Practical Rationality in Social Scientific Explanation: The Case of Residential Segregation  

Oleh:

Kelly, Terrence

Jenis: Article from Journal - ilmiah internasional
Dalam koleksi: Philosophy of the Social Sciences vol. 34 no. 1 (Mar. 2004), page 3-19.
Topik: segregation; trust; ideology; practical rationality
Fulltext: 3PSS341.pdf (88.35KB)

Isi artikel

Residential segregation according to race remains fairly entrenched in parts of the United States despite the fact that public attitudes toward racial integration have become dramatically more positive. This incongruity is often explained in terms of the irrationality of agents, whereby the agents’ support of integration is undermined by systematic/unconscious racism. The author argues that such accounts present an implausible model of practical rationality and places too great a justificatory burden on the critic/observer perspective. Asan alternative, he suggests the problem is a conflict between modes of practical rationality, specifically, between reasons developed from an embedded context and reasons from a general, abstract perspective. Because many whites live in segregated conditions, they develop contextual reasons for preserving that way of life, even if such reasons fly in the face of their sense of justice. This account is more philosophically sound and gives rise to interesting policy recommendations for overcoming segregation.

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