Science, Scientific Method and Critique

Introduction

Science is any branch of study which employs scientific method. So it's not the subject matter but the method of study which determines whether a subject is science or not. There are many ways through which there can be knowledge of anything. One can have the knowledge of monsoon from an expert on meteorology. On the other hand, the same monsoon can be known through the prediction of the elder of a village community.  Through religious scriptures, one can have the knowledge of God. The socialization of an individual determines his view or knowledge about the society around him. So we can have know about the phenomena around us employing different kind of methods like consulting elders, consulting some religious books, consulting experts or even through own intuition. Similarly, Scientific method is a method to gain knowledge about phenomena around us but this method is distinct from all other methods in that it employs a pre-determined logic and rationality based direct approach towards study. Scientific method is based on direct and systematic empirical observation and verification of phenomena. It is this approach which distinguishes it from other methods of observation.

Critique

The most direct criticism is that we cannot have knowledge of each and everything from direct observations. For Example, How much does a mother loves her child can hardly be observed. So, Most of the faith-based phenomena can be taken out of the purview of Scientific Method. Similarly it is hardly debated whether Society can be observed just like a physical body and hence whether Scientific Method can be employed in the study of society or not?There is one more criticism which is highly popular in philosophical debates. It doubts the validity of generalization about a phenomenon after observing a few events, as done in Scientific Method.

Reference

• Prince Kadyan's Notes

Theory and fact

A theory is a plausible explanation about social phenomenon or a class of social phenomena, logically constructed and systematically organised that underscores the relationship between two well defined variables. It is more that a hypothesis or speculation reasoning but far from a scientific law, that is supported by evidence. a theory is thus contrasted with a fact, law and practice. A fact is a n empirical, verifiable observation whereas a theory is a systematized statement of relationship between facts. A theory can not be derived from empirical observation and generalization merely by means of rigorous induction. A theory is a symbolic construction and theory is matter of creative achievement. Theory is a broad explanation for a wide range of phenomena. Theories are concise, coherent, systematic, predictive, and broadly applicable. They usually integrate many individual hypotheses. A scientific theory must be testable with evidence from the natural world. If a theory can't be tested with experimental results, observation, or some other means, then it is not a scientific theory.

References

• Abraham, M. Francis (2006). Contemporary Sociology: An Introduction to Concepts and Theories. New Delhi: Oxford University Press
•  Berkeley Glossary

A good hypothesis

In social research, after selection of a topic/problem and review of literature; next logical step is formulation of a hypothesis or set of hypothesis. Based on his/her experience the researcher may assume possible relation between certain sets of variables. He/She may also infer such relationships from the literature review. Now, he formally states his/her expectation in the form of a series of hypothesis.

A hypothesis is statement of the relationship between two or more variables. For example, one might state that there is positive relationship between  two or more variables. For example, one might state that there is positive relationship between alcoholism and spousal abuse or between the practice of untouchability and inter-caste conflict. A good hypothesis, however has more than just a formal statement. It is also require an operational definition of the concepts, that is a precise and measurable definition of variables. The terms like 'old people' or 'senior citizens' are meaningless for scientific inquiry but if we say persons sixty years of age and older, we have an operational definition of the variable.

Similarly, hypothesis must be testable. Assertion that 'God exists' may be wonderful idea but it is not a research question.

Nomothetic and Idiographic Methods

Nomotheic methods is one of the research method in which analysis is directed towards formulation of general principles. From sociological perspective, application of this method entails that individual events are studied not for their own sake but for their significance in so far as they contribute to the formulation of generalization. Sociology and physical sciences are regarded as nomothetic sciences because of their primary goal is to abstract generalization from specific event and individual facts. 

Idiographic method on the other hand is a technique of studying human behaviour by a thorough analysis of individual cases. Here emphasis is more on detailed description and in-dept study than on generalizations  The case study method may be considered on idiographic method where emphasis is on the complete understanding of each individual case rather than upon deriving analytical generalization from characteristics of a large number of cases. History is regarded as an idiographic discipline because it is more concerned with study of particular event.

Content Analysis

A methodology in he social sciences for studying the content of communication. Earl Babbie defines it as "The Study of recorded human communication, such as book, websites, paintings and law". It is most commonly used by researchers in the social sciences to analyse recorded transcripts of interviewers with participants.

The techniques basically involves summarizing and qualitative analysis of messages that rely on the scientific method (including objectivity, inter-subjectivity, apriori design, reliability, validity, generalizability and hypothesis testing) and is not limited as to the context in which the message are created or presented. It is often involves building and applying a 'concept dictionary' or fixed vocabulary of terms on the basis of which words are extracted from the textual data for concording or statistical computation. 

Rapport

It is best understood as a set of practice and problems in qualitative research describing how simultaneously to get along with one's informants and get information from them. Specially, it refers to the establishment of good relationship between interviewers or ethnographers and their research subjects.

Rapport covers a range of moral and methodological concerns at the heart of the social inquiry, including empathy immersion, participation, friendship, honesty, collaboration, trust, exploitation, negotiation and loyalty.

Reliability of a sample

Sampling is an important aspect of social survey. It is the selection of relevant units of inquiry for the collection of data and should be done in a scientific manner. Therefore it is important to know how closely the measures based on sample represent the parameters and how much variation one may expect if other samples are analysed.The measures of reliability are concerned only with fluctuations due to random sampling and they have nothing to do with observational and computational errors. Whenever a measure of reliability is computed it is understood that the sample is adequate and has been selected according to a rigorously scientific procedure

According to large sample theory the reliability of a measure such as the arithmetic mean depends upon the number of cases in the sample and the variability of the values in the sample. The reliability of a measure is related to the size of the sample. The degree of variability of cases in a sample also has an important influence on the reliability of the measures computed from the sample. If the cases in the sample show a pronounced scatter a greater chance of fluctuation in the measures would naturally be expected.

Reference:

Sociologyguide   -  You can find lot many other resources here.