PhD Doctor of Philosophy Philosophy of Science and Research Methodology 2 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Bas van Fraassen's 'constructive empiricism' claims that the goal of science is:
- To discover necessary truths about the natural world through pure reason
- To construct true theories about observable and unobservable entities alike
- To produce theories that are empirically adequate with respect to observable phenomena (Correct answer)
- To achieve consensus among scientists about the best available models
Correct answer: To produce theories that are empirically adequate with respect to observable phenomena
Van Fraassen's constructive empiricism holds that science aims only for empirical adequacy — accurate prediction of observables — without committing to the truth of claims about unobservables.
Question 2: The 'no-miracles argument' for scientific realism holds that:
- Religious miracles can be scientifically explained by quantum indeterminacy
- The predictive success of science would be miraculous unless scientific theories are approximately true (Correct answer)
- Scientific consensus must be accepted on faith, analogous to religious belief
- Statistical anomalies in data should be treated as potential violations of natural law
Correct answer: The predictive success of science would be miraculous unless scientific theories are approximately true
Hilary Putnam's no-miracles argument asserts that the extraordinary success of scientific theories in prediction and explanation would be an inexplicable miracle if those theories did not approximately describe reality.
Question 3: Paul Feyerabend's 'epistemological anarchism' is best summarized by which claim?
- Science must follow strict inductive methods to be trustworthy
- Science is the only legitimate form of knowledge in modern society
- There is no single scientific method, and 'anything goes' in scientific practice (Correct answer)
- Scientific theories must be tested exclusively through quantitative experiments
Correct answer: There is no single scientific method, and 'anything goes' in scientific practice
Feyerabend argued in Against Method that no single methodological rule has never been violated by successful science, so 'anything goes' best describes actual scientific practice.
Question 4: In research methodology, the distinction between 'quantitative' and 'qualitative' methods primarily concerns:
- The prestige of the journal in which the research is published
- Whether data is expressed numerically or through interpretive, non-numerical description (Correct answer)
- The size of the research team conducting the study
- Whether the research is funded by public or private sources
Correct answer: Whether data is expressed numerically or through interpretive, non-numerical description
Quantitative methods involve numerical data and statistical analysis, while qualitative methods involve non-numerical data such as interviews, observations, and thematic analysis.
Question 5: The 'pessimistic meta-induction' is an argument against scientific realism that reasons:
- Past scientific theories were successful yet later proven false, so current theories are probably also false (Correct answer)
- Scientists are motivated by career incentives and therefore unreliable reporters of findings
- Most scientific hypotheses are never tested rigorously enough to be trusted
- Inductive reasoning cannot ground any belief in the reliability of science
Correct answer: Past scientific theories were successful yet later proven false, so current theories are probably also false
The pessimistic meta-induction, associated with Larry Laudan, argues that because many past successful theories (phlogiston, caloric) were replaced, we should expect current theories are also false.
Question 6: A 'thought experiment' in the philosophy of science functions primarily to:
- Replace laboratory experiments when equipment is unavailable
- Explore logical implications of theories by imagining hypothetical scenarios (Correct answer)
- Provide statistical evidence for or against a theoretical prediction
- Demonstrate that scientific claims are reducible to common-sense intuitions
Correct answer: Explore logical implications of theories by imagining hypothetical scenarios
Thought experiments (like Einstein's elevator or Schrödinger's cat) use imagined scenarios to test the internal consistency and implications of theories without physical experimentation.
Question 7: The concept of 'ontological reduction' in philosophy of science refers to:
- Simplifying the vocabulary used in scientific publications
- Showing that entities or properties of one domain are identical to or composed of entities from another domain (Correct answer)
- Eliminating competing theoretical frameworks through empirical testing
- Reducing the number of hypotheses proposed within a research programme
Correct answer: Showing that entities or properties of one domain are identical to or composed of entities from another domain
Ontological reduction claims that the objects or properties described by one theory (e.g., biological organisms) are composed of or identical to entities described at a lower level (e.g., chemistry or physics).
PhD Doctor of Philosophy Philosophy of Science and Research Methodology 2
Bas van Fraassen's 'constructive empiricism' claims that the goal of science is: