Dados is one of the most widely-read social sciences journals in Latin America. Created in 1966, it publishes innovative works, originating from academic research, by Brazilian and foreign authors. Edited by IESP-UERJ, it aims to reconcile scientific rigor and academic excellence with an emphasis on public debate based on the analysis of substantive issues of society and politics.
Dados vol. 44 n. 2 Rio de Janeiro 2001
Abstract
The idea that scientific interference consists of the exercise of directing the modus tollens to given statements currently enjoys canonical status in the social sciences. This idea requires that statements about the world have a supply of empirical consequences that can be isolated and referred to as proper to them. However, according to Duhem-Quines holistic vision of knowledge, such a demand cannot be met. This article discusses the implications, for the social sciences, of the holistic critique towards the canonical model of scientific interference, given that two pillars of this area of knowledge, i.e., Suicide, by Émile Durkheim, and The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, by Max Weber, are tributaries of said canonical model.
Keywords: epistemology, modus tollens, Duhem-Quines holism
DOI: 10.1590/S0011-52582001000200006
Modus tollens, the holism of Duhem-Quine and the social sciences: le holisme de Duhem-Quine et les sciences sociales
Português do Brasil
Español