Lecture notes - Academic Skills – Economics and Business Economics (VU)
Lecture 1
Types of rationality:
- Instrumental rationality (IR)
- Social rationality (SR)
- Expressive rationality (ER)
Instrumental rationality (IR):
- Objective: based on facts
- Focused on maximizing effectiveness, efficiency or feasibility
- Economists: optimization (profit optimization, Pareto-optimum, utility maximization,
etc.)
- Good insight into causality: X Y
- Example: the investment in a product X will lead to more profit, so do …
- Example: I want to marry you because it will raise my standard of living. X (marriage)
Y (raise my standard of living)
- Refers to efficiency, cost saving or effectiveness
- Cause based, so: means-end argumentation
Social rationality (SR):
- Intersubjective: based on shared social values, standards or principles
- Focused on meeting standards, values, traditions and thus social expectations
- Norms and values within a family, an organization, a country, or a certain period (“at
that time slavery was very normal”), etc.
- Example: the investment in product X causes excessive CO2 emissions, so don’t do it..
- Example: I want to marry you as this is what society expects me to do, now you are
pregnant
- Refers to fairness, rightfulness, tradition etc.
- Value and norm based argumentation, so: classification
Expressive rationality (ER):
- Subjective: based on personal interests or impulses
- Focused on personal desires, interests, sympathies, preferences, enthusiasm
- Personal objectives: what is important to me?
- Example: the investment in product X fulfils a wish that has lasted for years, so do it!
- Example: I want to marry you because it is my own and deepest desire
- Reference to subjective likings, interests, motives
- Motivational arguments
, Lecture 2
Asking questions about your reader will make it easier to develop and strengthen your
writing:
- Who will read my text?
- What does the reader already know about the topic?
- How can I guide the reader through the text?
- How can I avoid ambiguities or misunderstandings?
Writer and reader versions:
Writing for different ‘audiences’ the writer (you) and the (anticipated) reader
- Writer versions (the first drafts)
o Informational content
o Structure
o Referent management
- Reader versions (subsequent versions)
o Creating a reader-friendly text
o Textual coherence
o Information ordering
o Clarity
Skills profile for academic English:
- Text structure
o Introduction elements
o Paragraphing
o Topic sentences
- Academic style
o Formality
o Academic idiom
o Citing & referring
- Linguistic accuracy & range
o Grammar
o Spelling
o Punctuality
Lecture 1
Types of rationality:
- Instrumental rationality (IR)
- Social rationality (SR)
- Expressive rationality (ER)
Instrumental rationality (IR):
- Objective: based on facts
- Focused on maximizing effectiveness, efficiency or feasibility
- Economists: optimization (profit optimization, Pareto-optimum, utility maximization,
etc.)
- Good insight into causality: X Y
- Example: the investment in a product X will lead to more profit, so do …
- Example: I want to marry you because it will raise my standard of living. X (marriage)
Y (raise my standard of living)
- Refers to efficiency, cost saving or effectiveness
- Cause based, so: means-end argumentation
Social rationality (SR):
- Intersubjective: based on shared social values, standards or principles
- Focused on meeting standards, values, traditions and thus social expectations
- Norms and values within a family, an organization, a country, or a certain period (“at
that time slavery was very normal”), etc.
- Example: the investment in product X causes excessive CO2 emissions, so don’t do it..
- Example: I want to marry you as this is what society expects me to do, now you are
pregnant
- Refers to fairness, rightfulness, tradition etc.
- Value and norm based argumentation, so: classification
Expressive rationality (ER):
- Subjective: based on personal interests or impulses
- Focused on personal desires, interests, sympathies, preferences, enthusiasm
- Personal objectives: what is important to me?
- Example: the investment in product X fulfils a wish that has lasted for years, so do it!
- Example: I want to marry you because it is my own and deepest desire
- Reference to subjective likings, interests, motives
- Motivational arguments
, Lecture 2
Asking questions about your reader will make it easier to develop and strengthen your
writing:
- Who will read my text?
- What does the reader already know about the topic?
- How can I guide the reader through the text?
- How can I avoid ambiguities or misunderstandings?
Writer and reader versions:
Writing for different ‘audiences’ the writer (you) and the (anticipated) reader
- Writer versions (the first drafts)
o Informational content
o Structure
o Referent management
- Reader versions (subsequent versions)
o Creating a reader-friendly text
o Textual coherence
o Information ordering
o Clarity
Skills profile for academic English:
- Text structure
o Introduction elements
o Paragraphing
o Topic sentences
- Academic style
o Formality
o Academic idiom
o Citing & referring
- Linguistic accuracy & range
o Grammar
o Spelling
o Punctuality
