The document discusses different philosophies of science as they relate to nursing. It describes: 1) Analytic philosophy which focuses on logic and the scientific method to find a single truth, and continental philosophy which examines lived experiences and historical contexts to understand relationships. 2) The perceived view of continental philosophy which sees theories as value-laden and subjective rather than absolutely right or wrong. 3) A new emerging philosophy that synthesizes analytic and continental views using chaos and complexity science, seeing systems as interconnected and outcomes as unpredictable. 4) The importance for nurses to question their assumptions about science and understand how different philosophies aim to either control or understand patients.

1. Chapter 1
Philosophy of Science:
An Introduction

2. Introduction
• Philosophy of science is the perspective the
nurse utilizes in every patient, family, or group
encounter.
• Each individual has his or her own philosophy
that determines the ideas he or she is or is not
open to.
• It is important for nurses to examine their
philosophy and question the assumptions they
make.

3. What Is Science?
• Science is from the Latin word scientia, which
means “knowledge.”
• It refers to both processes and outcomes of
processes, such as general laws and
observations.
• Laws are utilized in systematic ways to create
a body of knowledge about a topic.

4. Natural Hard Sciences
• Physics, mathematics, and chemistry are examples of
natural sciences.
• Considered “pure,” or stand alone, unique bodies of
knowledge.
• Based on the assumption that reality is objective and,
therefore, reproducible and reliable.
• Explanations are reasonable, constant and consistent,
accurate, objective, discoverable, and understandable
• In medicine, they assume a disease focus rather than a
person focus.

5. Soft Applied Sciences
• Sociology, psychology, and anthropology are
examples of applied sciences.
• Focus is on the application of bodies of knowledge to
meet human needs.
• Rely on inherent assumptions of natural sciences but
do not assume that reality is objective.
• In medicine, soft applied sciences are found in social
work, psychotherapy and examination of healthcare
disparities.

6. Human Science
• Emphasizes the importance of individual scientists on
the scientific process.
• Posits that the nature of science and role of the
scientist are different when a subject is viewed as
human science rather than natural or applied
science.
• The scientist and the subject cannot be separated
from each other
• In medicine, human science is the nurse’s
recognition of himself or herself as a scientist
involved in providing care.

7. Scientific Method: Physical Science
• Natural science relies on a linear problem solving
process, or the scientific method.
• Method is base on the assumption that observation
is universal.
• The goal is accurate, reproducible events that do not
take researcher individuality or consciousness into
account (control through prediction).
• Decisions scientists make impact results, which
introduces a subjective element.

8. The Aim of Science
• Natural sciences aim to develop knowledge
for the sake of developing knowledge and
search for truth.
• Applied sciences aim to utilize knowledge by
applying it to a specific purpose.
• Human science aims to improve quality of life
and highlight individual importance by
understanding what helps people maximize
their functional abilities.

9. Scientific Method: Human Science
• Due to its concrete rather than abstract
nature, human science utilizes different
methods than natural sciences.
• Scientists and subjects are treated as parts of
the same whole and methods are dynamic
while still being rigorous.
• Contextual consistency, purposive sampling,
question validity, and message validation are
emphasized.

10. Criteria for Science (1 of 2)
• Science must differentiate itself from non-
science or pseudoscience; this is particularly
true of natural sciences and relies on five
criteria:
– Intersubjective testing: Two people observing the
same entity the same way should obtain the same
results
– Reliability: The same result is achieved time and
again under the same conditions

11. Criteria for Science (2 of 2)
– Definiteness and precision: Creating identical
circumstances for repeat experiments leads to the
same results.
– Coherence: A focus on the connectedness of the
parts of an experiment and their relation to one
another.
– Comprehensiveness and scope: The ability of an
outcome to be used for something other than its
intended purpose.

12. Questions for the Practitioner
• Is nursing pure or applied science?
• Is care provided for the purpose of prediction and
control?
• Are there universals in patient care provision?
• Does an external world independent of human
consciousness color patient care?
• Does nursing satisfy the five science criteria?
• Is nursing practice objective?

13. Philosophy
• Philosophy comes from the Greek philosophia which
means “love of wisdom.”
• Involves the search for meaning and represents a
perspective and its set of beliefs.
• Is both a process and an outcome.
• It is the application of a belief to situations known
and unknown.
• Relies on epistemology and ontology in the
application of a belief to situations.

14. Philosophy of Science
• Philosophy of science is where the two disciplines
meet to examine a body of knowledge and the
approaches used to study it.
• In nursing, it is an examination of concepts, theories,
and laws as they relate to practice, understanding,
deliberate thought, and evolution of praxis.
• Requires mindfulness of objective and individual
perspectives and comfort with the assumptions and
underpinnings of the various philosophical
perspectives.

15. How Do We Know?
• Key Question in philosophy of science
• Tradition
• Authorities (institution, police, professor, church)
• Doctrine
• Reason
• Common sense
• Science
– Knowledge derived from methods that may be linear or
complex (chaotic) depending on the view and approach

16. Analytic Philosophy (1 of 3)
• Focuses more on the use of the process of logic and
rational discourse than on the subject itself.
• Focuses on the search for a single truth through
scientific process.
• Closely associated with logical positivism, rigid
adherence to the scientific method, and the belief in
external world structure.
• Based on the belief that a statement is meaningful
only if it is proven true or false through
experimentation.

17. Analytic Philosophy: Logical Positivism (2 of 3)
• Four rules of logical positivism
– Phenomenalism
– Nominalism,
– The denial of cognitive value in value judgments and
normative statements
– The essential unity of the scientific method
• Requires a rigid adherence to the scientific method,
a belief in cause and effect, replicability, and an
unwavering belief in an external world structure that
remains independent of self.
• Belief in verifiability principle.

18. Analytic Philosophy (2 of 3)
• Criticized as too rigid, too deductive, and lacking
recognition of the human experience.
• Logical positivism segued into empiricism.
• The scientific method is paramount, but truths must be
generated by experience
• Both logical positivism and empiricism were
incorporated into the received view (realism).
• Theories are either right or wrong and must be formalized
and axiomized
• Based on the search for a single truth

19. Continental Philosophy (1 of 3)
• Focuses on the connection of an idea to the
world and historical context around that idea.
• About the relationships among people, ideas,
meaning, and historical connectedness rather
than theories or truths.
• Human science is dominated by continental
philosophy and is based on connectedness, not
cause and effect.
• It examines lived experiences in the past as well
as the present and historical context.

20. • Phenomenology: There is value in universal experience.
– Focus on examining phenomena that appear in the consciousness of the
subjects
– From an examination of personal experience, the essences of the
phenomena are drawn
• Hermeneutics: deals with the interpretation of a message that
is being delivered.
– Meaning and understanding are the aims of philosophical inquiry
– Assumes that people are social and dialogical beings; that culture,
language, skills, and experiences create shared understandings; that
there is a continual circle of connectedness and understanding; that
understanding precedes interpretation; and that the interpreter and the
interpreted are seen as one
Continental Philosophy (2 of 3)

21. Continental Philosophy(3 of 3)
• Post-structuralism: The message’s meaning is determined
by the recipient’s perception and the vehicle for delivery is
not significant to the message.
– The study of structures is a cultural phenomenon open to
interpretations/ misinterpretations
– Equalizes the imbalance of power between providers and patients
• All varieties evolve around context, meaning, and the
knowing of the subject.
• Collectively, continental philosophies may also be called
the perceived view, antirealism, or idealism.

22. Perceived View
• A continental philosophy suggesting that theories are
neither right nor wrong and that observation leads to
value-laden theories.
• Observation involves utilization of the senses and the
mind and is subjective due to the physical and
mental components involved.
• Many different methods and kinds of theories must
be used to obtain either truth or understanding.
• Use methods appropriate to the question which may
be either quantitative, qualitative, or both.

23. Chaos and Complexity
• Contemporary philosophers synthesize analytic and
continental philosophy into a new and emerging philosophy
of science.
• This philosophy incorporates chaos and complexity science to
bring together truth and understanding in a dynamic way.
• Posits that the universe is a whole made of interrelated parts.
– Complex adaptive, dynamic systems are connected to the
environment and influenced both by what comes before and what
comes after
• Assumptions include embeddedness, distributed control,
multi-directionality, coexistence of order and disorder, and
unpredictable outcomes.

24. Question the Assumptions
• Philosophy of science is complex and many schools of
thought exist.
• When reflecting on your philosophy, it is important to
consider several questions:
– What are the assumptions of each philosophy?
– Do you aim to control or understand?
– Is there only one way to resolve a problem?
– What is your praxis wedded to?
– How can you be the best practitioner possible?
– What do patients, families, and communities need?
– Are you the nurse you want to be?

25. Conclusion
• Science and philosophy require examination of
both knowledge and understanding.
• It is important to understand the ideological
differences of different scientific and
philosophical schools and incorporate portions of
each in your individual philosophy.
• Utilizing a philosophy that constantly questions
assumptions will help you evolve as a nurse.