Lecture 4: Popper, Kuhn, Lakatos

Question 1

What was Karl Popper known for?

Answer 1

• researched the internal dynamics of science, what is good science?
• demarcation: how do we know that a theory/explanation is scientific?
• You need to use falsification (falsify the H0, in response to the principle of verification) and corroboration (search for theories with the greatest risk of being falsified, only then confirmation if meaningful. Finding support for the HA. Corroboration is support but not verification)

Question 2

What is critical rationalism?

Answer 2

• epistemological philosophy advanced by Karl Popper
• Methodological idea by 1990s: if statements can’t be logically deduced (from what is knows), it might nevertheless be possible to logically falsify it

Steps:

1. articulate a general theory
2. develop falsifiable predictions (hypothesis)
3. collect data (make observations)
4. interpret results (falsify or corroborate the theory)

Question 3

What was Thomas Kuhn known for?

Answer 3

• external dynamics of science, what is normal science?
• observed patterns (inductively): even after many instances of pure falsification, many researchers don’t easily give up a theory they proposed

Question 4

What is normal science according to Kuhn?

Answer 4

1. Community structure: scientists are part of a community with peers, mentors, and discussions
2. These groups have commitments: shared norms, assumptions, and understanding that can lead to being efficient and productive
3. This way they can form their own way of doing science (scientific paradigm)

Question 5

What is a scientific paradigm?

Answer 5

• set of convictions, personal interests, ways of posing questions, investigating them, and answering them
• can be dogmatic (like a religion)

persists in the face of anomalies:

1. unsolved problems that don’t harm the paradigm (e.g. lack of technological tools)
2. unsolved problems that are conveniently forgotten or ignored (rational choice or collective action)

When the anomalies accumulate and a group rejects it this will make a new perspective that addresses the unsolved problems, but it’s not necessarily superior. It just addresses some problems the old paradigm couldn’t address. It’s above all a shift in perspective on reality.

Question 6

What is Lakatos known for?

Answer 6

• integrated the approaches of Popper (it’s not rational to save a theory when evidence points against it) and Kuhn (scientists are productive during periods when normal or popular theories (paradigms) are supported, even in the presence of anomalies)
• Lakatos wanted to resolve this conflict with his model of research programmes
• Research programmes: framework to access whether a scientific community is progressing or degenerating
• A research programme has a hard core of first principles (Kuhn: dogmatic elements, unquestioned theoretical views, which is surrounded by auxiliary hypotheses (Popper: marginal claims which can be falsified).
• Kuhnian: the role of the scientific community is to protect the hard core
• A research programme is progressive if all theories in the programme are showing theoretical progression (add auxiliary hypotheses) and at least one of the theories is empirically progressive (apply hypotheses to other research)
• A research programme is degenerate if there’s no progression.