The Grammar of Society: The Nature and Dynamics of Social Norms

by Cristina Bicchieri

Cristina Bicchieri examines social norms, such as fairness, cooperation, and reciprocity, in an effort to understand their nature and dynamics, generated expectations and evolution and change. Drawing on intellectual traditions and methods, including those of social psychology, experimental economics and evolutionary game theory, Bicchieri provides an integrated account of how social norms emerge and why and when we follow them. Examining the existence and survival of inefficient norms, she demonstrates how norms evolve in ways that depend upon the psychological dispositions of the individual and how such dispositions may impair social efficiency.

Genres: Philosophy, Sociology, Nonfiction, Economics, Psychology, Social Science

278 pages, Paperback

First published December 30, 2001

About the author

Cristina Bicchieri is the SJP Harvie Professor of Social Thought and Comparative Ethics at the University of Pennsylvania, and director of the Philosophy, Politics and Economics program.

She is a foremost scholar of rational choice and philosophy of social science, and a leader in behavioral ethics.

Reviews

[Shannon · Rating 4 out of 5]

christina bicchieri makes game theoretical acconts of social norms exciting again! seriously, this is good stuff.

[Madeline]

Phil of social science is really not my thing, but there's enough of a normative project here that I could skip the formal stuff and still find the book useful and interesting.