Inductivism

Inductivism is the traditional and still commonplace philosophy of scientific method to develop scientific theories.[1][2][3][4] Inductivism aims to neutrally observe a domain, infer laws from examined cases—hence, inductive reasoning—and thus objectively discover the sole naturally true theory of the observed.[5]

Inductivism's basis is, in sum, "the idea that theories can be derived from, or established on the basis of, facts".[6] Evolving in phases, inductivism's conceptual reign spanned four centuries since Francis Bacon's 1620 proposal of such against Western Europe's prevailing model, scholasticism, which reasoned deductively from preconceived beliefs.[5][7]

In the 19th and 20th centuries, inductivism succumbed to hypotheticodeductivism—sometimes worded deductivism—as scientific method's realistic idealization.[8] Yet scientific theories as such are now widely attributed to occasions of inference to the best explanation, IBE, which, like scientists' actual methods, are diverse and not formally prescribable.[9][10]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Gauch-reInductivism was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ James Ladyman, Understanding Philosophy of Science (London & New York: Routledge, 2002), pp 51–58
  4. ^ Alan Francis Chalmers, What is this Thing Called Science?, 3rd edn (St Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 1999), pp 49–58, particularly 49–50, 53–54 & 58.
  5. ^ a b John Pheby, Methodology and Economics: A Critical Introduction (Armonk, NY: M. E. Sharpe, 1988), p 3.
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference Oberheim-p80-82 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference :4 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference :0 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  9. ^ Cite error: The named reference Okasha-reKuhn was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  10. ^ Cite error: The named reference Broad was invoked but never defined (see the help page).