Philosophy of Social Science: A Contemporary Introduction examines perennial questions of philosophy through engaging the empirical study of society. Questions of normativity concern the place of values in social scientific inquiry. Questions of naturalism concern the relationship between the natural and the social sciences.　 And questions of reductionism ask how social institu...(展开全部)

Social constructionists maintain that we invent the properties of the world rather than discover them. Is reality constructed by our own activity? Or, more provocatively, are "scientific facts" constructed? Is "everything" constructed? This is a discussion of the philosophical issues that arise out of this controversial debate, analysing the various strengths and weaknesses of ...(展开全部)

Social constructionists maintain that we invent the properties of the world rather than discover them. Is reality constructed by our own activity? Or, more provocatively, are "scientific facts" constructed? Is "everything" constructed? This is a discussion of the philosophical issues that arise out of this controversial debate, analysing the various strengths and weaknesses of ...(展开全部)

The Routledge Companion to Philosophy of Social Science is an outstanding guide to the major themes, movements, debates, and topics in the philosophy of social science. It includes thirty-seven newly written chapters, by many of the leading scholars in the field, as well as a comprehensive introduction by the editors. Insofar as possible, the material in this volume is presente...(展开全部)

Scientists use concepts and principles that are partly specific for their subject matter, but they also share part of them with colleagues working in different fields. Compare the biological notion of a 'natural kind' with the general notion of 'confirmation' of a hypothesis by certain evidence. Or compare the physical principle of the 'conservation of energy' and the general p...(展开全部)

The publisher, Prentice-Hall Humanities/Social Science This volume explores the logic and methodology of scientific inquiry rather than its substantive results.

The world didn't end on 10 September 2008, but the possibility may have got you thinking: was it worth the risk? What is the point of science actually? Geoffrey Gorham considers these questions and explores the social and ethical implications of science by linking them to issues facing scientists today: human extinction, extraterrestrial intelligence, space colonization, and mo...(展开全部)

Shows the value of the Bayesian methodology for the addressing the core issues in the field Provides clear, comprehensive, and accessible explanations Discusses a wide range of questions, from philosophical foundations to practical applications in science Combines mathematical modeling with conceptual analysis, simulations, case studies, and empirical results How should we reas...(展开全部)

The Logic of Social Science offers new principles for designing and conducting social science research. James Mahoney uses set-theoretic analysis to develop a fresh scientific constructivist approach that avoids essentialist biases in the production of knowledge. This approach recognizes that social categories depend on collective understandings for their existence, but it insi...(展开全部)