Philosophy and the Scientific Method Dr Keith Jones

Introduction l In this presentation we will examine the development of philosophy and science within a Western context of thinking. l Early Greek and Medieval thought. l The Scientific Revolution. l The Twentieth Century.

Philosophy & Research l The Chambers twentieth century dictionary defines philosophy as:-..pursuit of wisdom and knowledge...knowledge of the causes of things. l Research is defined as:-..systematic investigation towards increasing the sum of knowledge.

Science l Science is defined as:-..knowledge ascertained by observation and experiment, critically tested, systemised and brought under general principles..

Science l Science is also cumulative with each generation building on the ideas of the preceding ones either through rejection and change or conformity and development.

Science, Philosophy & Research l So Philosophy uses Research to test established ideas and identify their limitations which in turn provides the basis for the formulation of new explanations and continues the process of philosophical evolution. l Science provides the mechanisms through which Research is conducted.

Key Philosophical Problems l There are two fundamental philosophical problems which have influenced the development of science:  The nature of reality –what can be known for certain;  Is there such a thing as absolute truth? l There have been two paradigm shifts in Western thinking.

Greek & Medieval Thought l The ancient Greeks tried to formulate rational principles to explain the world’s structure and composition. l They also raised fundamental questions about knowledge and reality which are still applicable today.

Plato’s Cave l Klein and Lyytinen (1985) transposed Plato’s cave analogy to one which was applicable to an organisations IT system. l They described a situation in which users, analysts and management are chained to a rock in a cave such that they can only see distorted shadows cast on a wall.

Plato’s Cave l These shades of reality are cast by a large unsteady flame behind their backs. l In the example each person sees different images as they move across the wall. They can argue who sees the TRUE SHAPE but this cannot be confirmed with any degree of certainty.

Plato’s Cave l The significance of this example to Research is to demonstrate that different people observing a changing phenomenon will draw different conclusions about the causes of that phenomenon.

Aristotle l Aristotle’s philosophy was based on observing the world and interpreting the observations within the limits of our experience. l His arguments were based on deductive reasoning as illustrated in his syllogy: Men are mortal, Socrates is a man, therefore Socrates is mortal.

Aristotle l In essence Aristotle and the Greek philosophers observed the world and established lines of deductive argument to predict what should happen. l It did not involve experimentation.

Scientific Revolution l In was not until Descartes, Bacon and Newton that philosophy moved into the scientific age. l The primary difference between the Scientific revolution and the Greek philosophers was INDUCTIVE reasoning.

Inductive Reasoning l Bacon insisted that knowledge should be based on a process of induction, which is the systematic method of reaching general conclusions on the basis of evidence gained from individual observations. l This led to the use of controlled experiments and mathematics to build general theories.

Inductive Reasoning l These theories in turn allowed science to be used to exercise control over the material world. l Philosophy became involved in changing the world rather than simply observing the world.

Isaac Newton l Probably the most significant contributions to experimental science were made by Isaac Newton. l Newton postulated a theory and then used experimentation to test it against alternatives. l In Newtons view experiments provided knowledge of the laws that governed the whole world.

Science and Philosophy l The development of scientific method led to a change in the role of philosophy. l The role of philosophy now became one of examining and commenting on the appropriateness of scientific method and on identifying the limits of the laws so developed.

Empiricism v Rationalism l Within this process was the debate between empiricists and rationalists. l Rationalists believe that all knowledge starts in the mind. l Empiricists believe that all knowledge originates from experience.

Rationalism l Descartes’ used the method of systematic doubt and concluded that the only thing he could be certain of was his own existence - I think therefore I am. l Descartes use of the principle of analytical reductionism forms the basis of the majority Western scientific thinking over the past 350 years.

Rationalism l Reductionism is characterised by the reduction of complex entities to the simpler parts of which they are composed. l However, in the twentieth century this approach was challenged by those who believe that evidence gathered from the parts cannot necessarily be combined to describe the behaviour of the whole.

Rationalism l These criticisms have been particularly strong amongst those who have studied the social sciences.

Empiricism l John Locke concluded that there are no such things as INNATE IDEAS but that all we know comes from experience and reflection upon experience. l Such experiences cannot be isolated from their surroundings as everything is inter-related to everything else. l Holistic approach to the scientific method.

Systems Thinking l One consequence of this holistic approach has been the development of the SYSTEMS MOVEMENT and research methodologies such as ACTION RESEARCH. l It is systems thinking that many claim is challenging the accepted views of scientific revolution.

Conclusion l At the beginning of this presentation I drew attention to the philosophical questions about what we know for certain and absolute truth. l Through the scientific revolution philosophers tried to develop methodologies that could establish the absolute truth.

Conclusion l It is sobering to recall that probably the most significant contribution of the Twentieth century was the downfall of Newton’s model of the world and its replacement by Einstein's. l The lesson that this provides to today's researcher is that the results from scientific work are never absolute.

Conclusion l Hopefully in this presentation I have shown that: –there are many different approaches to obtaining knowledge; –that the knowledge gained depends upon the approaches adopted. l In the remainder of the Research Methods unit you will examine some of these approaches in greater detail.