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Authoritative rational choice theorists continue to argue that wide variants of rational choice theory should be regarded as the best starting-point to formulate theoretical hypotheses on the micro foundations of complex macro-level social dynamics. Building on recent writings on neo-classical rational choice theory, on behavioral economics and on cognitive psychology, the present article challenges this view and argues that: (1) neo-classical rational choice theory is an astonishingly malleable and powerful analytical device whose descriptive accuracy is nevertheless limited to a very specific class of choice settings; (2) the 'wide' sociological rational choice theory does not add anything original to the neo-classical framework on a conceptual level and it is also methodologically weaker; (3) at least four alternative action-oriented approaches that reject portrayal of actors as computational devices operating over probability distributions can be used to design sociological explanations that are descriptively accurate at the micro level.

The most common argument against the use of rational choice models outside economics is that they make unrealistic assumptions about individual behavior. We argue that whether the falsity of assumptions matters in a given model depends on which factors are explanatorily relevant. Since the explanatory factors may vary from application to application, effective criticism of economic model building should be based on model-specific arguments showing how the result really depends on the false assumptions. However, some modeling results in imperialistic applications are relatively robust with respect to unrealistic assumptions.

Contribution to a special journal issue entitled "Rational Choice Theory & Politics" (see related abstracts in SA 44:1). Donald P. Green & Ian Shapiro (1984) discover a curious gulf between the prestige of rational choice approaches & the dearth of solid empirical findings. However, one can understand neither the prestige of rational choice theory nor its pathologies unless it can be seen as a variant of the equilibrium analysis found in physics, economics, & biology. Only such a global perspective on rational choice theory will reveal its core assumptions & the likely shape of its future in political science. In this light, the growing dominance of rational choice theory in political science is all but inevitable, & its pathologies are all but inescapable. Adapted from the source document.