7. Ideology and science

Who talks about science as an open beliefs system initially and what does he say?

• Karl Popper says science is an open beliefs system where every scientists theories are open to scrutiny, testing and criticism by others.

• Science is governed by the principle of falsification where scientists actively try to disprove theories to discard and search for a better theory.

• Scientific knowledge is cumulative as it builds on past knowledge ‘stood on the shoulders of giants’ Newton

How does functionalist Merton explain why science thrives?

Science needs a set of norms to further scientific knowledge

C - communism. Scientists must share their knowledge with the scientific community

U - universalism. Truth or falsity of knowledge is judged by a universal objective criteria and not by race

D - disinterestedness. Being committed to discovering knowledge for its own sake

Organised Skepticism - no knowledge is regarded as sacred and all knowledge is open to questioning and criticism

Who differentiates between open and closed belief systems and how?

• Horton says religion is a closed beliefs system where system. It is sacred knowledge by God’s divine authority so cannot be challenged

• Religion has ‘get out clauses’ which prevent religion from being disproved

What does Evans-Pritchard’s talk about?

• Among the Azande, witchcraft is a belief system used to explain misfortune, such as illness or accidents, and it coexists with practical, scientific knowledge.

• Evans-Pritchard showed that while the Azande understand natural causes (for example, termites weakening a granary), witchcraft explains why a particular person was affected at a particular time.

• This illustrates that belief systems are not simply “unscientific,” but can function as a rational ideology within a culture, offering meaning, social control, and moral explanations where science alone does not.

• This challenges Popper’s view that science always replaces religion or ideology.

Evaluate the witchcraft point?

The believers are trapped within their own ‘idiom of belief’ because they have to accept the witchcraft and cannot challenge it

What does Polyanyi argue?

All belief systems have 3 devices to sustain themselves in the face of contradictory evidence

1. Circularity - each idea is explained in terms of another idea

2. Subsidiary explanations

3. Denial of legitimacy to rivals - they reject alternative worldviews

Evaluation of open beliefs systems using case?

The case of Velikovsky was where he presented some theories about astronomy to the scientific community and they rejected it without reading the book. Scientists that called for a fair hearing were victimised and some lost their jobs.

How does Kuhn explain the case of Velikovsky?

• Scientists are socialised through training into a paradigm which tells scientists what reality is like and what to study

• Scientists that challenge the fundamental assumptions of the paradigm are ridiculed and not viewed as a scientist anymore

• Only exception is when there is a scientific revolution where there has been an accumulation of anomalies

Interpretivist sociologists have furthered this saying that all factual scientific knowledge is socially constructed based off paradigms

Explain Woolgar’s little green man study?

• Woolgar’s “little green men” example shows scientific knowledge is not objective but is shaped by social processes and interpretations. He argues that scientists may explain unfamiliar or unexplained observations in ways that fit existing theories, rather than immediately accepting radical explanations (such as aliens).

Explain the Marxist and Postmodernist view of science?

• Marxists view science as serving the interests of dominant groups. Advances in science have been driven by the need for capitalism eg: ballistics was studied to make new weaponry. Biological ideas have been seen to justify colonial expansion

• Postmodernists such as Lyotard say science is a meta-narrative/ a way of thinking. Science has become technoscience serving capitalist interests by producing commodities for profit

Define ideology?

Set of ideas and values/ belief system which is often distorted or one-sided or conceals the interests of a certain group. It is closed to criticism

Explain Marxism and ideology?

• The working class control the means of production but also the means production of ideas through education

• Victim blaming ideology eg: Bowles and Gintis ‘poor are dumb’ theory about meritocracy

• There is a false class consciousness among the workers

• Gramsci says the working class can overthrow the ruling class hegemony because they have a dual consciousness. To do this they must overthrow organic intellectuals.

Evaluate Marxism and ideology?

• Marx beliefs the working class will ultimately develop a true class consciousness and overthrow capitalism for communism

• Economic factors such as the fear of unemployment keep workers from rebelling

What is an ‘imagined community’?

Andersin says nations are imagined communities as although many of us identify with it we may never know most of its members. It can bind lots of people together and create a sense of purpose

How does Marxism and nationalism link?

Marx argues nationalism is a form of false class consciousness aiming to divide the international working class so the middle class can’t be overthrown. This is because capitalism leads working class people to believe they have more in common with the capitalists of their own country than the workers of other countries. This enables them to convince the working class to fight wars on their behalf

How is nationalism seen as a civil religion?

Religion and nationalism both integrate individuals into a larger social and political unit by making them feel part of something bigger than themselves. Modern societies may have different faiths which may divide people therefore nationalism provides a single national community. Education helps socialise people into the civil religion by learning a nations history or singing the national anthem

What does Gellner argue nationalism is?

• He also sees it as a false class consciousness however, he views it as a very modern phenomenon

• pre industrial societies were held togehter by small communities and ascribed status whereas today nationalism makes people feel equal before the law so education can impose a single standard culture on society

• Elites use nationalism to motivate the population to endure hardships

What did Mannheim say?

He distinguished between two types of belief system:

1. Ideological thought which justifies keeping things as they are and reflects the position and interests of the privileged working class. These groups benefit from maintaining status quo so their belief system tends to be conservative and based on hierarchy

2. Utopian thought justifies social change and reflects the interests of the unprivileged. Eg: Marxism

Evaluate Mannheim?

• The beliefs systems represent the interests of particular groups and not society as a whole therefore they only produce partial views of society

• He counters this with the ideas of a free floating intelligentsia which represents people detaching from the social groups. Free from representing the ideas of the social group they could arrive at a total worldview and understand society as a whole.

• However, many of the ideologies are opposed to other ideologies so it is hard to imagine the viewpoints being synthesised

What is said about feminism and ideology?

Marks describes how science has been used to exclude women from education. She said that male scientists used to say that educating women would lead to an unfeminine race of women and take them away from their true vocation which is to nurture the next generation

Religious systems have also called women inferior by saying they impure or unclean in menstruation. In some religions a women must not receive communion until she has been ‘churched’ and purified

However, not all religions and science subordinates women. Matriarchal religions and female deity’s.