisis and the classic rational choice theory and its notion of instrumental rationality have not been able to keep their promises.
Raymond Boudon addresses one of the most important questions in social science: How can social phenomena, understood as a product of human behavior, be explained in a satisfactory manner? And how to explain phenomena that appear spontaneously as »irrational« – e.g. rain dance and religious beliefs? The author argues that social theory finds itself in a deep crisis and the classic rational choice theory and its notion of instrumental rationality have not been able to keep their promises. Boudon develops a »general theory of rationality«, which expands the notion of rationality by a cognitive and an axiological dimension. Thus, social phenomena are always the product of subjectively strong and objectively comprehensible reasons for individuals to believe in certain things and to do certain things. Beliefs and actions that appear spontaneously as irrational thus emerge as strongly rational.
Authors/Editors

Raymond Boudon 1934–2013; emeritierter Professor für Soziologie an der Universität Paris-Sorbonne; Mitglied des Institut de France – Académie des sciences morales et politiques, der Société Royale du Canada, der British Academy, der American Academy of Arts and Sciences und der European Academy of Sociology.

Felix Wolter Geboren 1979; 2000–07 Studium der Soziologie, Politikwissenschaft und Betriebswirtschaftslehre; 2011 Promotion; seit 2007 wissenschaftlicher Mitarbeiter an der Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz.

Reviews

The following reviews are known:

In: Soziologische Revue — 39 (2016), S. 30–40 (Johannes Huinink)
In: Fachbuchkritik.de — http://www.fachbuchkritik.de/html/beitrage_zur_allgemeinen_theor.html (11/2013)
In: Oesterr.Zeitschrift f.Soziologie — 40 (2015), S. 441–444 (Roland Konrad Kobald)