4 Knowledge Flashcards
3 points of knowledge
.ontology: what exist? What is thé nature of thé social World?
. epistemology : what sort of knowledge of it is possible ? How Can WE know about it?
. Methodology : what stratégies Can WE use to gain that knowledge ?
Influence of values in research
Values: researcher’s opinions, assumptions, biaises
They influence:
.topic sélection and id of research qu: personal or sociétal priorités often guide what researchers choose to study
.data gathering: décisions abt what data to collect and how to interpret them
.observations, experiments, interprétation of results: ex the Rosenthal effect= demonstrates how a researcher’s expectations Can unconsciously influence thé behaviour of research subjects
.drawing ccl: res. May unconsciously favor interprétations aligning with their values
But there is a fact (objective)- value distinction, not they Can bé separated, tell Max Weber’s perspective
.there is a distinction btwn facts and values
.social scientists should aim to remain neutral, focus on facts, avoiding normative judgments : by adhering to SC standards of clarety and rigor + explicitly distinguish both
.BUT value-neutrality is impossible: res. Inévitaby bring their presuppositions (cultural, ideolo, perso) in their work + even holding to study a ptclr topic reflects value judgment
What are thé implications for social sciences on the existence of values
.social sciences are reflective of human soc, where values and facts are deeply intertwined
. Res. Must critically examine their own biaises and assumptions, when possible making them explicit
. Ensuring that values do not influence thé validity of thé research
Ex of How values, biaises are created?
.’going native’: id too closely with thé subject of ur research creates biaises
.thé ‘Heisenberg effect’: HB changes when those being studied alter their behaviour bcs they know that they are studied
.thé Heisenberg uncertainty principle shows how thé act of measurement affects thé sys being measured (challenge Newton’s physics view that all phenomena Can bé measured with sufficuent précision if WE have thé right tools)
What is induction in reasoning explain with thé ex of Mésopotamia fromstudents from: Iraq scored 91% on thé ASIR 2021TO:mesopot has a culture of high académic achievement
Reasoning from thé particular to général, from thé fact to thé causes= inferring général Principles based on specific Obs
1. Observation (students from Iraq scored 91% on thé ASIR 2021)
2. Pattern: student from mesopot tend to score above 85%
3. Hypothesis : all mesopot students perform well accademically
4. Theory: mesopot has a culture of high académic achievement
How Can an inductive reasoning Can bé flawed Ex with Mesopotamia (“all students from mesopot score above 85% on thé ASIR exam”)
Bcs based on insufficient inductive reasoning
. Limited observations : only 2 countries are included (Iraq and syria), only for 2 years so not large number of Obs
.lack of variety: Obs not abt contexts liké diff years, students from other parts of mesopot, différent educational sys…
.potential conflicts: généralisation assumes all students will consistently perform this way, without évidence supporting such uniformity across Time and conditions
Critics of induction according to Hume
.circular reasoning: induction relies on thé assumption that past patterns, past observations predict future outcomes
.uncertainty of future prédictions: just bcs smtg has consistently occured doesn’t mean it Always will
Ex Russell’s “inductivist turkey”: a turkey expect good everyday bcs it is fed everyday, only to bé slaughtered unexpectedly
.empirical limits: induction assumes that sensory Obs reflects reality but language may not fully reflect reality, Obs and instruments could be biaised or incomplete, exp itself may not provide direct Access to thruth
Général critics of induction
.thruth claims: induction cannot establish Universal truths bcs relies on probabilistic reasoning not certainty
.language and reality: what WE describe may not fully align with what WE observed
.Obs biaises
Relevance of induction for IR
.res. often généralise patterns in global politics, eco or culture based on specific cases so understanding limitations help stopping overgeneralisations
.revognising thé assumptions behind inductive reasoning aids in critically evaluating research and théories
What is thé falsification principle and of who
Karl Popper
Any research that wishes to bé considéred SC must subject it’s hypothèses to falsification, to test it, to try it and to prove it wrong
Mechanism to falsify a theory
.a permitted statement in a theory is smtg that thé theory prédicts ex all Swan are white
. prohibited statement: those that thé theory says cannot happen ex some swans are pink
.if a prohibited statement is Obs to bé true (ex a pink Swan is discovered) then if falsifiés thé theory
Poppers critics of induction
induction cannot guarantee thé truth of Universal statements:
.Obs are Always singular (specific Time, place…) so not Universal
.no number of Obs Can verify Universal statements (one wrong élément among thousands and thousands is enough to prove thé theory wrong, and WE Can not test everything)
.thé validity of induction relies on itself : circular argument cf Hume
Popper’s solution of falsifiability over verifiability
falsification= disproving hypothèses rather than confirming them:
.formulate a hypothesis with testable prédictions ex all swans are white
.test thé predictions through Obs and experiments
.if évidence contradicts with prédictions ex WE find a pink Swan, thé hypo is refuted
.if no contradiction is found, thé hypo is corroborated but not vérified as universally true
What is thé scientific objectivity according to Popper
SC should bé objective and grounded in critical testing:
.objectivity does not arise from thé SCientist but from thé social process of mutual criticism, collaboration and compétition among scientists
.Obs are theory-laden: what WE Obs is influenced by thé théories WE hold, so complète neutrality is difficult
.critics of naturalism (belief that social sciences should imitateur natural sc): soc SC face unique challenges, including thé influence of researcher’s values+ true objectivity in any SC dépends in openness to criticism and willingness to révise or reject theories
