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Lectures of Philosophy of Science
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All 7 lectures from the course Philosophy of Science are summarized in this documents. Slides of the lectures are used to explain the theory.
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Philosophy of Science lecturesLecture 1
Philosophical thinking
A question is: A hockey stick and a ball together cost €1.10. The stick cost €1 more than the ball. How
much does the ball cost? The right answer is €0.05, but our intuition says €0.10. It is hard resit the
intuition.
There are two ways to answer these questions (according to Daniel Kahneman):
System 1: fast but unreliable (you don’t use much mental effort. It operates automatically and very
quickly. It often give us the wrong answer. Many people are too confident)
System 2: slow but reliable (There is more effort in the mental activities. It includes complex
calculations. It needs concentration.
According to Kahneman the way we think is composed of these two systems (intuitive mental system
and logical demanding system). The human rely much on the intuitive system, but philosophical
thinking relies on system 2.
Philosophy is a way of thinking about the world, the universe and the society. It works by asking very
basic questions about the nature of the human thoughts, the nature of the universe and of the
connections between them. Philosophical thinking requires cognitive efforts (it might be hard for the
brain), but in order for us to provide a valid answer. You should avoid the intuitional pitfalls and quick
answers. We should think slowly.
Philosophical concepts:
- Ontology: it comes from the Greek word of ‘’being’’. Ontology is the study of being or existence and
it basic relationships. Ontology is to determine which entities can be set to exist or whether we can
group these entities based on similarities or differences. Ontology is the theory about reality (what is
out there and what is reality). Theory is an idea to explain something. Theories are a rational and
abstract way of thinking about a certain phenomenon. An example in the daily life is the bitcoin. The
fundamental ontology question is: can you accept the existence of the bitcoin as real? Both the
bitcoin and the euro are created by us, the human. It would not exist if we don’t accept the existence
collectively (otherwise it could not function). Another question is if the natural reality (nature e.g.
water) different from the social reality (organizations)?
- Epistemology: Is a philosophical theory about knowledge. It is one of the four main branches in
philosophy (epistemology, axiology, logic and metaphysics). This asks what (scientific) knowledge is
and how it is obtained. An example question is: what can we know or what do we not know? How
can knowledge be made more reliable.
Ontology: Does God exist?
Epistemology: How can we know if God exists?
Epistemology is rooted in our ontology.
Methodology is guided by epistemology.
,Philosophy of Management Science
The philosophy of science is a field that deals with what science is, how it works and the logic
through which we build scientific knowledge (what kind of evidence to we need before we accept
something?).
What is science?
Science is both a body of knowledge and a process. Scientific knowledge is different than our daily
knowledge. What distinguishes science from non-science (pseudoscience)?
You should do an experiment to proof that a certain cause causes a certain effect.
First you divide people in two groups. One part of the group subjection to treatment condition and
the other part get a placeable. You measure something before the treatment. Then the group will
subject to treatment condition. Then you measure the same thing again to see if the treatment had
influence. You should compare this with the people who did not get the treatment. The most
important thing is randomization (dividing the groups should be random). However, causality is just
hardly a simple idea:
Explaining an outcome Y in terms of the necessary and/or sufficient conditions (X) for Y to take place.
Causality has a strong connection with determinism:
- The ontology that if we would know all applicable laws of nature as well as the initial conditions,
we can perfectly predict what will happen in the future.
- Determinism is sort of the ‘house ontology’ of natural science.
A lot of the questions we ask in economics, marketing and in management often involves firms and
other organizations. Therefore, it will not be effective to actually carry out experimental studies in a
controlled environment. Sometimes it is also not ethical to do so (for example when you want to do
research in diverse workgroups, you oblige an organization to have a mixed group).
A counterfactual understanding of causation is currently the dominant view in social science:
- An outcome Y, is caused by a cause X, if and only if when X had occurred Y would also have
occurred, and, if X had not occurred, Y would also not have happened (for example when you want
to do research that gender diversity will have a positive influence on firm performance. For example,
woman take less risks. It is hard to proof this correlation by experimental research. A possible way is
to form initial hypothesis; X -> Y. Then collect data on X, Y, and control variables. Then use statistics
(instead of historical information) to establish correlation (you should collect much data for example
about the performance). Why Y? Because X causes Y. However, the cause explanation only provides
one type of explanation.
- The laboratory experiment epistemologically ‘operationalizes’ this counterfactual conception of
causality in behavioural research.
, Causal explanation is often used in natural science (when we observe things in nature such as seeing
an apple fall. Gravity is the cause and the effect is that the apple falls). We also use the functional
explanation in natural science. It explains the existence of something in terms of its function (I have
an heart because my blood needs to be pumped through my body). Third type of explanation is
intentional explanation. This is most often see in social science. Intentional explanation is that
persons/animals act in accord with their beliefs and value judgements. Intention is the state of mind
(you describe your reason). Example: How to explain orca behaviour? We tend to explain animal
behaviour causally by referring to instincts or biologically evolved natural dispositions. But Orca’s
seem to be intelligent creatures in a way similar to how we understand humans are. In explaining
human behaviour, we often use intentional explanations, involving certain states of mind. We
additionally hold strong philosophical intuitions about human intentions and behaviour:
- That we have free will (metaphysics)
- That we are uniquely endowed with reason (but what is reason?)
- That, under normal conditions, we are morally responsible for our acts and omissions (ethics)
We should also understand motivations and intentions in social science, which is less/not needed in
natural science.
Social ontology and epistemology
Ontology question in management science: are social reality the same as natural reality?
The euro is created by us. Is it real? Yes, but is it as real as a tree?
Most things we study in economic and business world would not be there if we would not be
there/stop accept their existence. It is an intentional explanations when Germany would want to
stop using the euro. It would cause panic. The euro would probably not exist anymore. The euro
exists because we accept the existence. Also the bitcoin is socially accepted.
Can organizations really act?
An corporation is dependent on the people that did the cooperation and not on the organization
itself. It is a socially constructed reality. It is a legal fiction (legal personality). Legally, we create a firm
as if it is a person, so we assume it to be real. We can’t put an organization in jail. We need to allow
the corporate liability, because otherwise the employees would pay all debts. But why should we
accept the existence of this social reality?
We say: ‘’Samsung infringed Apple’s patents’’ and ‘’Goldman Sachs deceived their clients’’. But can
organizations really act by themselves? Or can only human act?
We make such assumptions in every day life all the time:
- Legal personality (firms are entities in themselves)
- Corporate criminal liability (ING settlement)
In an important sense, social reality exists only insofar as we accept it to exist in everyday reality. If
we don’t accept it, they won’t exist. Whether we do accept social reality, is dependent on our
understanding of it (the double hermeneutic).
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