Handbook of Rational Choice Social Research

Social science research in numerous fields has created models incorporating the rational choice paradigm, which begins with the assumption that human behavior is guided by decisions stemming from a set of laws. Despite the prevalence of rational choice-based research, developments in one field have not always carried over to other fields. To address this, the Foundation has provided funding to Rafael Wittek, Tom Snijders, and Victor Nee to edit a 24-chapter volume to take stock of the current state of the art. The editors will convene a conference at the Foundation where participants will discuss their sub-field of rational choice research, point to neglected areas in existing research, and outline fruitful areas and hypotheses for future work. The resulting book will cover research in four social settings (markets, communities, states, and organizations) and analyze individual, institutional, and aggregate models.