Philosophical Questions in the Study of Politics and Economics
This module examines some theoretical issues involved in gaining knowledge about human societies. We will look at the role of theories and models in economics and political science, the special nature of "social institutions," and whether economic and political knowledge can be separated from value-judgments:
- Rational choice theory and models based on it
- Social norms and cooperation
- John Searle’s theory of “institutional facts”
- The nature of money and different accounts of power
- Whether values can or should be kept out of economics and political science
- Some ways in which states and markets are related