This book is based on an in-depth conversation between Howard Burton and Mark Bevir, Professor of Political Science and Director of the Center for British Studies at UC Berkeley. Mark Bevir is an internationally acclaimed expert in the theory of governance. This thought-provoking discussion explores how attempts to shoehorn political science into a natural science framework are bound to fail and how correctly appreciating what social science is and does has a direct bearing on our everyday social lives.

By adopting the false belief that the social world is composed of some unchanging, fundamental entities on par with atoms or molecules—be they markets or classes or what have you—we will have no means of recognizing, or even describing, what happens when circumstances change and a new social dynamic is created.

This carefully-edited book includes an introduction, One of a Kind, and questions for discussion at the end of each chapter:

About Ideas Roadshow Conversations Series (100 books):

Presented in an accessible, conversational format, Ideas Roadshow books not only explore frontline academic research featuring world-leading researchers, including 3 Nobel Laureates, but also reveal the inspirations and personal journeys behind the research. Howard Burton holds a PhD in physics and an MA in philosophy, and was the Founding Director of Canada's Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics.