I think of myself as a social scientist. In order to get…
“I think of myself as a social scientist. In order to get hired and to get promoted, we're forced to declare a disciplinary and sub-disciplinary specialty, so I am a psychologist and I am a social psychologist within that. But I think the exciting thing is to think about the social sciences in general and the nature of society. It's one of the hardest things to think about, because our brains aren't designed to think about these emergent entities. We're not good at it.”
About This Quote
This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.
Social scientists must adopt broad perspectives, despite brain limitations, to understand complex societies.
In simple terms: Social scientists need broad, interdisciplinary views.
Key Takeaway
Embrace interdisciplinary study of society.
Themes
social science
interdisciplinary
cognition
Mood
intellectual
curious
Type
academic
philosophical
When to use this quote
- research
- policy making
- education
Key Concepts
emergent entities
brain constraints
Questions to Reflect On
- How can we train brains for emergent thinking?
- What interdisciplinary tools aid societal analysis?
A Different Perspective
May underestimate individual agency.