The pragmatic turn in the scientific realism debate

Synthese 203 (4):1-23 (2024)
  Copy   BIBTEX

Abstract

In recent years there has been a noticeable yet largely unacknowledged ‘pragmatic turn’ in the scientific realism debate, inspired in part by van Fraassen’s work on ‘epistemic stances’. Features of this new approach include: an ascent to the meta-level (the focus is not so much on whether scientific realism is true, but on the prior questions of the nature of the positions in this debate, how to decide whether to be a scientific realist, etc.); a reinterpretation of scientific realism and anti-realism as (or as closely associated with) stances or frameworks, rather than theories or beliefs; a move away from the previously dominant empirical-explanatory (i.e. quasi-scientific or naturalistic) conception of scientific realism, anti-realism, and their justification; and a stress on the pragmatic and values-based elements in the debate. The traditional scientific realism debate is concerned with determining which position is true, or most epistemically justified. The new approach by contrast is concerned with determining which position best serves certain values, e.g. is most useful, fruitful, or otherwise prudentially preferable. In this paper we try to bring together the various strands in this new orientation, summarise its key features, contrast it with superficially similar but opposing views, and explore the similarities and differences among some of its adherents. Given we are advocates of the turn, we also offer a defence of the value and fruitfulness of this reconceptualization of the debate.

Other Versions

No versions found

Links

PhilArchive



    Upload a copy of this work     Papers currently archived: 98,353

External links

Setup an account with your affiliations in order to access resources via your University's proxy server

Through your library

Similar books and articles

A cognitive perspective on scientific realism.Michael Vlerick - 2019 - Philosophical Psychology 32 (8):1157-1178.
Three Paradigms of Scientific Realism: A Truthmaking Account.Jamin Asay - 2013 - International Studies in the Philosophy of Science 27 (1):1-21.
Realism, Progress and the Historical Turn.Howard Sankey - 2017 - Foundations of Science 22 (1):201-214.
The Scope and Multidimensionality of the Scientific Realism Debate.Howard Sankey & Dimitri Ginev - 2011 - Journal for General Philosophy of Science / Zeitschrift für Allgemeine Wissenschaftstheorie 42 (2):263-283.
Naturalism and Realism in the Philosophy Science.Matteo Morganti - 2015 - In Kelly James Clark (ed.), The Blackwell Companion to Naturalism. Hoboken: Wiley-Blackwell. pp. 75–90.
Wilfrid Sellars and Constructive Empiricism.John Dougherty - 2024 - Hopos: The Journal of the International Society for the History of Philosophy of Science 14 (2):435-478.
On Scientific Realism: In Defence of a Deflationary Approach.Daniel Mcarthur - 2001 - Dissertation, University of Ottawa (Canada)

Analytics

Added to PP
2024-01-16

Downloads
46 (#383,611)

6 months
23 (#126,268)

Historical graph of downloads
How can I increase my downloads?

Author Profiles

Sandy C. Boucher
University of New England (Australia)

Citations of this work

No citations found.

Add more citations

References found in this work

No references found.

Add more references