Methodology, Epistemology, and Philosophy of Science
Author: Carl G. Hempel
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Published: 2013-03-09
Total Pages: 428
ISBN-13: 9401576769
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For and Against Scientism
Author: Moti Mizrahi
Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield
Published: 2022-04-04
Total Pages: 207
ISBN-13: 1538163349
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe term “scientism” is used in several ways. It is used to denote an epistemological thesis according to which science is the source of our knowledge about the world and ourselves. Relatedly, it is used to denote a methodological thesis according to which the methods of science are superior to the methods of non-scientific fields or areas of inquiry. It is also used to put forward a metaphysical thesis that what exists is what science says exists. In recent decades, the term “scientism” has acquired a derogatory meaning when it is used in defense of non-scientific ways of knowing. In particular, some philosophers level the charge of “scientism” against those (mostly scientists) who are dismissive of philosophy. Other philosophers, however, embrace scientism, or some variant thereof, and object to the pejorative use of the term. This book critically examines arguments for and against different varieties of scientism in order to answer the central question: Does scientism pose an existential threat to academic philosophy? Or should philosophy become more scientific?
General Philosophy of Science: Focal Issues
Author:
Publisher: Elsevier
Published: 2007-07-18
Total Pages: 713
ISBN-13: 0080548547
DOWNLOAD EBOOKScientists use concepts and principles that are partly specific for their subject matter, but they also share part of them with colleagues working in different fields. Compare the biological notion of a 'natural kind' with the general notion of 'confirmation' of a hypothesis by certain evidence. Or compare the physical principle of the 'conservation of energy' and the general principle of 'the unity of science'. Scientists agree that all such notions and principles aren't as crystal clear as one might wish. An important task of the philosophy of the special sciences, such as philosophy of physics, of biology and of economics, to mention only a few of the many flourishing examples, is the clarification of such subject specific concepts and principles. Similarly, an important task of 'general' philosophy of science is the clarification of concepts like 'confirmation' and principles like 'the unity of science'. It is evident that clarfication of concepts and principles only makes sense if one tries to do justice, as much as possible, to the actual use of these notions by scientists, without however following this use slavishly. That is, occasionally a philosopher may have good reasons for suggesting to scientists that they should deviate from a standard use. Frequently, this amounts to a plea for differentiation in order to stop debates at cross-purposes due to the conflation of different meanings. While the special volumes of the series of Handbooks of the Philosophy of Science address topics relative to a specific discipline, this general volume deals with focal issues of a general nature. After an editorial introduction about the dominant method of clarifying concepts and principles in philosophy of science, called explication, the first five chapters deal with the following subjects. Laws, theories, and research programs as units of empirical knowledge (Theo Kuipers), various past and contemporary perspectives on explanation (Stathis Psillos), the evaluation of theories in terms of their virtues (Ilkka Niiniluto), and the role of experiments in the natural sciences, notably physics and biology (Allan Franklin), and their role in the social sciences, notably economics (Wenceslao Gonzalez). In the subsequent three chapters there is even more attention to various positions and methods that philosophers of science and scientists may favor: ontological, epistemological, and methodological positions (James Ladyman), reduction, integration, and the unity of science as aims in the sciences and the humanities (William Bechtel and Andrew Hamilton), and logical, historical and computational approaches to the philosophy of science (Atocha Aliseda and Donald Gillies).The volume concludes with the much debated question of demarcating science from nonscience (Martin Mahner) and the rich European-American history of the philosophy of science in the 20th century (Friedrich Stadler). - Comprehensive coverage of the philosophy of science written by leading philosophers in this field - Clear style of writing for an interdisciplinary audience - No specific pre-knowledge required
Epistemology and Metaphysics for Qualitative Research
Author: Tomas Pernecky
Publisher: SAGE
Published: 2016-09-22
Total Pages: 249
ISBN-13: 147398694X
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis clearly written and provocative text outlines the wide range of epistemological and metaphysical pillars of research. In a clear, easy to follow style, the reader is guided through an array of concepts that are defined, explained and made simple. With the aid of helpful examples and case studies, the book challenges the prevailing modes of thinking about qualitative inquiry by showcasing an immense variety of philosophical frameworks. Armed with a strong understanding of this philosophical backbone, students will be able to choose and defend a ‘pick and mix’ of research methods that will uniquely complement their research. Empiricism Rationalism Realism Skepticism Idealism Positivism Post-positivism Idea-ism Hermeneutics Phenomenology Social Ontology Quantum Mechanics Essential reading for new and experienced researchers, this ‘must’ for any social science bookshelf will help unlock a new level of research creativity.
Philosophy And Methodology Of Information: The Study Of Information In The Transdisciplinary Perspective
Author: Gordana Dodig-crnkovic
Publisher: World Scientific
Published: 2019-04-22
Total Pages: 576
ISBN-13: 981327753X
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe book gives up-to-date, multi-aspect exposition of the philosophy and methodology of information, and related areas within the nascent field of the study of information. It presents the most recent achievements, ideas and opinions of leading researchers in this domain, as well as from physicists, biologists and social scientists. Collaboration of researchers from different areas and fields opens new perspectives for the understanding of information essential in the innovative development of science, technology and society.The book is meant for readers conducting research into any aspect of information, information society and information technology. The ideas presented give new insights for those who develop or implement scientific, technological or social applications. They are especially for those who are participating in setting the goals for science in general and sciences of information in particular.
Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science
Author: Heidi E. Grasswick
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Published: 2011-05-16
Total Pages: 291
ISBN-13: 1402068352
DOWNLOAD EBOOKHaving enjoyed more than twenty years of development, feminist epistemology and philosophy of science are now thriving fields of inquiry, offering current scholars a rich tradition from which to draw. In addition to a recognition of the power of knowledge itself and its effects on women’s lives, a central feature of feminist epistemology and philosophy of science has been the attention they draw to the role of power dynamics within knowledge-seeking practices and the implications of these dynamics for our understandings of knowledge, science, and epistemology. Feminist Epistemology and Philosophy of Science: Power in Knowledge collects new works that address today’s key challenges for a power-sensitive feminist approach to questions of knowledge and scientific practice. The essays build upon established work in feminist epistemology and philosophy of science, offering new developments in the fields, and representing the broad array of the feminist work now being done and the many ways in which feminists incorporate power dynamics into their analyses.
An Introduction to the Philosophy of Methodology
Author: Kerry E Howell
Publisher: SAGE
Published: 2012-11-13
Total Pages: 250
ISBN-13: 1446271625
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThis book provides students with a concise introduction to the philosophy of methodology. The book stands apart from existing methodology texts by clarifying in a student-friendly and engaging way distinctions between philosophical positions, paradigms of inquiry, methodology and methods. Building an understanding of the relationships and distinctions between philosophical positions and paradigms is an essential part of the research process and integral to deploying the methodology and methods best suited for a research project, thesis or dissertation. Aided throughout by definition boxes, examples and exercises for students, the book covers topics such as: - Positivism and Post-positivism - Phenomenology - Critical Theory - Constructivism and Participatory Paradigms - Post-Modernism and Post-Structuralism - Ethnography - Grounded Theory - Hermeneutics - Foucault and Discourse This text is aimed at final-year undergraduates and post-graduate research students. For more experienced researchers developing mixed methodological approaches, it can provide a greater understanding of underlying issues relating to unfamiliar techniques.
Philosophical Methodology: The Armchair or the Laboratory?
Author: Matthew C. Haug
Publisher: Routledge
Published: 2013-07-31
Total Pages: 465
ISBN-13: 1135107033
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWhat methodology should philosophers follow? Should they rely on methods that can be conducted from the armchair? Or should they leave the armchair and turn to the methods of the natural sciences, such as experiments in the laboratory? Or is this opposition itself a false one? Arguments about philosophical methodology are raging in the wake of a number of often conflicting currents, such as the growth of experimental philosophy, the resurgence of interest in metaphysical questions, and the use of formal methods. This outstanding collection of specially-commissioned chapters by leading international philosophers discusses these questions and many more. It provides a comprehensive survey of philosophical methodology in the most important philosophical subjects: metaphysics, epistemology, philosophy of language, philosophy of mind, phenomenology, philosophy of science, ethics, and aesthetics. A key feature of the collection is that philosophers discuss and evaluate contrasting approaches in each subject, offering a superb overview of the variety of methodological approaches - both naturalistic and non-naturalistic - in each of these areas. They examine important topics at the heart of methodological argument, including the role of intuitions and conceptual analysis, thought experiments, introspection, and the place that results from the natural sciences should have in philosophical theorizing. The collection begins with a fascinating exchange about philosophical naturalism between Timothy Williamson and Alexander Rosenberg, and also includes contributions from the following philosophers: Lynne Rudder Baker, Matt Bedke, Greg Currie, Michael Devitt, Matthew C. Haug, Jenann Ismael, Hilary Kornblith, Neil Levy, E.J. Lowe, Kirk Ludwig, Marie McGinn, David Papineau, Matthew Ratcliffe, Georges Rey, Jeffrey W. Roland, Barry C. Smith, Amie L. Thomasson, Valerie Tiberius, Jessica Wilson, and David W. Smith.
The Oxford Handbook of Epistemology
Author: Paul K. Moser
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Published: 2005-10-27
Total Pages: 649
ISBN-13: 019020818X
DOWNLOAD EBOOKThe Oxford Handbook of Epistemology contains 19 previously unpublished chapters by today's leading figures in the field. These chapters function not only as a survey of key areas, but as original scholarship on a range of vital topics. Written accessibly for advanced undergraduates, graduate students, and professional philosophers, the Handbook explains the main ideas and problems of contemporary epistemology while avoiding overly technical detail.
Methodology, Epistemology, and Philosophy of Science
Author: Carl G. Hempel
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
Published: 1983
Total Pages: 438
ISBN-13: 9789027716460
DOWNLOAD EBOOKWolfgang Stegmuller was born on June 3rd, 1923, at Natters near Innsbruck. He received his doctorates in economics and philosophy in 1945 and 1947 respectively, and his qualification (Habilitation) for lecturing in philosophy in 1949. He has been Professor of Philosophy, Logic, and Philosophy of Science at the Ludwig Maximilian University at Munich since 1958. He reintroduced analytic philosophy and philosophy of science in Germany by teaching and by publishing both introductory texts and research work in these areas; the present understanding of the term "Wissenschaftstheorie" is largely shaped by his work. At the same time he has shown a remarkable ability to interpret philosophical work in other areas of philosophy, even when that work is shaped by different premises and proceeds by very different methods and standards of clarity than his own. He is one of the very few philosophers in the world to have succeeded in creating an important new line of research in technical philosophy while keeping a synoptic view of what is transpiring in philosophy as a whole. Among Stegmuller's major publications are the books Hauptstromungen der Gegenwartsphilosophie, Metaphysik, Wissenschaft, Skepsis, Probleme und Resultate der Wissenschaftstheorie und Analytischen Philosophie, The Struc turalist View of Theories, and Rationale Rekonstruktion von Wissenschaft und ihrem Wandel (which contains an "Autobiographische Einleitung"). Some of these books have been translated into English and Spanish.
