Behavioral Mechanisms In The Social Sciences
This critical response will discuss about five articles which are written by Friedman with Hechter, Hedström and Ylikoski, Simon, Breen with Goldthorpe and Aksoy with Gambetta. These articles discuss about Classical rational choice theory (RCT), Sociological rational choice theory (SRCT) and Bounded rational choice theory (BRCT) with explanation and application.
The Rational choice theory is a skeleton for understanding and modeling for social and economic behavior. According to Sociological rational choice theory perspective individuals’ beliefs supposed to be based on incomplete, imperfect, or biased information. Bounded rationality is the idea that when individuals make decisions, their rationality is limited by the tractability of the decision problem, the cognitive limitations of their minds, and the time available to make the decision. Multiple assumptions made by articles in these articles and some of them made me wonder if their influence on the validity of the result of the research is not too impactful. However, authors have made assumptions that I found extremely interesting and I would also like to highlight them during this paper. Rational choice theories are still developing. These theories have some merits as well as drawbacks. So, scholars should be aware of the limitations and miss-used of Rational choice theory.
Rational choice theory needs some description on the preference of choice rather than estimating the outcome and frame of choice. One individual’s preferences are self-interested, it defines that the individual is homo economics. People’s life is not always simple and straight forward. Sometimes people’s decisions are depended on other’s activity with frequently changing situation. They cannot always determine or predict the cost benefit of choice. Sometimes there are insufficient or no information to decide. This type of problem creates difficulties in issues evaluation as well as problem defining, and it is usually happening in the uncertain conditions while decisions are being made. In this situation, the decision maker does not have enough information which can help to make the decision. As a result, he cannot evaluate the alternatives and must use his experience to decide. For example, a company wants to decide whether to introduce a new product to a new market, but in this market, there is no similar product on sale. Without existing or any previous data to analyze, the decision maker of the company cannot predict the upcoming response of the customers to the new product. So, the decision maker of the company cannot evaluate and predict the results of each alternative. Another problem will arise in rational decision making when there is limited time. Rational decision making needs a lot of information in the evaluation step and to obtain the information, usually it needs a long time of observation, collection and analysis. For example, in business, time play a crucial role in deciding business strategies. To make a decisions, there are also some other factors which can affect decision makers, such as finance, resource, etc.
It is considered that Sociological rational choice theory permitted too many variables, that makes confuse to person. In Sociological rational choice theory individuals’ emotion biased beliefs modifies incomplete, imperfect, or information, rather than having full information. The preferences are assumed to regulate by things like altruism, fairness, a desire to act according to one’s identity, values, and internalized norms. People prefers the role of emotions and automatic processes in decision making by giving up considering the requirement of consequentialist thinking. So those are emotions moderated decisions sometimes cannot be taken as practical and economically supportive rather than being confusing and biased.
In Simon Herbert articles, there is comparison between human brain and computer where the human brain and the computer both have been considered as a Hypothetical concept called The Physical Symbol system of qualitative structure, a system which is capable of inputting, outputting, storing, and modifying symbol structures, and of carrying out some of these actions in response to the symbols themselves and this system is capable of intelligent behavior. Depending over the limitation of human brain such as alteration of functioning over age or physical trauma, limitation of behavior according to adaptation with changing environment and having limitations on storing and memorizing huge data at a sudden time, it can be said that, more research can be performed to develop computers with human brains capacity to predict behavior from an economic perspective of rationality and from a perspective of bounded rationality out of human brains limitations.
Finally, an article written by Aksoy with Gabetta, does not eliminate alternative explanation about the reasons behind the increasing number of women veiling themselves in different countries. They considering four different hypotheses in which test the secularizing effect, socio-economic effect, social impact, and religiosity. But there are some other possible reasons and impacts of veiling which they have not mentioned in their articles. In some country, when a girl was born in such a family, where she looks other women relatives like mother, sister, aunties or grandmothers wearing veil as regular clothing, before developing the religious concept it seems normal to that girl to wear veil as clothing a part. In countries like India, Bangladesh veiling is popularly used as a part of security shield for young women by hiding face or body from not getting attracted by unrelated men. They prefer veiling cause in these countries, young women are frequently facing some unwanted occurrence like abuse, rape, eve-teasing. In some areas, young women use veil like a scurf to tie up their hair for to maintain trend and fashion. In these situations, veiling is not just considered as an expression of the religious beliefs. However, after reading the hypothesis given by authors and from my observations it is understandable that as the saying of rational choice theory, every individual has different preferences of choice and none of them are only related and stick to one reason like money or religion. However, Rational choice theory has the potential chance to develop a very interesting and practical concept if it can be substituted out from the effect of emotions.
Rational choice Theory is related to preference which has more connectivity with economics, whether another concept, Sociological rational choice theory is much related to emotional decision-making concept. People are emotional in many situations, not always economical. They analysis cost-benefit, not in always. Choice, time, money, capability or other situation can play a vital role in making decision as well as social outcome. Finally, we can say that, human behavior is not an easy mechanism to predict, deal and simplify with every theory and concept.
