PS390 Chapter Notes - Chapter 10: Underdetermination, Zeitgeist, Psych
Document Summary
Promoted critical hermeneutics in social sciences; said it should challenge the notion of objectivity in the human sciences + allow reflection on the historical relationship b/w subject and object. Habermas says choosing a theoretical framework prejudges a field of investigation (ex choosing behavioural framework for analyzing child-parent attachment = accepting that behavioural concepts are appropriate for addressing attachment) Emphasized looking at the consensus-making processes of a scientific community regarding theories, research strategies, and methods; consensus might be rational but it is never entirely convincing, bc perfectly rational systems do not exist. Teo (2011) claimed hermeneutics plays important role in empirical research, esp when it comes to the interpretation of empirical data ( results or findings ) in published work. Data alone do not determine interpretations (otherwise discussion sections would not be needed), thus researchers themselves use hermeneutics to interpret the data. Although interpretations of findings are presented as facts, they contain speculative elements.
