Workers act rationally to pursue financial success

Social Theory at work

In order to develop your analytical skills and a capacity for independent learning, you
are required to write an essay of 2,000 words on:

Discuss the statement ‘Workers act rationally to pursue financial success’ with reference to ideas from Weber and Durkheim. Illustrate your answer withcontemporary or historical examples.

Essays must include a full reference section according to the Harvard Reference
system, which does not form part of the word count. Variation in length of the essay is allowed up to a maximum of 10%. You are expected to consult several sources andreference a wide range of academic articles. There is no “correct” number ofreferences. The more you have read around the subject the more likely it is that youressay will be well researched and relevant to the question, but you should use thereading lists for guidance in ensuring this. Internet sites which are not academicdatabases should not be included as references.

Format of written work:
All written work should be submitted in the following format:
• Times New Roman 12 point font, double spaced, left or fully justified.
• All work should include page numbers, and a title page including student
number, the assignment title and word count.
• You must reference all sources in the text according to the Harvard style
(author date) and include a full reference list at the end of the work. This and
the title page are not included in the word limit.

Reading List
How to use this list
The readings presented here include the necessary readings for the module (highlighted in grey boxes) as well as additional reading and reference material. You will often find that one reading concentrates on the theory underlying the lecture and the second reading presents a different theoretical approach, or a case study for analysis. You must ensure to read all key readings to prepare for the essay.
The additional marked readings are a good starting point for essay research, or to pursue an idea further. If you find an idea particularly helpful for addressing the essay questions, you may wish to follow up on the additional readings listed under that heading. For your essay, you are not restricted to the use of materials on this list, but any other materials you identify should come from reputable sources and it is recommended that you use the library catalogue and scholar.google.co.uk to identify these rather than more general internet searches.