Rational Choice Theory essays

Rational Choice Theory essays Since the end of WWII a new and controversial theory has arisen in the political science world, the Rational Choice theory. This method concerns itself more precisely with explanation and analysis rather then the traditional descriptive and judgmental method of looking at political phenomenon. As shown in the article It isnt Rocket Science, but... The rational choice scholar concerns itself more with the method by which an individual goes about making a decision when faced with different alternatives. However, along with the emergence of this new theory, oppositions to it have also emerged. In the article When did Political Science forget about politics the actual reliability of this theory is challenged. Therefore, one must ask itself, is it possible to develop a universal scientific theory that could apply to all political areas? Can Political Science be viewed as a science? These are the questions that these articles are centered around. As mentioned above, the first article focuses more on the actual methods employed by an individual when faced with more then one possibility or outcome. It looks at what an individuals preferences regarding a final outcome are and the beliefs that guide the individual in accessing which tool he should use to achieve their desired outcome. In an utterly simple way, it considers a person exclusively in terms of the things he or she wants and the things he or she believes. We want to get a feel for how a person makes choices when confronted with alternatives. Since political behavior is often about making choices our model will provide us with hunches and intuitions about how a generic or representative individual confronts these circumstances in the abstract (1). To take it a step further, the rational choicer believes that all humans are rational beings. That is, they use their preferences and beliefs to come about making decisions in their everyda...