Theory Construction and Model-building Skills - 9781606233399

This textbook for graduate students and new PhD social scientists and researchers can be used as a stand-alone text in a course on theory construction or as one of several texts in a graduate course on research and research methodology. It offers a mixed-methods approach to theory development, showing step-by-step how to generate ideas and turn them into formal social science theories. The text is not an abstract guide, but instead provides practical heuristics tools, research methods, and real-life examples in social science disciplines such as anthropology, business, education, and social work. Coverage begins with material on basic concepts related to conceptual systems and the process of theory construction, then continues with chapters on core processes such as clarifying relationships using thought experiments. A section on frameworks for theory construction contains two in-depth chapters on causal models and mathematical modeling. Concluding chapters cover reading and writing about theories. Learning features include application exercises, key terms, and annotated lists of suggested readings. The text will also help practitioners in the social sciences understand and evaluate theories. Jaccard directs the Institute for Child Health and Development at Florida International University-Miami. Jacoby teaches consumer behavior at New York University. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)