School of Social and Political Science

Description

'Social science aims to explain human behaviour. Yet, an obsession with causality has turned a vital theoretical concept into a statistical fixation. This is the basis for a book project that charts the intellectual history of causality - from theoretical tool to methodological result - and how it became the exclusive criterion for ‘good social science.’ Building on longstanding critiques of causality’s oversized role, I propose recalibrating the aims of social science back to scientific explanation. This is not a Perestroika attack on causality or quantitative methods but rather an intervention of perspective for the scope and aims of social science. It offers a constructive framework - beginning with questions rather than methods - that merges causality and prediction (as well as description) - to do so. This book will speak both to specialists and to the broader public concerned less with technical puzzles and more with how social science can reclaim its core purpose: making sense of complex human realities.'

Matthew Loveless is co-founder of the Center for Research and Social Progress (cersp.org). His early research and publications focused primarily on the transition to democracy in Eastern Europe and now examines several topics related to how individuals perceive and make sense of politics in Europe, focusing on public opinion, media use, and perceptions. His work has been published in the Journal of Politics, Political Studies, Political Research Quarterly, International Journal of Communication, European Journal of Political Research, World Development, Electoral Studies, Comparative Politics, Government & Opposition, Journal of Common Market Studies, Journal of European Public Policy, and Europe-Asia Studies.

Matthew's latest book is: Political Analysis: A Guide to Data and Analysis from Sage Publications