Thumbnail Image
Publication

Social Mechanisms and Social Causation

Weinert, Friedel
Publication Date
2014
End of Embargo
Supervisor
Keywords
Ideal types; Mechanisms (evolutionary, physical, social); Natural selection; Rainbows; Regularities; Slave trade; Social causation; Trends; Weber
Rights
© 2014 The Author. Published open access by Rosetti International. Reproduced in accordance with the publisher's self-archiving policy.
Peer-Reviewed
yes
Open Access status
Accepted for publication
Institution
Department
Awarded
Embargo end date
Collections
Social Sciences Publications
Show all metadata
Files
Thumbnail Image
Main article
Adobe PDF, 416.07 KB
Additional title
Abstract
The aim of this paper is to examine the notion of social mechanisms by comparison with the notions of evolutionary and physical mechanisms. It is argued that social mechanisms are based on trends, and not lawlike regularities, so that social mechanisms are different from mechanisms in the natural sciences. Taking as an example of social causation the abolition of the slave trade, the paper argues that social mechanisms should be incorporated in Weber’s wider notion of adequate causation in order to achieve their explanatory purpose.
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/10454/10687
Version
Accepted Manuscript
Citation
Weinert F (2014) Social Mechanisms and Social Causation. Journal of Philosophical Economics. VIII (1): 24p.
Link to publisher’s version
Link to published version
http://www.jpe.ro/?id=autor&p=2196
Link to Version of Record
Type
Article
Qualification name
Notes