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Rational Choice Theory is flourishing in sociology and is increasingly influential in other disciplines. Contributors to this volume are convinced that it provides an inadequate conceptualization of all aspects of decision making: of the individuals who make the decisions, of the process by which decisions get made and of the context within which decisions get made. The ciritique focuses on the four assumptions which are the bedrock of rational choice: rationality: the theory's definition of rationality is incomplete, and cannot satisfactorily incorporate norms and emotions individualism: rational choice is based upon atomistic, individual decision makers and cannot account for decisions made by ;couples', 'groups' or other forms of collective action process: the assumption of fixed, well-ordered preferences and 'perfect information' makes the theory inadequate for situations of change and uncertainty aggregation: as methodological individualists, rational choice theorists can only view structure and culture as aggregates and cannot incorporate structural or cultural influences as emergent properties which have an effect upon decision making. The critique is grounded in discussion of a wide range of social issues, including race, marriage, health and education.

Rational choice theory --- Social Change --- Sociology & Social History --- Social Sciences --- Rational choice theory.

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Examining the rational individual, this book develops a new approach to the theory of social relations. It explores how far we make sense of society on the assumption that people act as independent and free individuals, exercising rational choice. Re-examining the family, community, workplace and state, the author offers a thorough and original critique of the social policies of 'New Labour'.

Social institutions. --- Rational choice theory. --- Social choice --- Institutions, Social --- Social systems --- Sociology --- Social structure

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Politics --- Mass communications --- Political psychology --- Rational choice theory --- Voting --- Affect (Psychology) --- Political psychology. --- Rational choice theory. --- Voting. --- Affect (Psychology). --- #SBIB:324H20 --- #SBIB:324H60 --- Polls --- Mass political behavior --- Political behavior --- Political science --- Politics, Practical --- Psychology, Political --- Politologie: theorieën (democratie, comparatieve studieën….) --- Politieke socialisatie --- Psychological aspects --- Emotions --- Psychology --- Elections --- Social choice --- Suffrage --- Social psychology --- Balloting

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Alexander Schuessler has done what many deemed impossible: he has wedded rational choice theory and the concerns of social theory and anthropology to explain why people vote. The "paradox of participation"--why individuals cast ballots when they have virtually no effect on electoral outcomes--has long puzzled social scientists. And it has particularly troubled rational choice theorists, who like to describe political activity in terms of incentives. Schuessler's ingenious solution is a "logic of expressive choice." He argues in incentive-based (or "economic") terms that individuals vote not because of how they believe their vote matters in the final tally but rather to express their preferences, allegiances, and thus themselves. Through a comparative history of marketing and campaigning, Schuessler generates a "jukebox model" of participation and shows that expressive choice has become a target for those eliciting mass participation and public support. Political advisers, for example, have learned to target voters' desire to express--to themselves and to others--who they are. Candidates, using tactics such as claiming popularity, invoking lifestyle, using ambiguous campaign themes, and shielding supporters from one another can get out their vote even when it is clear that an election is already lost or won. This important work, the first of its kind, will appeal to anyone seeking to decipher voter choice and turnout, social movements, political identification, collective action, and consumer behavior, including scholars, graduate students, and upper-level undergraduates in political science, economics, sociology, anthropology, and marketing. It will contribute greatly to our understanding and prediction of democratic participation patterns and their consequences.

Rational choice theory --- Voting --- Political participation --- Rational choice theory. --- Social choice --- Ansolabehere, Stephen. --- Appadurai, Arjun. --- Bartels, Larry. --- Bonaccorso, John. --- Brennan, Geoffrey. --- Carter, Jimmy. --- Clinton, Bill. --- Diamond, Edwin. --- Durkheim, Emile. --- Edelman, Murray. --- Eisenhower, Dwight D. --- Ferejohn, John. --- Giddens, Anthony. --- Goodman, Robert. --- Haug, Wolfgang. --- Herbst, Susan. --- Hotelling, Harold. --- Iyengar, Shanto. --- Jamieson, Kathleen Hall. --- Johnson, Lyndon. --- King, Gary. --- Lennon, John. --- Lennons Problem. --- Lifestyle. --- Mickelson, Sig. --- Nagler, Jonathan. --- Nixon, Richard. --- Olson, Mancur. --- Page, Benjamin. --- Riker, William. --- Scib. --- Tedlow, Richard. --- Verba, Sidney. --- Walker, Mary. --- Wright, Gerald. --- abstention. --- bandwagons (momentum). --- biographical narratives. --- chaos theorem. --- commodification. --- composition of utility. --- electoral campaigns. --- expressive tipping model. --- free-riding. --- identity (attachment). --- marketing. --- opinion polls. --- paradox of participation. --- participation costs. --- public goods. --- rational ignorance. --- selective incentives. --- snob-good. --- turnout. --- Voting. --- Political participation. --- Balloting --- Polls --- Elections --- Politics, Practical --- Suffrage --- Citizen participation --- Community action --- Community involvement --- Community participation --- Involvement, Community --- Mass political behavior --- Participation, Citizen --- Participation, Community --- Participation, Political --- Political activity --- Political behavior --- Political rights --- Social participation --- Political activists