Order and stability are tenuous and fragile. People have to work to create and sustain a semblance of stability and order in their lives and in their organizations and larger communities. Order on the Edge of Chaos compares different ideas about how we coordinate and cooperate. The ideas come from 'micro-sociology', and they offer new answers to the classic question of Thomas Hobbes: 'how is social order possible?' The most common answers in sociology, political science, and economics assume a fundamental tension between individual and group interests. This volume reveals that social orders are problematic even without such tension, because when people interact with each other, they verify their identities, feel and respond to emotions, combine different goal frames, and develop shared responsibility. The ties of people to groups result from many aspects of their social interactions, and these cannot be explained by individual self-interest.

'Too often, the deep social theory questions that sit at the root of classical social theory are ignored by rigorous contemporary scientific theory that is focused primarily on solving practical middle-range problems. Thankfully, this book bucks that trend and collects careful and clear theorizing on the relation between social action and social order. The works collected here represent the very best of contemporary sociological social psychology, deeply motivated by the fundamental question of social order. The results speak to questions of power, identity, stability, meaning, morals, and more. The work will be a key resource for students in social theory courses and professional sociologists seeking to answer big questions in a rigorous manner.'

James Moody - Robert O. Keohane Professor of Sociology, Duke University, North Carolina

'In fifteen chapters (plus introduction), today’s leading social psychologists and theorists focus their expertise on a crucial question: How is social order possible in our complex, diverse societies? The chapters describe a variety of ways, many of which are not obvious, that interactions create and perpetuate beneficial or injurious social structures and institutions. Interactions carve patterns from the infinite possibilities for action and structure, and understanding the principles governing interactions allows for a measure of control over the outcomes.'

Murray Webster - University of North Carolina, Charlotte

'This collection tackles a fundamental issue in the analysis of human behavior: How is order established and maintained? While many have addressed this issue at the macro-level, the micro-level is often neglected or even ignored. But in exciting, yet nuanced, fashion, each of these eminent scholars convincingly demonstrates the microfoundations of order or disorder. In doing so, they highlight the importance of individual choice and the enormous power of social relations and networks.'

Jane Sell - Texas A & M University

'Order on the Edge of Chaos represents a compendium of microsociological solutions to the Hobbesian problem of social order. In it, many of the world’s top sociologists make their case for why their theoretical dynamic, or phenomenon of interest, is critical to understanding social organization from the bottom up. The result is a fascinating tournament for theoretical primacy and substantive significance. A must-read, relevant to sociologists of all persuasions.'

Robb Willer - Stanford University, California

'… the compilation offers a wide range of alternative and sometimes complementary frameworks, concepts, and processes for guiding scholars in explorations of the links that bond the individual to the social.'

Source: Choice