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Rational Choice Theory
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Rational Choice Theory (RCT) by Cornish and Clarke (1986) is the theoretical foundation on which Situational Crime Prevention (SCP) stands. The rational choice perspective assumes that offenders seek to benefit in some way from their offending behaviour. RCT therefore [P]ortrays offenders as active decision makers who undertake a cost-benefit analysis of presenting crime opportunities.
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"This is a most thought-provoking book, and I am looking forward to seeing responses from leading rational choice scholars. Green and Shapiro shift the debate in political science toward the issue of empirical explanation. That is exactly where the discussion ought to be centered!"—Theda Skocpol, Harvard University
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The author shows the theoretical implications of this new definition of rationality and then uses it to explain certain aspects of ethnic identity and mobilization, ideology, and altruism and intertemporal choice. He then explores the implications of this idea for policy analysis and econometrics. This book will provoke a debate about how work based in rational choice theories is done.
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Rational choice explanations of international law cannot divorce international costs from domestic benefits. All that matters is that there is some rational explanation for why states make international commitments. The explanation may be of a horizontal nature between nations, or of a vertical nature within the state itself.
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Elster, among rational choice theorists, has accepted this conclusion. He argues that norms are not 'outcome-oriented' but are internalised and so acquire a compulsive character that cannot be explained in purely rational terms (Elster 1989a: 119; Elster 1989b: 98). Norms operate, he holds, through shame and guilt, rather than through rewards and punishment. As far as the explanation of norms is concerned, rational choice theory has nothing to offer. Rational choice and normative commitment, he argues, are complementary processes in the formation of social action.
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This collection of essays from leading British writers in the rational choice paradigm concentrates upon the two key aspects of rational choice: the role of preferences and institutions. The essays encompass both theoretical inquiries and empirical analyses.
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Rational Choice Theory