Synthese 199 (1-2):3345–3366 (2021)
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Abstract |
Moral, social, political, and other “nonepistemic” values can lead to bias in science, from prioritizing certain topics over others to the rationalization of questionable research practices. Such values might seem particularly common or powerful in the social sciences, given their subject matter. However, I argue first that the well-documented phenomenon of motivated reasoning provides a useful framework for understanding when values guide scientific inquiry (in pernicious or productive ways). Second, this analysis reveals a parity thesis: values influence the social and natural sciences about equally, particularly because both are so prominently affected by desires for social credit and status, including recognition and career advancement. Ultimately, bias in natural and social science is both natural and social— that is, a part of human nature and considerably motivated by a concern for social status (and its maintenance). Whether the pervasive influence of values is inimical to the sciences is a separate question.
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Keywords | values in science wishful thinking conflicts of interest replication crisis research integrity motivated reasoning rationalization |
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Reprint years | 2020, 2021 |
ISBN(s) | |
DOI | 10.1007/s11229-020-02937-0 |
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References found in this work BETA
Science as Social Knowledge: Values and Objectivity in Scientific Inquiry.Helen E. Longino (ed.) - 1990 - Princeton University Press.
The Enigma of Reason.Dan Sperber & Hugo Mercier (eds.) - 2017 - Cambridge, MA, USA: Harvard University Press.
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Citations of this work BETA
Harnessing Moral Psychology to Reduce Meat Consumption.Joshua May & Victor Kumar - forthcoming - Journal of the American Philosophical Association.
Addressing the Reproducibility Crisis: A Response to Hudson.Heather Douglas & Kevin C. Elliott - forthcoming - Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie:1-9.
Agency in Mental Disorder: Philosophical Dimensions.Matt King & Josh May (eds.) - 2022 - Oxford University Press.
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