Module 2

Question 1

In Logical Positivism what are the 3 types of Theories and Explanations

Answer 1

3 Theories:
- Positive or descriptive theory
- Prescriptive Theory
- Normative Theory

3 Explanations:
- Causal
- Functional
- Intentional

Question 2

State the purpose and focus of Descriptive Theory

Answer 2

Purpose:
describe and explain reality as it is, without making reccomendations and judgement

Focus:
observing, patterns, behaviours and relationships

Question 3

State the purpose and focus of Prescriptive Theory

Answer 3

Purpose:
offer guidelines or best practices for achieving desired outcomes

Focus:
recommending actions based on research or logical reasoning

Question 4

State the purpose and focus of Normative Theory

Answer 4

Purpose:
determine what ought to be based on ethical, moral, or societal values

Focus:
evaluating business, social, or political systems according to principles of fairness, justice, or efficiency

Question 5

State the Focus and key ideas of Causal Explanations

Answer 5

Focus:
identifying the necessary or sufficient conditions for bringing about an event

Key Ideas:
a cause precedes its effect, and it was necessary or sufficient to bring it about

Question 6

State the Focus and key ideas of Functional Explanations

Answer 6

Focus:
phenomena contribute to a higher order system

Key Ideas:
something’s functioning bring about stability, efficiency or survival

Question 7

State the Focus and key ideas of Intentional Explanations

Answer 7

Focus:
beliefs, desires, or ambitions of the agent

Key Ideas:
people act on rational choices, imitate behavior

Question 8

Define Logical Positivism and its core Goals

Answer 8

A movement aimed to establish a rigorous scientific foundation of knowledge by applying principles of logic and empirical verification

Core Goals:
1. NO UNVERIFIABLE CLAIMS:
only statements that can be empirically tested or are logically necessary are considered meaningful

2. NO GRAND THEORIES OF HISTORY
   scientific and societal progress happens through hard work and small advancements, not because of historical necessity
3. NO APPEALS TO INTUITION OR VOLK(folk spirit)
   only objective, empirical methods can yield reliable knowledge

Question 9

State what Logical Positivism opposed

Answer 9

1. HEGELIAN DIALECTICAL IDEALISM
   The destiny theory of history and the idea that the germanic world was fulfilling a historical destiny
2. GERMAN IDEALISM AND ROMANTIC NATIONALISM
   the notion of a mystical “Volkgeist” (spirit of the people) and ratial or national superiority
3. LEBENSPHILOSOPHIE AND ANTI-SEMITIC MYSTICISM
   this emphasizes life, intuition, and subjective experience over objective reasoning

Question 10

State and Describe the central idea in logical positivism

Answer 10

VERIFICATION PRINCIPLE
states that any statement or proposition is only meaningful IF it is:
- A Tauntology (analytic a priori statement)
- Empirically Verifiable (a synthetic a posteriori statement)

!! It Excludes pure Metaphysics !!

It Excludes Kant’s synthetic a priori as these:
- Lack empirical grounding and testability
- often can be rewritten as analytic statements or as empirically grounded statements (CARNAP’S REDUCTIONISM)

Question 11

Describe The Unity of Science and its key points

Answer 11

A comprehensive vision of how all firms of inquiry (from physics to social sicences) can be integrated into a single, coherent, and empirically grounded framework

Key Points:
- Any kind of observation must be expressed as quantifiable data
- One formal language to express knowledge in each discipline to reveal similarities in structure
- Belief in Reductionism (no boundaries between sciences)
- Working from core (pure sciences) to the pheriphery (social sciences) –> (Mathematical models should be exported across sciences to make them interoperable)
- Unification of sciences reduces irrationality and extremism, and can thus lead the way to social order, democracy and progressive society

Question 12

What are the Goals of Carnap’s Reductionism?

Answer 12

1. Clarify the meaning of scientific concepts by breaking them down into their simplest empirical components
2. Eliminate metaphysics and unverifiable statements from meaningful discourse
3. Ensures that all scientific claims could be linked to direct experience through a logical structure

Question 13

What are the proposals of Carnap’s reductionism?

Answer 13

1. All scientific teams should be reducible to a logical and observational basis
2. Concepts that seem abstract must be definable in terms of observable properties
3. Scientific theories should be built using “protocol sentence” (basic statements ties to sensory experience)

Question 14

What are the steps in Carnap’s Reductionism?

Answer 14

1. Identify the concept to be reduced
   - Empirical
   - Theoretical
   - Metaphysical
2. Can the concept be directly observed or measured?
   - YES –> concept is already empirical and doesn’t require further reduction
   - NO –> concept must be reduced into observable terms
3. Break the concept down into operational terms
   - expressed the concept using protocol sentences (statements, describing basic, observable experiences)
4. Verify if the concept can be directly be expressed using location constructs
   - if a concept is not directly obervable, determine whether is can be logically constructed from simles empiric statements
5. Ensure the reduction is free from circularity
   - a valid reduction should not presuppose the original concept
   - definitions should be based on simpler empirical terms, avoiding circular reasoning