Nigel Warburton & David Edmonds 
Big Ideas in Social Science 

Are human beings less violent than before? Why do we adopt certain moral and political judgements? Why is the gap between rich and poor getting bigger? How do we decide which criminal policies are effective? What is the Population Challenge for the 21st Century? What is social science? 



In 
Big Ideas in Social Science, David Edmonds and Nigel Warburton put these and more of our society’s burning questions to 18 of the world’s leading social scientists including Steven Pinker, Ann Oakley, Lawrence Sherman, Kate Pickett, Robert J. Shiller and Doreen Massey.



The result is a collection of thought-provoking discussions that span the fields of sociology, politics, economics, criminology, geography and many more.From the people who brought us the 
Philosophy Bites series,  
Big Ideas in Social Science is a fascinating and accessible introduction to the key ideas and findings of the social sciences.



The interviews for this book are based on a series of podcasts,  
Social Science Bites, sponsored by SAGE. 
Social Science Bites was inspired by the popular Philosophy Bites podcast (www.philosophybites.com), which was founded by David and Nigel in 2007 and has so far had 26 million downloads.  Philosophy Bites has spawned three books,  
Philosophy Bites, Philosophy Bites Back and
 Philosophy Bites Again.

Innehållsförteckning

Foreword – David Edmonds & Nigel Warburton

SECTION ONE: FIELDS OF ENQUIRY

Rom Harré on What is Social Science – Rom Harré

Toby Miller on Cultural Studies – Toby Miller

Lawrence Sherman on Criminology – Lawrence Sherman

Jonathan Haidt on Moral Psychology – Jonathan Haidt

Robert J. Shiller on Behavioural Economics – Robert J. Shiller

SECTION TWO: BIRTHS, DEATHS & HUMAN POPULATION

Sarah Franklin on the Sociology of Reproductive Technology – Sarah Franklin

Ann Oakley on Women’s Experience of Childbirth – Ann Oakley

Sarah Harper on the Population Challenge for the 21st Century – Sarah Harper

Stephen Pinker on Violence and Human Nature – Stephen Pinker

SECTION THREE: SOCIAL SCIENCE THROUGH DIFFERENT LENSES

Greg Clark on Names – Greg Clark

Robin Dunbar on Dunbar Numbers – Robin Dunbar

David Goldblatt on the Sociology of Football – David Goldblatt

Trevor Marchand on Craft – Trevor Marchand

Bruce Hood on the Supernatural – Bruce Hood

Doreen Massey on Space – Doreen Massey

SECTION FOUR: POLITICS AND SOCIAL SCIENCE

Craig Calhoun on Protest Movements – Craig Calhoun

Danny Dorling on Inequality – Danny Dorling

Kate Pickett on the Case for Equality – Kate Pickett

Om författaren

David Edmonds is a Distinguished Research Fellow at the Uehiro Centre for Practical Ethics at Oxford University and a former BBC radio journalist.  He is the author or editor of many philosophy books (and one on chess) which together have been translated into over two dozen languages.  These include (with John Eidinow), Wittgenstein’s Poker and, most recently, a biography, Parfit: A Philosopher and his Mission to Save Morality.  As well as Social Science Bites, David also hosts a couple of philosophy podcasts. Philosophy Bites, which he makes with Nigel Warburton, has had over 47 million downloads.