خوانشی ساختاری نهادی از نظریۀ انتخاب عقلایی

نظریه انتخاب عقلایی، یکی از کلان نظریه های حوزۀ علوم اجتماعی است که در عین اهمیت، به دلیل ابتنای آن بر فردگرایی ر وش شناختی و ماهیت تقلیل گرایانه حاصل از این بنیان معرفتی مورد نقد قرار گرفته است. هدف این مقاله، ارائه خوانشی نوین از نظریۀ انتخاب عقلایی در یک بستر ساختاری نهادی است تا قابلیت تبیینی آن را ارتقا دهد. روش داوری مقاله بر استدلال عقلانی استوار است. مقاله با مروری بر هستی شناسی نهادها و ساختارهای اجتماعی و با استفاده از خوانش فردگرایی روش شناختی در بستر ساختاری با عنوان فردگرایی ساختاری، روایتی از انتخاب عقلایی عرضه می کند که نحوۀ شکل یابی مطلوبیت کنشگران را در یک چارچوب نهادی و ساختاری تبیین می کند. مقاله با استفاده از مفهوم هستی اجتماعی شده، مفهوم ساختار را از درک متعارف آن در علوم اجتماعی فراتر می برد و سطوح پیوند متقابل ساختار و نهاد را با کارگزار نشان می دهد. مقاله با ارزیابی برخی از نظریه ها و تحلیل های متداول در علوم اجتماعی، سطوح مختلف تبیینی کارگزاری، نهادی و ساختاری (در دو سطح ساختار نرم و سخت) را در روایت تلفیقی ساخته شده آشکار می سازد. مقاله نتیجه می گیرد که عاملان به صورت مستمر با نهادها و ساختارهای نرم، رابطه دیالکتیک دارند و در عین اثرگذاری بر ساخته شدن و تداوم آنها از آنها متاثر هم می شوند. چنین رابطه ای بین نهادها و ساختارهای نرم نیز قابل تصور است. ساختارهای اجتماعی خاص منجر به شکل گیری گونۀ خاصی از نهادها می شوند و در عین حال وضعیت نهادها و تغییرات احتمالی آنها به صورتی تدریجی بر وضعیت ساختارهای نرم هم اثرگذار است. اما همه این اثرگذاری ها در چارچوب امکانات، فرصت ها و محدودیت هایی است که ساختار سخت در اختیار عاملان قرار می دهد.

a structural institutional reading of rational choice theory

as a grand theory within the realm of social sciences, rational choice theory enjoys much importance while simultaneously being continuously criticized due to methodological individualism and the reductionism derived from such an epistemological base. the aim of this article is to present a reading of rational choice theory framed within a structural institutional setting that could add new explanatory capabilities to it. the paper is evaluative in approach and based on rational argumentation.in a nutshell, the article first outlines an overview of the ontology of institutions and social structures. using a structural interpretation of methodological individualism mdash;termed structural individualism mdash;it puts forward a version of rational choice theory explaining how the preferences of actors are constituted within institutional and structural frameworks. this paper extends, using the perspective of socialized ontology, the conventional view of structure understood within social sciences mdash;defining how the interconnected levels of structure and institution interface with the agent.in fact, the article reaches an integrative narrative through an incisive evaluation of prevailing theories and analyses in the social sciences, showing the explanatory levels of agency, institution, and structure mdash;in turn divided into soft and hard structures. it concludes that agents are dialectically always in a relationship with institutions and soft structures, always affecting their genesis and perpetuation as well as being influenced by them, and thus a similar dynamic relationship is conceivable between institutions and soft structures. particular social structures give rise to particular forms of institutions, and the state of institutions and its possible changes gradually affect further the condition of the soft structures. but all these interactions take place according to the opportunities, constraints, and possibilities brought about by hard structures, which, in any case, regulate the actor agency.rational choice theory, one of the grand theories in the field of social sciences, is significant but has been criticized for its reliance on methodological individualism and its reductionist nature stemming from this epistemological foundation. the goal of this paper is to offer a novel interpretation of rational choice theory within a structural institutional context in order to enhance its explanatory power. the article rsquo;s reasoning method is based on rational argumentation. by reviewing the ontology of institutions and social structures, and utilizing the reading of methodological individualism within a structural context under the title of structural individualism, the paper offers a narrative of rational choice that explains how the preferences of actors are shaped within an institutional and structural framework. the paper extends the concept of social being and moves beyond the conventional understanding of structure in social sciences, showing the interconnected levels of structure and institution with the agent. by evaluating some of the common theories and analyses in social sciences, the paper reveals the different explanatory levels of agency, institution, and structure (at both the soft and hard structure levels) within the integrated narrative. the paper concludes that agents continuously engage in a dialectical relationship with soft institutions and structures, and while influencing their construction and continuity, they are also affected by them. such a relationship is also conceivable between soft institutions and structures. specific social structures lead to the formation of certain types of institutions, and simultaneously, the status of institutions and their potential changes gradually affect the status of soft structures. however, all these influences operate within the possibilities, opportunities, and constraints that the hard structure provides for agents. introductionrational choice theory is one of the key theories in the social sciences that seeks to explain human behavior based on logical and rational analyses. this theory initially emerged in microeconomics and later expanded to other fields such as sociology and political science. according to this theory, humans are rational actors who make decisions with the aim of maximizing personal benefits.although this theory has been successful in analyzing individual behavior under simple conditions, it faces significant shortcomings when dealing with more complex social, historical, and cultural issues. its overemphasis on individual rationality and neglect of the role of institutions and social structures have made it ineffective in explaining macro level phenomena. this paper aims to address these shortcomings by proposing a new approach called structural individualism, which focuses on the interaction between the individual, institutions, and social structures. objective and innovation of the paperthe aim of this paper is to reconsider rational choice theory within a structural institutional framework. by introducing the concept of structural individualism, it seeks to overcome the limitations of methodological individualism. in this framework, human behavior is analyzed as the result of the continuous interaction between individual agency and institutions and social structures. the main innovation of the paper is that it examines human behavior not as an independent action but as part of social and historical dynamics. theoretical frameworkstructural individualism: the link between agent and structurein the structural individualism framework, it is assumed that human choices are never made in a vacuum. unlike the traditional rational choice approach, which views human decisions as completely independent and logical, this framework emphasizes that human behavior is shaped within a social and historical context.in this framework, the individual is still recognized as a rational actor, but their choices are always influenced by institutions and social structures. in other words, individual preferences are not only the product of individual rationality but the result of interactions with the social and cultural environment. hard and soft structuressocial structures are divided into two categories: