Theory of Social Action

'This is a good book - rich, subtle, sophisticated, penetrating, original, and wide-ranging.' The Philosophical Review (July 1986)

• 1: Philosophy and the Theory of Social Action.- I Scientific Realism and the Social Sciences.- II Theorizing about Social Action.- 2: Individualism and Concept Formation in the Social Sciences.- I Holistic Social Concepts.- II Conceptual Individualism.- III We-Intentions and Social Motivation.- 3: Theories of Action.- I Views of Human Action.- II Mental Cause Theory.- III Agency Theory.- IV Hermeneutic Theory.- V Arguments for and against Causal Theories of Action.- 4: The Purposive-Causal Theory of Human Action.- I The Fundamental Elements of the Purposive-Causal Theory of Action.- II The Structure of Single-Agent Action.- 5: The Structure of Social Action.- I The General Nature of Social Action.- II Simple Social Actions.- III Complex Social Actions.- IV The Acting of Social Collectives.- V Group Interests Revisited.- 6: Action Generation.- I Action Generation and the By-Relation.- II Action Generation and the Theory of Automata.- III Social Actions, Grammars, and Social Conduct Plans.- 7: Practical Inference and Social Action.- I Loop Beliefs and Practical Inference.- II Mutual Beliefs.- III The Replicative Justification of Social Beliefs.- IV Social Action and Practical Inference.- V Mixed Interest Games and Practical Inference.- VI Social Rules and the Scope of Social Action.- 8: Norms, Rules, and Social Structures.- I Social Norms.- II Social Rules.- III Similarity and Roles.- IV Social Structures.- 9: Social Interaction and Control.- I Acting in Social Relation.- II Overt Social Interaction.- III Covert Social Interaction.- 10: A Pragmatic Theory of Explanation.- I Explaining as Communicative Action.- II Emphasis.- III Understanding and Presuppositions.- 11: Proximate Explanation of Social Action.- I Explanation and Social Action.- II Teleological Explanation.- III Purposive-Causal Explanation.- IV Reason-Explanation.- V Explaining the Style of Action.- VI Understanding Action.- 12: Dynamic Explanation of Social Action.- I Explanation and Other-Regarding Utilities.- II Expected Utilities, Motives, and the Explanation of Social Action.- III The Nature of Dynamic Action Explanations.- 13: Functional and Invisible Hand Explanation of Social Action.- I Action-Functions and Functional Explanations.- II Invisible Hand Explanations of Social Action.- 14: Explanatory Individualism and Explanation of Social Laws.- I Explanatory Individualism.- II Explanation of Social Laws.- Notes.- Name index.- Index of Symbols, Definitions, and Theses.