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WHAT SOCIAL SCIENCE DO WE NEED?

WHAT SOCIAL SCIENCE DO WE NEED?. Social Metaphysics?. Economics is the only SS Discipline which claims to have a coherent and consistent story of the way (part of) the world works But the ‘economic metaphysic’ is clearly incomplete – ignores (?) politics, culture, environment.

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WHAT SOCIAL SCIENCE DO WE NEED?

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  1. WHAT SOCIAL SCIENCE DO WE NEED?

  2. Social Metaphysics? • Economics is the only SS Discipline which claims to have a coherent and consistent story of the way (part of) the world works • But the ‘economic metaphysic’ is clearly incomplete – ignores (?) politics, culture, environment.

  3. What’s the use of Economics? “When the accumulation of wealth is no longer of high social importance, there will be great changes in the code of morals. …. All kinds of social customs and economic practices, … which we now maintain at all costs however distasteful and unjust they may be in themselves, because they are tremendously useful in promoting accumulation of capital, we shall be free, at last to discard.” (Keynes, 1947) -> As people become richer, so the intellectual and phenomenal appeal of simple economics will diminish. Economics is marginalised, ironic for a subject which relies on marginal conditions

  4. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  5. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  6. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  7. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  8. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  9. WHAT DOES ECONOMICS DO?

  10. SIMPLE PHILOSOPHY The picture of WHAT we study tells us little about HOW: Methodological disputes typically revolve round Ontology & Epistemology:

  11. SIMPLE PHILOSOPHY Which can only be resolved through some sort of Metaphysics. But classical, objective science (metaphysics) is now in dispute.

  12. SIMPLE PHILOSOPHY And is further confused by the social meanings we ascribe to our knowledge Which marks the critical distinction between SOCIAL science and our natural & physical counterparts.

  13. SIMPLE PHILOSOPHY Which, in turn, makes our theories and methodologies central to our pursuit of social science and of social scientific truths

  14. HOW TO DO SOCIAL SCIENCE? • “Postmodernism is the antithesis of the Anglo-American analytical thesis. Out of the resulting dialectical synthesis, however, an enriched new philosophy of science could emerge” (Tweeten & Zulaf, 1999) • “There remains a common theme for a science of human society, and that while much progress has been made in developing its various facets and aspects, it is still important to try and tie the parts together - not in search of a ‘world formula’ but to make sense of the social habitat in which we live, have lived and are likely to live”. Dahrendof, 1995 • Social Science must believe there to be underlying patterns to social behaviour - • so what might the synthesis or common theme look like?

  15. NATURE OF SOCIAL TRUTH? Philosophers have four major definitions & associated criteria: • VERACITY - confirmed by facts/experiment - CORRESPONDENCE (CONSISTENCY) • VALIDITY - confirmed by rules of logic - COHERENCE • VALUE - confirmed by faith - PERFORMATIVE/PRAGMATIC as good or bad • VERNACULAR - confirmed by habit & experience - EXPEDIENT, as right or wrong (in current contexts) Social Science Methodological Quarrels are essentially between these four dimensions of “truth”: • Positivists (Quantitative) concerned with Veracity and Validity - CLASSICAL SCIENCE - epistemology & ontology • Relativists (Qualitative) concerned with Values and Vernaculars - POSTMODERN SCIENCE - ethics & morals

  16. THE REAL WORLD? • WHERE DOES OUR DATA COME FROM? • We generate it through our behaviours • Which are ultimately founded on: • Rules (our given outside determinants (g.o.ds)) - as consistent with our societies (validity) • Reason - as intelligibly coherent (veracity) • Faith (our personal beliefs and values)- as worthwhile (value) • Or are essentially Habitual - vernacular (to be ultimately discarded or adapted if fundamentally at odds with rules, reason or faith)

  17. How do we behave (1)? We communicate and interact as social animals on the basis of our hearts and minds and our trust in our neighbours & friends & we generate social (informal) contracts, networks, shared understandings &trust as a result By common CONSENT

  18. How do we behave (2)? We club together to agree social rules and rulers, and generate ‘ocracies (autocracy, plutocracy, bureaucracy, theocracy and (finally?) democracy (with faith, rules and reason adjusted to fit) By (political) CONVENTION

  19. How do we behave (3)? We then need the force of Law, to enforce and police at least some of our social contracts and behaviours By COERCION (the fundamental property of the state)

  20. How do we behave (4)? And, of course, we specialise & trade, and practice economics Resulting in a system of CONTRACT

  21. SO WHAT? • FOUR MAJOR TRANSACTIONS SYSTEMS: • CONSENT • COERCION • CONVENTION • CONTRACT • Interact to generate our social systems and phenomena

  22. SO WHAT? • FOUR MAJOR TRANSACTIONS SYSTEMS: • CONSENT • COERCION • CONVENTION • CONTRACT • Interact to generate our social systems and phenomena Which is not so fantastic: Boulding and others have been here before, by a different route.

  23. SO WHAT? • FOUR MAJOR TRANSACTIONS SYSTEMS: • CONSENT • COERCION • CONVENTION • CONTRACT • Interact to generate our social systems and phenomena Which generates our socially constructed truths - our observable social worlds - OUR GROUND TRUTHS

  24. Our Ground Truths are socially constructed. SO WHAT? Re-orient, if faith is not your apex. It all depends on circumstance, context, character and culture. Give them any spin you like, if you can get away with it. Just what the post-modern story says. • EXCEPT: • Here is a structure, a metaphysic, to ‘explain’ the condition

  25. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private

  26. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives

  27. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives: With Economics being very distinctly limited in its scope.

  28. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives: With Economics being very distinctly limited in its scope.

  29. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives: With Economics being very distinctly limited in its scope.

  30. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives: With Economics being very distinctly limited in its scope.

  31. HOW DOES THIS HELP? Social Behaviour needs to reconcile private and public lives: BUT some major institutions are MISSING:

  32. E.g. Management & Marketing Kay’s Corporate Success depends on: • Competitive Advantage of products: rare, inimitable, non-substitutable, valuable • Distinctive Capabilities of supply chain • Strategic assets (patents, raw materials etc.) • Architecture - Charity? • Reputation - Commitment & Care? • Innovative Capacity - Curiosity? • Corporate Success depends on harnessing these elements into coherent and sustainable whole.

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