Ideology and Science Flashcards
What has been the ‘impact of science’?
- Achievements in medicine such as eradication of polio
- Transport, communication, work and leisure
- Science and technology have revolutionised economic productivity and raised our standard of living.
- Success of science has led to a widespread ‘faith in science’, secularisation theorists argue it has undermined religion .
What has been the impact of science more recently?
- Faith in science has been dimmed by recognition that science also causes problems.
- EG: pollution, global warming and weapons of mass destruction are products of science and technology.
How is science an open belief system?
- Popper says science is an ‘open belief system’ through how it is open to criticism and testing.
- Science is governed by the principle of ‘falsification’ which is where scientists try to falsify existing theories by seeking evidence to dispute them. If they succeed and evidence contradicts a theory, then the theory is discarded and a better explanation is sought.
- Discarding falsified knowledge-claims is what enables the scientific understanding of the world to grow.
- Scientific knowledge is cumulative as it is builds on the achievements of previous scientists to develop a greater understand of the world around us.
- Overall, this shows how scientific knowledge is not a sacred/absolute truth as it can always be questioned, critiqued, test and shown to perhaps be false.
What are the CUDOS norms proposed by Merton?
- Merton argues science can only thrive as a major social institution if it receives support from other institutions and values.
- Science, as an organised social activity/institution, needs a set of norms that makes scientists act in a way to increase scientific knowledge.
1) Communism: scientific knowledge is shared through community.
2) Universalism: scientific knowledge is judged by a universal, objective criteria.
3) Disinterestedness: seeking knowledge for its own sake.
4) Organised Scepticism: every idea is open to questioning/criticism ie no sacred truth.
How is religion a closed belief system?
Horton says religion is a closed belief system as it makes knowledge-claims that cannot be overturned, claims of an absolute truth.
Case Study: Azande & Witchcraft (closed belief system)
Evans-Pritchard studied the Azande tribe and found that their belief system reflects the characteristics of a closed system.
- The Azande believe that when misfortune befalls someone, this is due to witchcraft. The injured may make an accusation against the suspected witch, a benge (potion) is given to a chicken to investigate the accusation, if the chicken dies it means the accusation is true and the injured can publicly demand the witchcraft to stop.
What social functions does the Azande belief system perform?
- Prevents grudges and forces neighbours to act accordingly to one another.
- The Azande are trapped/indoctrinated in their own belief system, because they accept the idea of witchcraft they cannot challenge it. - Therefore it is a closed belief system that cannot be overturned, no one in the tribe questions it.
How do closed belief systems protect themselves from challenge according to Polanyi?
- Circularity: each idea in the system is explained in terms of another idea in the system
- Subsidiary explanations: ways to deflect the argument.
- Denial of legitimacy: complete rejection of the claims of rivals to convince followers they hold the truth.
Evaluate the view that religion is a closed belief system.
Religion can be seen as an open belief as its open to change.
- Secularisation from within
- Herberg, internal secularisation, religions are open to change and have diluted belief systems to maintain relevance in modern society.
EG: Acceptance of female Bishops into the Church of England.
How is science a closed belief system?
- Polanyi says all belief systems reject fundamental challenges to their knowledge-claims and science is no different.
- Kuhn says science is a closed belief system as it is based on a shared paradigm (shared set of assumptions that lay down the board outlines of the theory).
- This paradigm is unquestioned and accepted by the majority so it is hard to change.
Give an example of Kuhn shared paradigm
Scientists work on the assumption that the world is round, they therefore conduct their research around this belief. Any scientist who challenges the fundamental paradigm will be ridiculed and disregarded by their peers.
What is the ‘sociology of scientific knowledge’ according to interpretivists?
- All knowledge, including scientific, is socially constructed which means knowledge is created by social groups using resources they have.
- Scientific facts are a product of shared paradigms that tell scientists what they should expect to see
Give an example of the interpretivists theory
Woolgar- scientists are engaged in the same process of making sense of the world as the rest of us. They do this by devising explanations and theories to persuade others.
How do Marxists and Feminists see the sociology of scientific knowledge?
- As conflict theorists they see scientific knowledge as far from the truth, instead arguing it serves the interests of dominant groups (ruling class and patriarchy).
- Advances in science have been driven by the needs of capitalism.
- EG: Theory of ballistics was driven by the need for new weaponry which could be manufactured and sold.
How do post-modernists see the ‘sociology of scientific knowledge’?
- Reject the knowledge-claims of science to have the truth.
- Lyotard says science is a meta narrative, big story that falsely claims to possess the truth.
- Science falsely claims to find the truth about how the world works as a means of progress to a better society, when in reality science is just another way to dominate people.
