Preface; 1. Introduction Donatella della Porta and Michael Keating; Part I. Epistemology and Philosophy of the Social Sciences: 2. How many approaches in the social sciences? An epistemological introduction Donatella della Porta and Michael Keating; 3. Normative political theory and empirical research Rainer Bauböck; 4. Causal explanation Adrienne Héritier; 5. Constructivism: what it is (not) and how it matters Friedrich Kratochwil; 6. Culture and social science Michael Keating; 7. Historical institutionalism Sven Steinmo; 8. Game theory Christine Chwaszcza; 9. Rationality and recognition Alessandro Pizzorno; Part II. Research Design: 10. Concepts and concept formation Peter Mair; 11. Comparative analysis: case-oriented versus variable-oriented research Donatella della Porta; 12. Case studies and process tracing: theories and practices Pascal Vennesson; 13. Quantitative analysis Mark Franklin; 14. The design of social and political research Philippe Schmitter; 15. Ethnographic approaches Zoe Bray; 16. Comparing approaches, methodologies and methods. Some concluding remarks Donatella della Porta and Michael Keating; References; Glossary; Index.

'This volume makes a strong and persuasive case for a pluralistic approach to social science. A wide variety of approaches are explicated by their leading exponents so that the reader can judge in what ways, and to what extent, they might be enlisted in the study of markets, politics, and society. An immensely informative and intellectually stimulating journey.' John Gerring, Boston University