Critical Realism

2021 ◽  
pp. 69-72
Author(s):  
Dominik Giese ◽  
Jonathan Joseph
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Realism ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Alternative View ◽  
Science And Society ◽  
The Real ◽  
Critical Realist ◽  
Ontological Question ◽  
The World

This chapter evaluates critical realism, a term which refers to a philosophy of science connected to the broader approach of scientific realism. In contrast to other philosophies of science, such as positivism and post-positivism, critical realism presents an alternative view on the questions of what is ‘real’ and how one can generate scientific knowledge of the ‘real’. How one answers these questions has implications for how one studies science and society. The critical realist answer starts by prioritizing the ontological question over the epistemological one, by asking: What must the world be like for science to be possible? Critical realism holds the key ontological belief of scientific realism that there is a reality which exists independent of our knowledge and experience of it. Critical realists posit that reality is more complex, and made up of more than the directly observable. More specifically, critical realism understands reality as ‘stratified’ and composed of three ontological domains: the empirical, the actual, and the real. Here lies the basis for causation.

1. The methods and fruits of science

2021 ◽  
pp. 7-22
Author(s):  
David Wallace
Keyword(s):  
Dark Matter ◽  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Realism ◽  
Scientific Method ◽  
Scientific Theories ◽  
Real Science ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Topics ◽  
Theory Test

This chapter briefly discusses central key topics in the philosophy of science that the remainder of the book draws upon. It begins by considering the scientific method. ‘Induction’—the idea that we construct scientific theories just by generalizing from observations—is a very poor match to real science. ‘Falsification’—Popper’s idea that we create a theory, test against observation, and discard it if it fails the test—is much more realistic, but still too simple: data only falsifies data given auxiliary assumptions that can themselves be doubted. The issues are illustrated through an example from modern astrophysics: dark matter. The chapter then explores how we can resolve issues of underdetermination, where two theories give the same predictions. Finally, it introduces ‘scientific realism’, the view that our best theories tell us things about the world that go beyond what is directly observable.

Critical Realism for Ethnography

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Grant Banfield
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Sociological Practice ◽  
Critical Realist ◽  
The Social ◽  
History Of ◽  
Theoretical Developments ◽  
British Philosopher

While specific applications of critical realism to ethnography are few, theoretical developments are promising and await more widespread development. This is especially the case for progressive and critical forms of ethnography that strive to be, in critical realist terms, an “emancipatory science.” However, the history of ethnography reveals that both the field and its emancipatory potential are limited by methodological tendencies toward “naïve realism” and “relativism.” This is the antimony of ethnography. The conceptual and methodological origins of ethnography are grounded in the historical tensions between anti-naturalist Kantian idealism and hyper-naturalist Humean realism. The resolution of these tensions can be found in the conceptual resources of critical realism. Working from, and building upon, the work of British philosopher Roy Bhaskar, critical realism is a movement in the philosophy of science that transcends the limits of Kantian idealism and Humean realism via an emancipatory anti-positivist naturalism. Critical realism emerged as part of the post-positivist movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. From its Marxian origins, critical realism insists that all science, including the social sciences, must be emancipatory. At its essence, this requires taking ontology seriously. The call of critical realism to ethnographers, like all social scientists, is that while they must hold to epistemological caution this does not warrant ontological shyness. Furthermore, critical realism’s return to ontology implies that ethnographers must be ethically serious. Ethnography, if it is to hold to its progressive inclinations, must be about something. Critical realism for ethnography pushes the field to see itself as more than a sociological practice. Rather, it is to be understood as a social practice for something: the universalizing of human freedom.

The application of critical realism as a basis for agency in environmental education: The case of Roy Bhaskar

2019 ◽  
Vol 35 (3) ◽  
pp. 230-238
Author(s):  
Mehri Mirzaei Rafe ◽  
Khosrow Bagheri Noaparast ◽  
Afzal Sadat Hosseini ◽  
Narges Sajadieh
Keyword(s):  
Climate Change ◽  
Social Justice ◽  
Social Change ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
New Approach ◽  
The Real ◽  
New Materialisms ◽  
Human Habitation

AbstractThis article will investigate the philosophy of science of Roy Bhaskar (1944–2014) as a coherent basis for environmental education. The work of Bhaskar serves as an in-depth approach to understanding how to apply critical realism (the critical and the realist) to matters such as environmental education, because he concretely theorises the connections between science, social change and metaphysics. By mobilising key Bhaskarian motifs — that is, the primacy of ontology over epistemology, the laminated system as a means to understand reality, the ways in which inquiry may be organised through the real, actual and the empirical, and the positive application of dialectics — this article constructs a new approach to environmental education and positions it in the field of environmental education by comparing it to posthumanism and the new materialisms. This article contains inquiry-based study outlines for enhanced thinking around: (1) climate change and social justice; (2) movements towards a carbon-free economy; (3) water, food and population; and (4) the future of human habitation.

scholarly journals O Diálogo entre saberes a partir de filmes: contribuições para a ciência, sociedade e o ensino

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3) ◽  
pp. 380-400
Author(s):  
Fábio Gabriel Nascibem
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Scientific Explanation ◽  
The Other ◽  
Science Society ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
Popular Knowledge ◽  
The World ◽  
Education And Society

Resumo: Verificamos que as discussões na sociedade têm tendido a extremos: há visões em que negam totalmente a primazia da explicação científica e, por outro lado, visões que centram toda validade na ciência. Defendemos uma que se estabeleça diálogo entre saberes. Levantamos algumas questões: Como pode ser abordado o tema do diálogo entre saberes? Quais potencialidades? Quais contribuições para o ensino e para a sociedade tais discussões podem trazer? Nosso objetivo neste artigo é esclarecer temas relacionados ao diálogo entre saber científico e saber popular à luz de teorias da filosofia da ciência a partir de duas obras cinematográficas. As obras que analisamos foram: o “Escolarizando o Mundo - O último fardo do homem branco” e o filme “1984”. Ambos fornecem subsídios para uma discussão madura do tema, com potencialidades para a sociedade, por meio de uma postura que privilegie diálogos, bem como para o Ensino de Ciências.Palavras-chave: Saber Científico. Saberes Populares. Obras Cinematográficas. The dialogue between knowledges from films: contribu-tions for science, society and educationAbstract: We note that discussions in society have tended to extremes: there are views that totally deny the prima-cy of scientific explanation and, on the other hand, views that focus all validity in science. We support a dialogue to be established between knowledge. We raise some questions: How can be addressed the issue of dialogue between knowledge? What potential? What contributions to education and society can such discussions bring? Our objective in this article is to clarify themes related to the dialogue between scien-tific knowledge and popular knowledge in the light of theories of the philosophy of science from two cinematographic works. The works we analyzed were: the “Schooling the World - The White Man’s Last Burden” and the film “1984”. Both provide subsidies for a mature discussion of the theme, with potential for society, through a posture that favors dialogues, as well as for Science Teaching.Keywords: Cinematographic Works. Scientific Knowledge. Popular Knowledge. 

Philosophy of Physics: towards new Principles of Scientific Knowledge

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ivan Karpenko
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Physical Reality ◽  
Philosophy Of Physics ◽  
Relevant Research ◽  
Fundamental Field ◽  
The World ◽  
Theory Of Everything ◽  
Modern Physics

The author analyzes a number of key problems of modern physics and cosmology, offers original interpretations and solutions, and also discusses the prospects for the development of science in the context of attempts to create a "theory of everything". The monograph pays special attention to the physical theories of the multiverse, the new principles of scientific knowledge resulting from these theories, and the connection between consciousness and concrete physical reality. It is intended both for those who are just discovering the world of philosophy of science in the most fundamental field — physics, and for specialists who are professionally engaged in the topic and are interested in the most relevant research.

scholarly journals How to Be Critical and Realist about Economics

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jaakko Kuorikoski ◽  
Petri Ylikoski
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Realism ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
Research Strategy ◽  
Causal Mechanism ◽  
Mainstream Economics

In this paper we argue that, despite its influence, critical realism is not the most promising version of scientific realism for economics. The main problem with critical realism is its hermetic insulation from the mainstream of the philosophy of science. We argue that this intellectual isolation is unfortunate, as it has meant that critical realism has missed many opportunities to develop its central concepts, such as causal mechanism, emergence, and explanation. At the same time, we argue, critical realists have missed some crucial aspects of the intellectual strategy of modern economics. Our point is not to defend mainstream economics, rather it is to show that a better understanding of modeling as a scientific research strategy opens up the possibility of a more penetrating analysis of its possible shortcomings.

scholarly journals “It Turns Out Glavlit Has Not Yet Signed Off on Ostrovsky Dictionary…” (Correspondence of N. S. Ashukin and S. I. Ozhegov 1940—1960s)

2021 ◽  
pp. 113-135
Author(s):  
O. V. Nikitin
Keyword(s):  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Objective Assessment ◽  
Scientific Research ◽  
The Real ◽  
Ambiguous Situation ◽  
The Press ◽  
The World ◽  
Real Picture ◽  
First Time ◽  
State Secrets

The   little-known   factsof the work of N. S. Ashukin, S. I. Ozhegov and V. A. Filippov on the original lexicographic edition  of  the  1940s — “Dictionary   to  the plays of A.  N.  Ostrovsky”  is  analyzed in the article. The connection between the socio-cultural situation in the country and the scientific research of those years is shown. Special attention is paid to the facts of ideological pressure on philological thought. The circumstances that  hindered the publication of the Dictionary are revealed. For the first  time,  genuine  letters   from the participants in this project, telling about the ambiguous situation in Glavlit (Soviet Main Administration for Safeguarding State Secrets in the Press) and the intention of the authors to save the manuscript from death are published in the appendix. It tells about further attempts of scientists and their descendants to resume the preparation of the publication of the book in the  1960—1970s.  The facts given in the correspondence are commented on from the standpoint  of  history  and  philosophy  of science, the necessary references are indicated, possible comparisons are made with the events and persons mentioned in the letters. The presented fragment of the linguistic picture of the world is also considered  in  the  key of the development of linguistic personality and its role in the era of dictatorship. Attention is drawn to the high historical  value of the undertaken work and its place in the lexicographic tradition of the XX century. It is concluded  that archival materials  play a key role in reconstructing the real picture  of the life and activities of Soviet scientists, supplement the chronicle of science with valuable observations and contribute to an objective  assessment  of  the  achievements of philologists, show their firm position in upholding the interests  of  science  during  the dominance of ideologization in society.

GIS, Positioning, and Imagery Tools

2022 ◽  
pp. 99-113
Author(s):  
Helmuth Yesid Arias-Gomez ◽  
Gabriela Antošová
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Knowledge ◽  
Satellite Images ◽  
Coordinate Systems ◽  
The Real ◽  
The World ◽  
Physical Changes

The catastrophic eruption in the world scenario of the breaking pandemic forced the application of all existent scientific knowledge, but also triggered the development of new technical tools and procedures. This chapter is focused on setting forth the practical technological efforts based on the spatial georeferencing by coordinate systems and on the treatment of satellite images as means for tracking the positive cases, for recognizing the spatial infection´s behavior, and for identifying the real physical changes in the spatial landscape. The cases set forth here pertain to three techniques, namely the development of visual dashboards, the tracking resources developed, and the deployment of imagery captured by satellite perception.

The Realist Frame

2019 ◽  
pp. 22-40
Author(s):  
John Brekke ◽  
Jeane Anastas ◽  
Jerry Floersch ◽  
Jeffrey Longhofer
Keyword(s):  
Social Work ◽  
Philosophy Of Science ◽  
Scientific Realism ◽  
Critical Realism ◽  
Downward Causation ◽  
Critical Theories ◽  
Key Features ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
Independent Reality

Any definition of social work science must make its philosophy of science manifest. While not the only ones in social work to espouse realism, especially critical realism, the IslandWood Group used key ideas from this school of thought to guide many discussions. The main tenets of scientific realism are described followed by a description of some key features of critical realism. Basic tenets of the realisms include the existence of a mind-independent reality, the existence of the unseen, upward and downward causation, stratified reality, emergence, the embrace of multiple methodologies, and the importance of theory in science. This epistemological and ontological stance differs from positivist and behaviorist approaches. The chapter concludes with a summary of other frameworks—pragmatism, constructionism, and critical theories—that are also relevant to a science of social work.

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