Dissertation Abstract
Scientific Progress and Its
Metaphysical Foundations
by
Amy LeeAnn McLaughlin
Degree: Ph.D.
Year: 2004
Pages: 00208
Institution: The
Advisor: Frederick M. Kronz
Source: DAI, 65, no. 08A (2004): p. 3018
Standard
No: ISBN: 0-496-03379-4
The dissertation project addresses what is required
of a notion of scientific progress. Any viable notion of scientific progress
must satisfy three requirements: (1) show that theory comparison is possible,
(2) establish criteria for theory success, and (3) outline an appropriate
method for theory comparison. The dissertation begins with a discussion of the
so-called "incommensurability of theories". The notion is defended
against some influential sets of objections; nonetheless it is shown that there
are ways of making comparisons among potentially incommensurable theories.
Incommensurability is a matter of degree, and the dissertation outlines ways in
which incommensurability is resolved. Next, the dissertation addresses the
issue of theory success. Typically, success is construed in terms of how well a
theory captures truth. An appropriate account of truth is therefore required.
The views of Charles Peirce provide the substantial basis for the account.
Peirce construes truth as a regulative ideal, and as promoting inquiry. The
dissertation addresses these two aspects of Peirce's system, which are
appropriately interpreted so as to fend off some important objections. Peirce's
pragmatic account of truth cannot, on its own, explain how incommensurability
comes about; nor can it account for its conditions of resolution. Thus, Peirce's
account of truth needs supplementation. Nelson Goodman's insights about the
relationships among theory, observation, and interpretation prove useful in
helping to make sense of the possibility of incommensurability and its
resolution. Such insights point to a particular metaphysical principle, the
principle of multi-faceted realism. This principle is shown to conform with Peirce's pragmatism and to explain why Peirce's
approach to scientific inquiry is most fruitful. Armed with this
characterization of truth, the dissertation suggests a blueprint for an account
of scientific progress. What is of primary importance is leaving open the door
to future inquiry, and the conclusions that can be drawn from the foregoing
considerations provide information about which avenues of inquiry to pursue and
which to avoid in order to ensure that science can be conducted in as
progressive a way as possible.
SUBJECT(S)
Descriptor: PHILOSOPHY
Accession
No: AAI3145338
Provider: OCLC
Database: Dissertations