1. Philosophy of the social sciences Autumn 2017
Magdalena Małecka, PhD
Samuli Reijula, PhD

2. Course description Teachers:
Samuli Reijula, PhD
Magdalena Małecka, PhD
Our offices are at Metsätalo (Unioninkatu 40A), 5th floor:
Room 521 (Samuli) & Room 525 (Magdalena)
Internal communication & materials in Moodle
(contact us via Moodle, please)
Search courses: “Philosophy of the Social Sciences (2017, period II)”
Enrolment key: “poss2017”

3. Requirements and assessment
Lectures Mon ( ), Wed ( ) (active participation recommended), class room no. 8
30 October – 13 December
No class on 11 December
Reading assignments: either selected chapter from Mark Risjord’s 2014 book Philosophy of Social Science, or a relevant article. To be found in Moodle
3 work assignments
Final exam 13 December (+ re-sit TBA)
Grade
Exam 70%
Group assignments 30%

4. Structure of the course (I)
Part I: Theories and methods in the social sciences
Introduction
Objectivity and values (Magdalena)
Theories, interpretations and concepts (Samuli)
Interpretive methodology (Magdalena)
Group assignment 1 (Magdalena)

5. Structure of the course (II-III)
Part II: Individual and collective action
Introduction to action and agency (Samuli)
Methodological individualism (Magdalena)
Institutions and collective action (Samuli)
Social norms (Magdalena)
Assignment 2
Part III: Methodologies of causal inference
Causality and explanation (Samuli)
Models, experiments and extrapolation (Samuli)
Assignment 3 (Samuli)

6. Assignments
Assignment 1(class on 13 November) : jigsaw method – report written on a topic discussed within groups; discussion inspired by four texts assigned. Deadline for submitting a group report: 20 November
Assignment 2 (individual): short essay-response to a question provided by us. Deadline for submitting texts: 3 December
Assignment 3 (class on 6 December): poster session, instructions provided during the class on 4 December. Deadline for presenting a poster: 6 December

7. Course description; FILK-222, 5 cr
Content: The course provides an overview of the main debates (both past
and current) in the field of the philosophy of the social sciences.
Learning objectives: The student understands and can argue about
questions pertaining to the nature of social reality, the conceptualization of
social behaviour and action, and principles of knowledge formation in the
social sciences.
Central themes: Interpretation, causality and explanation; Rationality,
action and agency; Individualism and holism; Institutions and social norms;
Methods of scientific inference; Values and objectivity
Preceding studies:
Introduction to Philosophy
Introduction to Argumentation and Philosophy of the Social Sciences (recommended)
Basic familiarity with a social-science discipline (e.g., an introductory course in sociology, economics, etc.) (recommended)

8. Course materials
Mark Risjord, Philosophy of Social Science. A contemporary introduction, Routledge 2014
Selected scientific articles
To be found in Moodle

9. Social Sciences and Philosophy

10. What are the social sciences?
Social sciences: aim at systematic, mainly empirical, investigation into activities of human beings, with a special interest in what people do together, as part of larger social groups
Separated from philosophy in XIX century
Process that led to the development of anthropology, sociology, economics, psychology.
Today also e.g.: public health, criminology, educational studies

11. What is the philosophy of the social sciences?
Analyses the ways in which social scientific inquiry is done -
How social phenomena are being explained; how evidence about them is being collected, produced and assessed; how social scientists infer information from data
Examines how traditional questions of philosophy are being asked by engaging with the empirical study of human society
Analyses philosophical presumptions that are made within the social scientific research

12. Main themes in the philosophy of the social sciences, according to Risjord
Normativity
Naturalism
Reductionism

13. Normativity
1) What is a place and role of values, norms in social scientific inquiry?
2) What is an origin and function of values, rules, norms within human society?
Diverse ways in which values, norms, rules can enter social sciences (through concepts, choice of research methods, explicitly political social theorising)
Value free and/or objective social sciences

14. Naturalism What is a relationship between natural and social sciences?
Epistemological naturalism - methods and explanations of the social sciences do not differ from those of natural sciences
Metaphysical naturalism - humans are part of the natural world and are subject to the same causes and mechanisms that animate all other creatures

15. Reductionism
Epistemological reductionism - theories at one level can be replaced by theories at another, lower, level.
For example it could be asked whether the social sciences could be reduced to psychology, or neuroscience?
Metaphysical reductionism – entities, properties, processes, events at one level are nothing but object at another
Can social structures be reduced to individuals that constitute them?

16. Why study the philosophy of the social sciences?
To understand that social scientists take positions on matters that have deep roots: conceptions of human agency, rationality, value, causation, community.
 Ability to critically evaluate the philosophical commitments of a theory or methodology can significantly sharpen social scientific inquiry.
To see whether/how/if traditional philosophical questions can be answered by rich resources of empirical evidence and theory in the social sciences ….

17. Pre-assignment Work with your neighbour:
1. Describe briefly the example from social science research that you chose
2. Which philosophical questions does it give rise to?

18. My example: Nudge Use insights from psychological
research to design effective policies
Examples
Arranging foods in a cafeteria
Changing defaults (organ donation)
Philosophical questions
How to understand rationality
Are nudges ethically justified?
When do nudges work?

19. Reading assignment – next class
Chapters 1 and 2 from Risjord’s book Generally, we suggest that you read the chapters before lectures. ◦ Easier to follow the lesson ◦ You already have questions in mind Group work assignments rely on these readings Questions/comments? bring to class, or ask in the Moodle forum

20. Thank you for your attention!
Magdalena & Samuli