How social science creates the world

This book is based on an in-depth filmed conversation between Howard Burton and UC Berkeley political scientist Professor Mark Bevir, who is an internationally acclaimed expert in the theory of governance. This thought-provoking conversation explores how attempts to shoehorn political science into a natural science framework commonly fail and how correctly appreciating what social science is and does has a direct bearing on our everyday social lives. By adopting the false belief that the social world is composed of some unchanging, fundamental entities on par with atoms or molecules-be they markets or classes or what have you-we will have no means of recognizing, or even describing, what happens when circumstances change and a new social dynamic is created.This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, One of a Kind, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter:I. Creating a Political Philosopher - From mathematics to social scienceII. The Power of Philosophy - How to change the worldIII. What is Political Science, Anyway? - Science vs. interpretationIV. Knowing One's Limits - Distinguishing heuristic utility from a scientific truthV. Missing the Boat - Beyond outdated dichotomiesVI. Networks - What they are and how they aroseVII. Analyzing Governance - How social science makes the worldVIII. The Mechanisms of Influence - Investigating social tractionIX. From Theory to Practice - Appreciating a mix of strategiesX. Doing Things Better - The importance of listeningXI. Starting Over - A lone wolf takes charge, at least theoreticallyXII. Going Global - Encouraging pluralism and open patternsAbout Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series: This book is part of an expanding series of 100+ Ideas Roadshow conversations, each one presenting a wealth of candid insights from a leading expert in a focused yet informal setting to give non-specialists a uniquely accessible window into frontline research and scholarship that wouldn't otherwise be encountered through standard lectures and textbooks. For other books in this series visit our website: https://ideas-on-film.com/ideasroadshow/.