Social Mechanisms: An Analytical Approach to Social Theory(Studies in Rationality and Social Change)

Series: Studies in Rationality and Social Change

The mechanism approach calls attention to an intermediary level of analysis, in between pure description and story-telling, on the one hand, and grand theorizing and universal social laws, on the other. These essays, written by prominent social scientists, advance criticisms of current trends in social theory and suggest alternative approaches. For social theory to be of use for the working social