scholarly journals The structure of scientific controversies: Thomas Kuhn’s social epistemology

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-17
Author(s):  
Paulo Pirozelli
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Epistemology ◽  
Wave Motion ◽  
Scientific Field ◽  
Thomas Kuhn ◽  
Consensus Formation ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
Scientific Controversies ◽  
The One ◽  
Epistemic Criteria

Changes of theories are major events in science. Two main types of questions may be asked about them: i) how do scientists choose new theories?, and ii) how is consensus formed? Generally, philosophers do not distinguish these two questions. Kuhn, on the contrary, offers very different answers to each of these questions. Theory-choice, on the one hand, is explained through the application of epistemic criteria, such as accuracy and consistency; nonetheless, because these values do not prescribe a single choice, consensus formation, on the other hand, is explained through a series of socio-epistemic mechanisms, namely: scientific pedagogy, diffusion and production of knowledge within the community (the “wave motion”), and restructuring of the scientific field. These mechanisms are the basis of Kuhn’s social epistemology, in that they are not restricted to sociology nor epistemology, encompassing both social interactions and epistemic evaluations of theories. Keywords: Thomas Kuhn, consensus formation, social epistemology.

The Politics of Arabic in Israel

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Camelia Suleiman
Keyword(s):  
Qualitative Methods ◽  
Language Policy ◽  
Language Choice ◽  
Minority Language ◽  
The Other ◽  
Official Language ◽  
Political Identities ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
The One

Arabic became a minority language in Israel in 1948, as a result of the Palestinian exodus from their land that year. Although it remains an official language, along with Hebrew, Israel has made continued attempts to marginalise Arabic on the one hand, and secutise it on the other. The book delves into these tensions and contradictions, exploring how language policy and language choice both reflect and challenge political identities of Arabs and Israelis. It combines qualitative methods not commonly used together in the study of Arabic in Israel, including ethnography, interviews with journalists and students, media discussions, and analysis of the production of knowledge on Arabic in Israeli academia.

An Epistemological Criticism of Social Entrepreneurship: Is Social Entrepreneurship a Sound Scientific Field of Research

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Forouharfar
Keyword(s):  
Social Entrepreneurship ◽  
Social Constructivism ◽  
Social Epistemology ◽  
American English ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Research Question ◽  
Knowledge Structure ◽  
Scientific Field ◽  
The Other ◽  
First Time

The paper was shaped around the pivotal question: Is SE a sound and scientific field of research? The question has given a critical tone to the paper and has also helped to bring out some of the controversial debates in the realm of SE. The paper was organized under five main discussions to be able to provide a scientific answer to the research question: (1)<b> </b>is “social entrepreneurship” an oxymoron?, (2) the characteristics of SE knowledge, (3) sources of social entrepreneurship knowledge, (4) SE knowledge: structure and limitations and (5) contributing epistemology-making concepts for SE.<b> </b>Based on the sections,<b> </b>the study relied on the relevant philosophical schools of thought in <i>Epistemology </i>(e.g. <i>Empiricism</i>, <i>Rationalism</i>, <i>Skepticism</i>, <i>Internalism</i> vs. <i>Externalism</i>,<i> Essentialism, Social Constructivism</i>, <i>Social Epistemology, etc.</i>) to discuss these controversies around SE and proposes some solutions by reviewing SE literature. Also, to determine the governing linguistic discourse in the realm of SE, which was necessary for our discussion,<i> Corpus of Contemporary American English (COCA)</i> for the first time in SE studies was used. Further, through the study, SE buzzwords which constitute SE terminology were derived and introduced to help us narrowing down and converging the thoughts in this field and demarking the epistemological boundaries of SE. The originality of the paper on one hand lies in its pioneering discussions on SE epistemology and on the other hand in paving the way for a construction of sound epistemology for SE; therefore in many cases after preparing the philosophical ground for the discussions, it went beyond the prevalent SE literature through meta-analysis to discuss the cases which were raised. The results of the study verified previously claimed embryonic pre-paradigmatic phase in SE which was far from a sound and scientific knowledge, although the scholarly endeavors are the harbingers of such a possibility in the future which calls for further mature academic discussion and development of SE knowledge by the SE academia.

scholarly journals Entre documentos e representações: reflexões sobre a operação historiográfica na revista Pais & Filhos

2017 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 117
Author(s):  
Liana Pereira Borba dos Santos
Keyword(s):  
Cultural History ◽  
Social Representations ◽  
Scientific Field ◽  
The Other ◽  
Discursive Practices ◽  
Other Hand ◽  
The One

O objetivo desse artigo é discutir, à luz da história cultural, elementos relevantes para a construção de uma operação historiográfica, como a metodologia, a escolha e o uso das fontes, assim como a sua respectiva materialidade. Trata-se de um processo que se consolida, de um lado, na escrita de uma narrativa autoral e, de outro, na aproximação com os demais estudos do campo científico. De modo específico, pretende-se estabelecer um diálogo entre os discursos teóricos e metodológicos com a pesquisa desenvolvida, no qual realizo o levantamento e análise das práticas discursivas e representações sociais de infância e de suas instituições afins (como famílias, espaços escolares e médicos, por exemplo), nas páginas da revista Pais & Filhos.Between documents and representations: reflections on the historiographical operation in the Pais & Filhos magazine. This present paper aims to discuss the prominent issues for the historiographical operation in the context of cultural history, as the methodology, the choice and use of sources and their respective materiality. On the one hand, this process is consolidated in writing an authorial narrative and the other hand it is marked by the necessary approximation with other studies the scientific field. In a specific way, the goal is to relate the theoretical and methodological discourse to the research that I have developed, in which I realize the analysis of the discursive practices and social representations of childhood and its related institutions (such as families, school spaces and doctors, for example), the pages of the publication entitled Pais & Filhos (Parents & Children). Keywords: Historiographical operation; Cultural history; Pais & Filhos Magazine; Education.

“If I have to clean, I clean my own shop”: Migrant entrepreneurship as a form of emplacement in times of crisis: The example of Italy

Ethnicities ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 414-432 ◽  
Author(s):  
Claudia Lintner
Keyword(s):  
Social Interactions ◽  
Work Performance ◽  
Economic Recession ◽  
Research Approach ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Opportunity Structures ◽  
Immigration Laws ◽  
Migrant Entrepreneurship ◽  
New Perspective ◽  
The One

This article analyses the relation between European economic crisis and immigration. It does so by analysing the establishment of migrants’ entrepreneurship activities in Italy, and by looking at how these activities unravel subjects’ agency in confronting constraining socioeconomic conditions and restrictive immigration laws. In this perspective, entrepreneurship should be understood as a possibility for transforming a person’s own incorporated cultural capital into a resource and, consequently, into an opportunity for self-created work performance. Interpreting entrepreneurship as a personal response of migrants to the economic recession offers a new perspective in the existing literature on migrant entrepreneurship. Crisis, in this paper, is not seen as an abstract and supernatural phenomenon leading and controlling the capacity of individuals to act, but is understood as a constructed set of meanings comprising social interactions and relationships and consolidated within public discourses. This study is based on a qualitative-explorative research approach and was carried out in South Tyrol, Italy. For the data collection, different qualitative methods were used: narrative interviews, informal discussions and semi-structured interviews. Data analysis was based on the coding processes described within the Grounded Theory. As the results show, crisis as such represents, on the one hand, a critical moment of transition or transformation of normality and the constituted ways of acting and thinking and, on the other hand, it is perceived as a new opportunity to change individual behaviour and to initiate innovative counter-strategies that will maintain a person’s capacity to act even in critical personal and structural situations. Nevertheless, showing resilience, which is powerful and leads to change, depends not only on personal motivational forces but also to given opportunity structures.

scholarly journals To write or not to write: censorship in "The Woman in the Photo" by Tia Șerbănescu and "A Censor’s Notebook" by Liliana Corobca

2018 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 8-27
Author(s):  
Monica Manolachi
Keyword(s):  
The Other ◽  
Literary Texts ◽  
Psychological Process ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
Mise En Abyme ◽  
Points Of View ◽  
The One ◽  
The Mind ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Compare And Contrast

Censorship as a literary subject has sometimes been necessary in times of change, as it may show how the flaws in power relations influence, sometimes very dramatically, the access to and the production of knowledge. The Woman in the Photo: a Diary, 1987-1989 by Tia Șerbănescu and A Censor’s Notebook by Liliana Corobca are two books that deal with the issue of censorship in the 1980s (the former) and the 1970s (the latter). Both writers tackle the problem from inside the ruling system, aiming at authenticity in different ways. On the one hand, instead of writing a novel, Tia Șerbănescu kept a diary in which she contemplated the oppression and the corruption of the time and their consequences on the freedom of thought, of expression and of speech. She thoroughly described what she felt and thought about her relatives, friends and other people she met, about books and their authors, in a time when keeping a diary was hard and often perilous. On the other hand, using the technique of the mise en abyme, Liliana Corobca begins from a fictitious exchange of emails to eventually enter and explore the mind of a censor and reveal what she thought and felt about the system, her co-workers, her boss, the books she proofread, their authors and her own identity. Detailed examinations and performances of the relationship between writing and censorship, the two novels provide engaging, often tragi-comical, insights into the psychological process of producing literary texts. The intention of this article is to compare and contrast the two author’s perspectives on the act of writing and some of its functions from four points of view: literary, cultural, social and political.

scholarly journals Pragmatisme og "practice turn"

2018 ◽  
pp. 43-61
Author(s):  
Antje Gimmler
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
John Dewey ◽  
Social Scientist ◽  
The Other ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
The Social ◽  
Practice Turn ◽  
Understanding Of Science ◽  
The One ◽  
Philosophical Pragmatism

Practices are of central relevance both to philosophical pragmatism and to the recent ‘Practice Turn’ in social sciences and philosophy. However, what counts as practices and how practices and knowledge are combined or intertwine varies in the different approaches of pragmatism and those theories that are covered by the umbrella term ‘Practice Turn’. The paper tries to show that the pragmatism of John Dewey is able to offer both a more precise and a more radical understanding of practices than the recent ‘Practice Turn’ allows for. The paper on the one hand highlights what pragmatism has to offer to the practice turn in order to clarify the notion of practice. On the other hand the paper claims that a pragmatism inspired by Dewey actually interprets ‘practices’ more radically than most of the other approaches and furthermore promotes an understanding of science that combines nonrepresentationalism and anti-foundationalism with an involvement of the philosopher or the social scientist in the production of knowledge, things and technologies.

scholarly journals RELEVANSI HUKUM DAN HAK ASASI MANUSIA DENGAN AGENDA REFORMASI: DIMENSI NASIONAL DAN INTERNASIONAL

2020 ◽  
Vol 5 (2) ◽  
pp. 350
Author(s):  
Ismail Marzuki ◽  
Faridy Faridy
Keyword(s):  
Human Rights ◽  
Social Interactions ◽  
Social Order ◽  
Reform Agenda ◽  
Legal Rules ◽  
Recognition Respect ◽  
Protection Of Human Rights ◽  
The Law ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The One

In life, humans certainly cannot be separated from their social interactions with others. Friction between individuals or between nations is something that is inevitable. That is because the understanding of the legal system and culture of a different society. The difference in opinion certainly needs to be harmonized by not locking up the meeting room of everyone's expression. From here, the existence of legal rules/norms on the one hand becomes important in people's lives. On the other hand, the recognition, respect and protection of human rights are also important to be accommodated. Therefore, this article examines the law as a means of maintaining social order, and human rights as a set of rights that describe the existence of human freedom in expressing their actions, and how relevant they are to the reform agenda, namely enforcing the law against violators of human rights seriously, both in national and international.

scholarly journals Securitising Covid-19? The Politics of Global Health and the Limits of the Copenhagen School

2021 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 235-257
Author(s):  
Daniel Edler Duarte ◽  
Marcelo M. Valença
Keyword(s):  
Global Health ◽  
Control Strategies ◽  
Security Studies ◽  
Health Security ◽  
Critical Security Studies ◽  
Scientific Controversies ◽  
Copenhagen School ◽  
State Surveillance ◽  
Critical Approaches ◽  
The One

Abstract The COVID-19 pandemic has sparked controversies over health security strategies adopted in different countries. The urge to curb the spread of the virus has supported policies to restrict mobility and to build up state surveillance, which might induce authoritarian forms of government. In this context, the Copenhagen School has offered an analytical repertoire that informs many analyses in the fields of critical security studies and global health. Accordingly, the securitisation of COVID-19 might be necessary to deal with the crisis, but it risks unfolding discriminatory practices and undemocratic regimes, with potentially enduring effects. In this article, we look into controversies over pandemic-control strategies to discuss the political and analytical limitations of securitisation theory. On the one hand, we demonstrate that the focus on moments of rupture and exception conceals security practices that unfold in ongoing institutional disputes and over the construction of legitimate knowledge about public health. On the other hand, we point out that securitisation theory hinders a genealogy of modern apparatuses of control and neglects violent forms of government which are manifested not in major disruptive acts, but in the everyday dynamics of unequal societies. We conclude by suggesting that an analysis of the bureaucratic disputes and scientific controversies that constitute health security knowledges and practices enables critical approaches to engage with the multiple – and, at times, mundane – processes in which (in)security is produced, circulated, and contested.

scholarly journals Papernomics. Sciences as Games and Means of Censorship / Papernomics. Ciencias y juegos como medios de censura

2017 ◽  
pp. 110
Author(s):  
José Carlos Bermejo
Keyword(s):  
A Priori ◽  
Scientific Field ◽  
Hierarchical System ◽  
Scientific Journals ◽  
Double Blind ◽  
The One

The journals are basically the only channel through the scientists can make the result of their research known to their colleagues. Scientific journals select the information they publish and guarantee its quality by means of a double blind procedure of censorship by peers. If on the one hand this procedure seems logical as a method for including a study within a consolidated scientific field, it is also true that it can function as a mechanism for censorship. The idea that the works not included in a standard publication lack a priori of practically any value is the basis of the career of academic scholars. Starting with this principle, a hierarchical system of scientific ranking has been built among researchers. The basis of his scientific curriculum is the metric of vanity.Key WordsScientific journals, curriculum, censorshipResumenLas revistas son básicamente el único canal a través del cual los científicos pueden dar a conocer el resultado de su investigación a sus colegas. Las revistas científicas seleccionan la información que publican y garantizan su calidad por medio de un procedimiento de censura por pares de doble ciego. Si, por un lado, este procedimiento parece lógico como método para incluir un estudio en un campo científico consolidado, también es verdad que puede funcionar como mecanismo de censura. La idea de que los trabajos no incluidos en una publicación estándar carecen a priori de prácticamente ningún valor es la base de la carrera académica. Partiendo de este principio se ha construido entre los investigadores un sistema jerárquico de clasificación. La base de este currículum científico es la métrica de la vanidad.Palabras claveRevistas científicas, currículum, censura.

Structural and Technology-Mediated Violence

2011 ◽  
Vol 2 (4) ◽  
pp. 1-19 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lorenzo Magnani
Keyword(s):  
Legal Institutions ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Production Of Knowledge ◽  
Physical Injuries ◽  
The One ◽  
Technological World ◽  
Circulation Of Knowledge

A kind of common prejudice is the one that tends to assign the attribute “violent” only to physical and possibly bloody acts – homicides, for example – or physical injuries; but linguistic, structural, and other various aspects of violence – also embedded in artifacts – have to be taken into account. The paper will deal with the so-called “technology-mediated violence” taking advantage of the illustration of the case of profiling. If production of knowledge is important and central, this is not always welcome and so people have to acknowledge that the motto introduced in the book Morality in a Technological World (Magnani, 2007) knowledge as a duty has various limitations. Indeed, a warning has to be formulated regarding the problem of identity and cyberprivacy. The author contends that when too much knowledge about people is incorporated in external artificial things, human beings’ “visibility” can become excessive and dangerous. Two aims are in front of people to counteract this kind of technological violence, which also jeopardizes Rechtsstaat and constitutional democracies: preserving people against the various forms of circulation of knowledge about them and building new suitable “technoknowledge” (also to originate new “embodied” legal institutions) to reach this protective result.

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