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Strong Constructivism - from a Sociologist's Point of View: A Personal Addendum to Sismondo's Paper.

Authors :
Cetina, Karin Knorr
Source :
Social Studies of Science (Sage Publications, Ltd.). Aug93, Vol. 23 Issue 3, p555-563. 9p.
Publication Year :
1993

Abstract

The article focuses on sociologist Sergio Sismondo's paper on constructivism. Sismondo's paper puts into focus disagreements and differences in understanding between those who have been associated with constructivism and those who are not. In defining ontology as part of historical experience, constructivism makes a characteristic shift, it takes a philosophical question or concept and reconstructs it within the domain of empirical analysis and theory. Constructivism owns many questions to philosophy, a fact picked up very well in Sismomdo's paper. What is often less understood is that, for constructivist studies, what is important and what is not just the question, it is the shift. In other words, these studies display mentality towards philosophical concepts, and it is where they run to and how they reformulated the issue that account for their own interest. Sismondo misconstrues the thesis that the world is a consequence, rather than merely a precondition, of scientific accounts. This is the sense in which he makes it appear as if the material world were an automatic consequence of scientific knowledge.

Details

Language :
English
ISSN :
03063127
Volume :
23
Issue :
3
Database :
Academic Search Index
Journal :
Social Studies of Science (Sage Publications, Ltd.)
Publication Type :
Academic Journal
Accession number :
11591551
Full Text :
https://doi.org/10.1177/0306312793023003005