ABSTRACT
The goal of structural individualism (SI) is to explain macro phenomena (such as revolutions) or macro relationships (such as: the higher the inequality, the higher the crime rate) by applying a micro theory (such as rational choice theory). The macro and micro level are connected with bridge assumptions. For example, inequality (macro level) might lead to an attenuation of norms to abide by the law (micro level). This in turn leads to individual crime (micro level); this is aggregated to the crime rate (composed of the number of crimes, related to the size of the population). The macro hypothesis is thus explained: inequality leads to crime because it weakens legal norms which bring about individual crime and, thus, a high crime rate. Such micro-macro-models increase our knowledge about why a macro relationship holds. A micro-macro model further specifies the conditions for the validity of the macro proposition. The chapter analyzes in detail the single components of the micro-macro model (the macro and micro proposition and the bridge assumptions). We further discuss agent-based modeling (computer simulations) that illustrates the fruitfulness of micro-macro modeling.
