Philosophy of Social Sciences (PHD102)

The course focuses on the following issues:

• The general nature of social science, and the relation between social science and natural science.
• The general nature of social reality, and the sense in which social phenomena may be said to be socially constructed.
• The role of values in social science, and the sense in which, and the extent to which, social science can be objective.
• The role of causal claims in social science, and the scientific significance of having to distinguish between different concepts of causation and causal evidence.
• The nature of explanation in social science, and the difference between holism and individualism about explanation.
• The role of interpretation in social science, and the sense in which, and the extent to which, social science may be characterized as interpretative.
• The nature of rationality, and the role of rationality assumptions in social science.

Knowledge

After completing the course, students should:

• Have advanced knowledge of central issues in the philosophy of social science.
• Have advanced knowledge of major approaches to the relevant issues.
• Have advanced knowledge of the relevance of the philosophy of social science for social scientific research.

Skills

After completing the course, students should:

• Be able to formulate new research questions within the philosophy of social science.
• Be able to conduct research in the philosophy of social science at an international level.
• Be able to apply concepts and theories within the philosophy of social science to social scientific research in fruitful ways.

General competence

After completing the course, students should:

• Be able to communicate the results of research in the philosophy of social science through recognized national and international channels.
• Be able to participate in debates within the philosophy of social science in international fora.
• Be able to identify new and relevant ethical challenges, and conduct their research with academic integrity.

Participants must be enrolled in a PhD programme.

The course is integrated with PHD101: Research Design, but can also be taken as a stand-alone course.

At least one presentation. Active participation in discussions

Fagperson(er)

Course coordinator:

Tarjei Mandt Larsen

The course will be given in the form of five full-day seminars. A detailed timetable will be made available at the beginning of the course-semester.

PhD candidates enrolled in PhD programmes at the University of Stavanger or accredited universities/university colleges in Norway or abroad.

There must be an early dialogue between the course supervisor, the student union representative and the students. The purpose is feedback from the students for changes and adjustments in the course for the current semester.In addition, a digital subject evaluation must be carried out at least every three years. Its purpose is to gather the students experiences with the course.

Book Philosophy of social science : a new introduction Montuschi, Eleonora; Cartwright, Nancy, Oxford, Oxford University Press, X, 330 s., 2014, isbn:978-0-19-964509-1, Excluding Chapters 10-13. Article Gorton (2014) W. A. Gorton, Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy, Book Chapter Durkheim (2014) Durkheim, Émile, Halls, W. D.; Lukes, Steven, Durkheim (2014), New York, Free Press, xlii, 229 s., 2014, 20-28, isbn:9781476749723, Page 20-28. Article Searle (2006) Searle, John R, London, Thousand Oaks, CA and New Delhi, SAGE Publications, 12-29, Anthropological Theory, 1, 6, 2006-03, 12-29, https://bibsys-ur.userservices.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/47BIBSYS_UBIS/openurl?ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_tim=2020-06-07T16%3A28%3A03IST&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-sage_s&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Social%20ontology:%20Some%20basic%20principles&rft.jtitle=Anthropological%20Theory&rft.btitle=&rft.aulast=Searle&rft.auinit=J&rft.auinit1=J&rft.auinitm=&rft.ausuffix=&rft.au=Searle,%20John%20R&rft.aucorp=&rft.date=2006-03&rft.volume=6&rft.issue=1&rft.part=&rft.quarter=&rft.ssn=&rft.spage=12&rft.epage=29&rft.pages=12-29&rft.artnum=&rft.issn=1463-4996&rft.eissn=17412641&rft.isbn=&rft.sici=&rft.coden=&rft_id=info:doi/10.1177/1463499606061731&rft.object_id=&rft.eisbn=&rft.edition=&rft.pub=SAGE%20Publications&rft.place=London,%20Thousand%20Oaks,%20CA%20and%20New%20Delhi&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=%3Csage_s%3E10_1177_1463499606061731%3C/sage_s%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E,language=eng,view=UBIS&svc_dat=viewit&user_ip=10.16.56.56&req.skin=primo&rft_pqid=61561158&rft_galeid=&rft_cupid=&rft_eruid=&rft_nurid=&rft_ingid=View online Article Lukes (2006) Steven Lukes, Anthropological Theory, 1, 6, 5-11, Reference Entry Williamson & Illari (2013) Williamson ; Illari, Jon, Phyllis Mckay, 67-70, 2013, 67-70, isbn:9781452276045, https://bibsys-ur.userservices.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/47BIBSYS_UBIS/openurl?ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_tim=2019-10-02T09%3A12%3A45IST&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-gvrl_ref&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Causation,%20Philosophical%20Views%20of&rft.jtitle=&rft.btitle=&rft.aulast=Williamson%20Illari&rft.auinit=Mckay&rft.auinit1=&rft.auinitm=&rft.ausuffix=&rft.au=Williamson&rft.aucorp=&rft.date=2013&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.part=&rft.quarter=&rft.ssn=&rft.spage=67&rft.epage=70&rft.pages=67-70&rft.artnum=&rft.issn=&rft.eissn=&rft.isbn=978-1-4522-7604-5&rft.sici=&rft.coden=&rft_id=info:doi/&rft.object_id=&rft.eisbn=&rft.edition=&rft.pub=&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=%3Cgvrl_ref%3ECX3719400040%3C/gvrl_ref%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E,language=eng,view=UBIS&svc_dat=viewit&user_ip=10.16.56.56&req.skin=primo&rft_pqid=&rft_galeid=CX3719400040&rft_cupid=&rft_eruid=&rft_nurid=&rft_ingid=View online Reference Entry Steel (2013) Steel, Daniel, 71-73, 2013, 71-73, isbn:9781452276045, https://bibsys-ur.userservices.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/47BIBSYS_UBIS/openurl?ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_tim=2019-10-02T09%3A10%3A25IST&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-gvrl_ref&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:journal&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Causation%20in%20the%20Social%20Sciences&rft.jtitle=&rft.btitle=&rft.aulast=Steel&rft.auinit=&rft.auinit1=&rft.auinitm=&rft.ausuffix=&rft.au=Steel,%20Daniel&rft.aucorp=&rft.date=2013&rft.volume=&rft.issue=&rft.part=&rft.quarter=&rft.ssn=&rft.spage=71&rft.epage=73&rft.pages=71-73&rft.artnum=&rft.issn=&rft.eissn=&rft.isbn=978-1-4522-7604-5&rft.sici=&rft.coden=&rft_id=info:doi/&rft.object_id=&rft.eisbn=&rft.edition=&rft.pub=&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=%3Cgvrl_ref%3ECX3719400041%3C/gvrl_ref%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E,language=eng,view=UBIS&svc_dat=viewit&user_ip=10.16.56.56&req.skin=primo&rft_pqid=&rft_galeid=CX3719400041&rft_cupid=&rft_eruid=&rft_nurid=&rft_ingid=View online Article Reiss (2009) Reiss, Julian, Sage Publications, Inc., 20-40, Philosophy of the Social Sciences, 1, 39, 2009-03-01, 20-40 https://bibsys-ur.userservices.exlibrisgroup.com/view/uresolver/47BIBSYS_UBIS/openurl?ctx_enc=info:ofi/enc:UTF-8&ctx_id=10_1&ctx_tim=2020-05-15T11%3A20%3A05IST&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-gale_ofa&req_id=&rft_val_fmt=info:ofi/fmt:kev:mtx:&rft.genre=article&rft.atitle=Causation%20in%20the%20social%20sciences:%20evidence,%20inference,%20and%20purpose.&rft.jtitle=Philosophy%20of%20the%20Social%20Sciences&rft.btitle=&rft.aulast=&rft.auinit=&rft.auinit1=&rft.auinitm=&rft.ausuffix=&rft.au=Reiss,%20Julian&rft.aucorp=&rft.date=2009-03-01&rft.volume=39&rft.issue=1&rft.part=&rft.quarter=&rft.ssn=&rft.spage=20-40&rft.epage=&rft.pages=20-40&rft.artnum=&rft.issn=0048-3931&rft.eissn=15527441&rft.isbn=&rft.sici=&rft.coden=&rft_id=info:doi/10.1177/0048393108328150&rft.object_id=&rft.eisbn=&rft.edition=&rft.pub=Sage%20Publications,%20Inc.&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=%3Cgale_ofa%3E194172146%3C/gale_ofa%3E%3Curl%3E%3C/url%3E,language=eng,view=UBIS&svc_dat=viewit&user_ip=10.16.56.57&req.skin=primo&rft_pqid=59878346&rft_galeid=194172146&rft_cupid=&rft_eruid=&rft_nurid=&rft_ingid=View online Book Chapter Godfrey-Smith (2003) Godfrey-Smith, Peter, Godfrey-Smith (2003), Chicago, Ill., University of Chicago Press, XIII, 272 s., 2003, 190-201, isbn:9780226300634; 0226300633; 0226300625; 9780226300627, Book Chapter Elster (1989a) Elster, Jon,, Elster (1989a), Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, 1 online resource (viii, 184 pages) :, 1989, 3-10, isbn:9780511812255 (ebook), Electronic Article Zahle (2016) Zahle, J., The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Archive (Summer 2016 Edition), 2016, https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/sum2016/entries/holism-social/View online Article Taylor (1971) Taylor, C., Review of Metaphysic, 25, 1971, 3-51, https://bibsys-almaprimo.hosted.exlibrisgroup.com/primo-explore/fulldisplay?docid=TN_cdi_proquest_journals_1290933806&context=PC&vid=UBIS&lang=no_NO&search_scope=default_scope&adaptor=primo_central_multiple_fe&tab=default_tab&query=any,contains,Interpretation%20and%20the%20Sciences%20of%20Man&offset=0View online Book Chapter Martin (1994) M. Martin, Martin (1994), 259-279, isbn:978-0-262-13296-1, Book Chapter Føllesdal (1982) D. Føllesdal, Føllesdal (1982), 233-246, isbn:978-0-262-13296-1, Book Chapter Elster (1989b) Elster, Jon, Elster (1989b), Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, VIII, 184 s., 1989, 13-21, isbn:0521376068; 0521374553, Book Chapter Elster (1989c) Elster, Jon, Elster (1989c), Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, VIII, 184 s., 1989, 22-29, isbn:0521376068; 0521374553, Book Chapter Elster (1989d) Elster, Jon, Elster (1989d), Cambridge, Cambridge University Press, VIII, 184 s., 1989, 30-41, isbn:0521376068; 0521374553, Article Føllesdal (1982) Føllesdal, D., European Society for Analytic Philosophy., [Oxford] :, Blackwell Pub, Dialectica, 4, 36, 1982, 301-316,

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