The Cement of Society: A Survey of Social Order

by Jon Elster

• ISBN13: 9780521374569
• ISBN10: 0521374561
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 1989-07-28
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Summary

The question Jon Elster addresses in this challenging new book is what binds societies together and prevents them from disintegrating into chaos and war. He analyses two concepts of social order: stable, predictable patterns of behaviour, and co-operative behaviour. The book examines various aspects of collective action and bargaining from the perspective of rational-choice theory and the theory of social norms. It is a fundamental assumption of the book that social norms provide an important kind of motivation for action that is irreducible to rationality. The book represents a major new statement by Elster which will be of particular interest to political scientists, political philosophers, sociologists, and economists.

Table of Contents

Preface and Acknowledgements	vii
Introduction: the two problems of social order	1	(16)
Collective action	17	(33)
Bargaining	50	(47)
Social norms	97	(55)
Bargaining and collective action	152	(34)
Collective action and social norms	186	(29)
Bargaining and social norms	215	(73)
Conclusion: the cement of society	248	(40)
References	288	(21)
Index	309