One of the central questions in social science is ‘Why do people behave as they do?’ A common social scientific answer is, ‘because of their interests’. Despite the importance of the concept of interest for the social sciences, it has been surprisingly little discussed, and many aspects of its general history and many uses are largely unknown. In this book, Richard Swedberg attempts to remedy this situation through an easily accessible introduction to the topic, starting with a history of the concept that covers the origin of the word and its early use in philosophy, political science, literature and everyday language. He then pioneers an analysis of the emergence of interest as a sociological concept during the 19th century. Arguing that economists have reduced the concept of interest to that of economic interest, he emphasizes that sociologists, in contrast, have attempted to develop a flexible and social concept of interest. Moving on to a discussion of the contemporary use of the concept of interest in economics, sociology and political science, the book concludes with a discussion of the potential of the concept of interest as a policy tool.
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In this book, Richard Swedberg provides an easily accessible introduction to the topic of why do people behave as they do, starting with a history of the concept that covers the origin of the word and its early use in philosophy, political science, literature and everyday language.
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Introduction. Ch. 1 Interest and Its Many Traditions Ch. 2 The Birth of Interest as a Social Science Concept Ch. 3 Its Contemporary Use Ch. 4 Policy Aspects and Looking Ahead

Produktdetaljer

ISBN
9780335216147
Publisert
2005-07-16
Utgiver
Vendor
Open University Press
Vekt
190 gr
Høyde
218 mm
Bredde
136 mm
Dybde
10 mm
Aldersnivå
U, 05
Språk
Product language
Engelsk
Format
Product format
Heftet
Antall sider
136

Forfatter

Biographical note

Richard Swedberg is Professor of Sociology at Cornell University. He is the author of several works in economic sociology, including "Max Weber and the Idea of Economic Sociology" (1998) and "Principles of Economic Sociology" (203).