study questions 9

1. Drawing upon three well-accepted, mainstream theses in contemporary philosophy of science, Okruhlik argues that (1) the content of biological hypotheses (theories) about women is contaminated by unscientific social and cultural assumptions and (2) even supposing that it is rational and objective, scientific methodology alone cannot expose let alone eliminate these biases from biological hypotheses about women.  Carefully explain her argument.  Do you believe she is right about this?  Defend your argument with argumentation.

Okruhlik argues that scientific ideas about women can be influenced by society’s stereotypes and cultural beliefs. She believes that scientific methods alone cannot always identify or remove these biases. I agree because scientists are people who can bring their own beliefs into their research. This means science needs to consider social biases to make sure its conclusions are fair and accurate.

Explain how the following theses from philosophy of science figure in her argument: Theories are invented vs. inductively inferred from evidence (Hempel, Popper)

Scientific theories are created by people rather than simply discovered through evidence. Okruhlik aregues that scientosts’ social beliefs and assumptions can influence the theories they create, including theories about women.

Explain how the following theses from philosophy of science figure in her argument: Logically speaking, one can always salvage a target hypothesis in the face of a failed prediction by denying an auxiliary assumption, and moreover this is typically what happens in scientific practice (Duhen, Kuhn, Lakatos).

Scientists can protect a theory when evidence disagrees with it by changing or questioning other supporting assumptions instead. Okruhlik argues that this can allow biased beliefs about women to remain in science instead of being challenged.

Explain how the following theses from philosophy of science figure in her argument: Theories are not evaluated in isolation from other theories; theory choice is irreducibly comparative (Kuhn, Lakatos, Laudan)

Scientific theories are compared to other theories rather than judged on their own. Okruhlik argues that scientists’ social and cultural beliefs can influence which theories they prefer, allowing biases about women to continue.

1. 
   

1. Explain the following passage:  “if they [theories about female intelligence and behavior] have all been generated by males operating in a deeply sexist culture, then it is likely that all will be contaminated by sexism.  Non-sexist rivals will never even be generated.”  Do you agree?  Explain and defend your answer.

Okruhlik means that if men create scientific theories in a sexist society, their assumptions about women may influence their research. This can prevent fair, unbiased alternative theories from being developed. I agree because cultural beliefs can influence scientific research, especially when different perspectives are missing.

1. 
   

1. Okruhlik discusses a number of case studies from the history of biology and anthropology that seem to support her argument.  Pick two cases and discuss whether they really do so.

One example is research on female reproductive behavior, where scientists assumed females were naturally passive while males were active and competitive. This caused researchers to overlook female competition and sexual behavior. Another example is research on intelligence differences between men and women, where scientists’ beliefs that men were naturally more intelligent influenced how they designed and interpreted studies. Both cases supported Okruhlik’s argument because social stereotypes influenced scientific research and its conclusions.