DR.

SARAH GAIRDNER

LECTURE #3 -
REFLEXIVITY IN
RESEARCH
 WHAT IS
EPISTOMOLOGY?
 THE STUDY OF KNOWLEDGE ACQUISITION

• Confidence

• Belief

• Truth

• Good Basis
WHAT IS AN
EMPIRICIST?
 SUMMARIZE THE
FINDINGS OF THE DOUBLE
SLIT EXPERIMENT…
HOW DOES YOUR PERSONALITY
CHANGE HOW YOU ENGAGE
WITH VARIOUS RESEARCH
QUESTIONS?
 PERSONALITY RESEARCH

PERSONALITY: OFTEN CONCEPTUALIZED AS THE EXTENT TO WHICH

SOMEONE DISPLAYS HIGH OR LOW LEVELS OF SPECIFIC TRAITS.

TRAITS ARE THE CONSISTENT PATTERNS OF THOUGHTS, FEELINGS,

MOTIVES, AND BEHAVIOURS THAT A PERSON EXHIBITS ACROSS
SITUATIONS (FLEESON AND GALLAGHER, 2009).

SOMEONE WHO SCORES HIGH ON A TRAIT WILL EXHIBIT

PSYCHOLOGICAL STATES RELATED TO THAT TRAIT MORE OFTEN AND TO
A GREATER EXTENT THAN INDIVIDUALS WHO SCORE LOW ON THAT
TRAIT.
THE STRUCTURE OF
SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTIONS

THOMAS
KUHN
• THE DEVELOPMENT OF SCIENCE IS DRIVEN, IN NORMAL PERIODS OF SCIENCE,
BY ADHERENCE TO WHAT KUHN CALLED A ‘PARADIGM’.

• THE FUNCTIONS OF A PARADIGM ARE TO SUPPLY PUZZLES FOR SCIENTISTS TO

SOLVE AND TO PROVIDE THE TOOLS FOR THEIR SOLUTION.

• A CRISIS IN SCIENCE ARISES WHEN CONFIDENCE IS LOST IN THE ABILITY OF

THE PARADIGM TO SOLVE PARTICULARLY WORRYING PUZZLES CALLED
‘ANOMALIES’.

• CRISIS IS FOLLOWED BY A SCIENTIFIC REVOLUTION IF THE EXISTING PARADIGM

IS SUPERSEDED BY A RIVAL.

• KUHN CLAIMED THAT SCIENCE GUIDED BY ONE PARADIGM WOULD BE

‘INCOMMENSURABLE’ WITH SCIENCE DEVELOPED UNDER A DIFFERENT
PARADIGM, BY WHICH IS MEANT THAT THERE IS NO COMMON MEASURE FOR
ASSESSING THE DIFFERENT SCIENTIFIC THEORIES.
THE KUHN CYCLE
WHAT LESSONS DO YOU
TAKE FROM THIS VIDEO
ABOUT THOMAS KUHN?
DONEC QUIS NUNC
OBJECTIVITY VERSUS
SUBJECTIVITY
 OBJECTIVITY

OBJECTIVITY IS PERSONAL NEUTRALITY; IT

ALLOWS THE FACTS TO SPEAK FOR
THEMSELVES AND NOT BE INFLUENCED BY
THE PERSONAL VALUES AND BIASES OF THE
RESEARCHER.

IT CAN ALSO BE INTERPRETED AS MIND-

INDEPENDENT, BECAUSE IT IS INFORMATION
THAT IS NOT BEING ALTERED BASED ON AN
OPINION. 
 SUBJECTIVITY

SUBJECTIVITY IS JUDGMENT BASED ON

INDIVIDUAL PERSONAL IMPRESSIONS AND
FEELINGS AND OPINIONS RATHER THAN
EXTERNAL FACTS.

THIS CAN BE CONSIDERED MIND-

DEPENDENT, BECAUSE ONE IS NOT USING A
FACT, THEY ARE USING THEIR PERSONAL
OPINION.
 WHY DOES IT MATTER IF YOU
REFLECT ON YOUR PERSONAL
POSITION WITHIN THE RESEARCH?
 “ACTIVE, PERSISTENT, AND CAREFUL
CONSIDERATION OF ANY BELIEF OR
SUPPOSED FORM OF KNOWLEDGE IN
LIGHT OF THE GROUNDS THAT
SUPPORT IT AND THE FURTHER
CONCLUSIONS TO WHICH IT
TENDS.” (DEWEY, 1933, P. 9)