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Legalism is a Chinese political philosophy that holds that self-interest underlies human nature and therefore human behavior. [1] It is axiomatic in Legalism that a government can not truly be staffed by upright and trustworthy men of service, because every member of the elite—like any member of society—will pursue their own interests and thus must be employed for their interests. [2]
Self-Interest can encourage individuals to make decisions that will benefit themselves overall. Homans once summarized the theory by stating: Social behavior is an exchange of goods, material goods but also non-material ones, such as the symbols of approval or prestige.
Rational choice theory looks at three concepts: rational actors, self interest and the invisible hand. [4] Rationality can be used as an assumption for the behaviour of individuals in a wide range of contexts outside of economics. It is also used in political science, [5] sociology, [6] and philosophy. [7]
Although he never used the words "collective action problem", Thomas Hobbes was an early philosopher on the topic of human cooperation. Hobbes believed that people act purely out of self-interest, writing in Leviathan in 1651 that "if any two men desire the same thing, which nevertheless they cannot both enjoy, they become enemies."
The definition of the situation is a fundamental concept in symbolic interactionism. [ 4 ] [ 5 ] It involves a proposal upon the characteristics of a social situation (e.g. norms, values, authority, participants' roles), and seeks agreement from others in a way that can facilitate social cohesion and social action.
The Gesellschaft is associated with modern society and rational self-interest, which weakens the traditional bonds of family and local community that typify the Gemeinschaft. Max Weber, a founding figure in sociology, also wrote extensively about the relationship between Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft. Weber wrote in direct response to Tönnies.
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Sociology is the scientific ... agency of individual rational actors and assumes that within interactions individuals always seek to maximize their own self-interest.