PhD Course in Philosophy of Science (DUH102)

The course will give a broad orientation on central issues in the philosophy of science related to the social sciences and the humanities (‘the human sciences’). Topics include:

• Objectivity and the role of values in the human sciences.
• Understanding (interpretation) versus explanation.
• Holism versus methodological individualism.

Knowledge

The student will gain knowledge of:

• The philosophical foundations for different theoretical research approaches in the social sciences and the humanities.

Skills

By the end of the course, the student will be able to:

• Facilitate critical reflection and argumentation upon presuppositions that may easily be taken for granted in their own research tradition, or in science as a whole.
• Relate discipline-specific topics to general reflections and concepts of philosophy of science.

General competence

By the end of the course, the student will be able to:

• Demonstrate competence in analytical discussion and well-structured academic argumentation.

None

Active participation in lectures and seminarsActive participation in lectures and seminars

Active participation in lectures and seminars (at least 75% attendance).

Course teacher(s)

Course teacher:

Marianne Hafnor Bøe

Course coordinator:

Ståle Gundersen

Course teacher:

Ulrich Dettweiler

Study Program Director:

Hein Berdinesen

Course teacher:

Hein Berdinesen

The course will be held as five seminars.

PhD candidates enrolled in PhD programmes at the University of Stavanger and at cooperating research institutions may participate in the course.

An evaluation form in accordance with the expectations in the UiS quality system will be made available to the candidates after the completion of the course. The course participants are encouraged to contribute to the course evaluation.

Book Philosophy of social science : a new introduction Cartwright, N., Montuschi, E. (eds.), Oxford, Oxford University Press, X, 330 s., 2014, isbn:978-0-19-964509-1; 978-0-19-964510-7, Chapter 1-4, 6-9 and 12-15. The textbook can be bought at the bookstore at campus. Book Chapter What is a Social Fact? Émile Durkheim, Lukes, Steven; Halls, W. D., What is a Social Fact?, New York, Free Press, xlii, 229 s., 1982, 50-59, Website The Philosophy of Social Science. Gorton, W.A., Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2010, https://www.iep.utm.edu/soc-sci/View online Book Chapter What is Social Construction? The Teenage Pregnancy Example. Hacking, I., What is Social Construction? The Teenage Pregnancy Example., Maidenhead, Open University Press, XII, 481 s., 2003, 421-427, isbn:0335208843; 0335208851; 9780335208845; 9780335208852, Book Chapter Mechanism Elster, J., Elster, J., Mechanism, Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, VIII, 184 s., 1989, 3-10, isbn:0521376068; 0521374553, Reference Entry Methodological Holism in the Social Sciences Zahle, J., Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy, 2016, https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/holism-social/View online Article The Debate about Quantitative and Qualitative Research: A Question of Method or Epistemology? Bryman, A., Routledge and Kegan Paul Ltd. For the London School of Economics, 75-92, The British Journal of Sociology, 1, 35, 1984, p. 75-92, https://bibsys-ur.userservices.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/47BIBSYS_UBIS/openurl?ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_tim=2019-11-27T15%3A39%3A18IST&ctx_ver=Z39.88-2004&url_ctx_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:ctx&url_ver=Z39.88-2004&rfr_id=info:sid/primo.exlibrisgroup.com-jstor_archive_2&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=The%20Debate%20about%20Quantitative%20and%20Qualitative%20Research:%20A%20Question%20of%20Method%20or%20Epistemology?&rft.jtitle=The%20British%20Journal%20of%20Sociology&rft.btitle=&rft.aulast=Bryman&rft.auinit=&rft.auinit1=&rft.auinitm=&rft.ausuffix=&rft.au=Bryman,%20Alan&rft.aucorp=&rft.date=1984-03-01&rft.volume=35&rft.issue=1&rft.part=&rft.quarter=&rft.ssn=&rft.spage=75&rft.epage=92&rft.pages=75-92&rft.artnum=&rft.issn=00071315&rft.eissn=14684446&rft.isbn=&rft.sici=&rft.coden=&rft_id=info:doi/10.2307/590553&rft.object_id=&rft.eisbn=&rft.edition=&rft.pub=Routledge%20and%20Kegan%20Paul%20Ltd.%20For%20the%20London%20School%20of%20Economics&rft.place=&rft.series=&rft.stitle=&rft.bici=&rft_id=info:bibcode/&rft_id=info:hdl/&rft_id=info:lccn/&rft_id=info:oclcnum/&rft_id=info:pmid/&rft_id=info:eric/((addata/eric}}&rft_dat=%3Cjstor_archive_2%3E10.2307/590553%3C/jstor_archive_2%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E,language=eng,view=UBIS&svc_dat=viewit&user_ip=10.16.56.140&req.skin=primo&rft_pqid=36750645&rft_galeid=&rft_cupid=&rft_eruid=&rft_nurid=&rft_ingid=View online Book Chapter Must We Assume Others are Rational? Fay, B., Fay, B., Must We Assume Others are Rational?, Oxford, Blackwell, XI, 266 s., 1996, 92-111, isbn:9781557865380; 9781557865373; 1557865388; 155786537X, Book Chapter Must We Comprehend Others in Their Own Terms? Fay, B., Fay, B., Must We Comprehend Others in Their Own Terms?, Oxford, Blackwell, XI, 266 s., 1996, 112-135, isbn:9781557865380; 9781557865373; 1557865388; 155786537X,

The course description is retrieved from FS (Felles studentsystem). Version 1