Hedstrom Peter. Dissecting the Social: On the Principles of Analytical Sociology

Cambridge University Press, 2005. — 189 p.In this book the author seeks to clarify what a mechanism-based explanatory strategy looks like. At the core of the approach is a set of mechanisms that specifies how individuals are influenced by those with whom they interact. Such mechanisms are not only the object of this book, they also
explain why the book looks the way it does.
The main message of this book is that a path must be hewn between the eclectic empiricism of variablebased sociology and the often vacuous writings of the ‘grand’ social theorists.
This approach to sociological theorizing and research, which the author refers to as ‘analytical sociology’, seeks to explain complex social processes by carefully dissecting them and then bringing into focus their most important constituent components. The approach focuses on traditional
sociological concerns but uses explanatory strategies more often found in analytical philosophy and behavioural economics. It is an approach that seeks precise, abstract, realistic and action-based explanations for various social phenomena.The analytical tradition in sociology - Social mechanisms and explanatory theory - Action and interaction - Social interaction and social change - On causal modelling - Quantitative research, agent-based modelling and theories of the social (with Yvonne Aberg) - Coda.ISBN-13: 978-0-511-13691-7 eBook (NetLibrary). ISBN-10: 0-511-13691-9 eBook (NetLibrary). ISBN-13: 978-0-521-79229-5 (hardback). ISBN-10: 0-521-79229-0 (hardback). ISBN-13: 978-0-521-79667-5 (paperback). ISBN-10: 0-521-79667-9 (paperback).