Science in the Making

Science in the Making

Explanation in the Social Sciences

von Louis M. Imbeau

This Brief draws on the work of French sociologist Jean-Michel Berthelot to propose a version of explanatory pluralism. It distinguishes six explanatory or intelligibility schemes found in modern social sciences: actantial, functional, hermeneutic, structural, dialectic, and causal schemes. The Brief deals with each explanatory scheme in a separate chapter, each being structured into two parts: three examples of scholarly works applying a given scheme and discussion of the characteristics of the given scheme. The last chapter proposes a synthesis.

Highlights

• Draws on the work of Jean-Michel Berthelot to propose a version of explanatory pluralism in the social sciences Distinguishes six explanatory schemes found in modern social science Uses examples from extant political science literature to illustrate this typology

Über den Autor

Louis M. Imbeau is Professor Emeritus at Université Laval, Québec (Canada). Professor Imbeau’s work touches on a wide range of issues in the field of political science, including international development aid, fiscal policy for Canadian provinces, economic policy for public finance, comparative analysis of constitutions, systematic analysis of constitutions, systematic analysis of political discourse, and parliamentary control of public finances. He received the Stein Rokkan Prize from the International Science Council, UNESCO, and the European Consortium for Political Research for his work on the factors that influence allocation of international aid to developing countries. A prolific researcher, he has authored many scholarly publications and was a visiting professor at universities in France, Italy, the U.S., and Turkey.