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3.1: Philosophy of Science

  • Page ID
    76183
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    Learning Objectives

    By the end of this section, you will be able to:

    • Remember what is the “philosophy of science”
    • Understand how paradigms rise and fall

    Before exploring the scientific method in detail, it is important to recognize the concept of science itself. Science is the systematic study of the world around and beyond us. Part of engaging in political science research is to acknowledge the underlying concepts of politics and science being brought together in a coherent field of study for students at colleges and universities throughout the world. In this chapter, we explore: the philosophy of science; three models of the scientific method; and three applications of these scientific method models.

    Philosophy of Science

    Before conducting research in any field, including political science, it’s important to step back to recognize that the field is trying to contribute to our human understanding of the world around us. Whenever we question what we are doing, how we are doing it, and why we are doing it, then we are engaging in the process of philosophizing. The philosophy of science (Wikipedia contributors 2019) is the exploration of science by asking at least three questions: What are the foundations of science? What are the methods of science? And what are the implications of science? Among the mountain of contributors to the philosophy of science, we want to recognize Karl Popper and Thomas Kuhn.

    Karl Popper (Thornton 2019) is known for the concept of falsification. Falsification is the principle that any theory, or explanation of how the world works, can always be proven false and that a theory can never be proven true. This idea is important in political science for two reasons. First, it allows political scientists and students to engage in a continuous debate about the research, the findings, and the conclusions. This means the debate will always continue. And while some debates may be settled, falsification means that new research can unsettle it, thereby sparking a new wave of research, findings, and conclusions. Second, falsification in political science prevents its community members from closing off possibilities for future research. This is important because it essentially requires scientists and students to keep an open mind about the possibility of new information changing their understanding of politics. As we strive to continually understand the political world, we need to be open to new information.

    Thomas Kuhn (Bird 2018) is known for the concept of paradigm shift. A paradigm is the current way of thinking, doing, and understanding. A shift occurs when the current ways undergo a significant change, thereby changing how we think, do, and understand. Paradigm shifts are a part of any discipline, including political science. In political science, paradigms serve as a stable framework in which to think about politics, do research of politics, and understand politics. This stability is undergirded by faculty who teach and train an understanding of politics. And while stability contributes to the process of accumulating knowledge, it doesn’t mean it’s the right way or only way. Sometimes paradigms shift, thereby uncovering new ways to think about, do research, and understand politics. One way paradigms shift is by having new, unconventional, and non-traditional students become political scientists who will ask different questions, challenge existing research, and produce new research.

    The philosophy of science helps us recognize that we are exploring the foundations, methods, and implications of science. Our exploration helps us uncover ideas and meanings that contribute to our personal understanding of science. And beyond our individualized knowledge, we can begin to contribute to our collective understanding by asking questions, challenging existing methods, and articulating new impacts of science on people, communities, and societies more generally.


    This page titled 3.1: Philosophy of Science is shared under a CC BY-NC 4.0 license and was authored, remixed, and/or curated by Josue Franco, Charlotte Lee, Kau Vue, Dino Bozonelos, Masahiro Omae, & Steven Cauchon (ASCCC Open Educational Resources Initiative (OERI)) via source content that was edited to the style and standards of the LibreTexts platform; a detailed edit history is available upon request.

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