Scientific Methodology and the Evolution of Research

The Scientific Method and Its Procedures

A method is a procedure composed of several steps that allow for an end goal. There are various approaches to this process:

• Deductive method: This involves extracting specific data from a complete or general conclusion.
• Inductive method: This involves drawing a general conclusion from specific or private data. After observing what happens several times, it is considered what will happen to all instances of the same type. While it has the advantage of providing principles applicable to all events, it faces several problems: scientists may rely on observation with a specific purpose, and the reality of the principles achieved is often questionable.

The Hypothetico-Deductive Method

The hypothetico-deductive method is a combination of both induction and deduction. It consists of several distinct steps:

• Defining the problem: Starting with the discovery of a problematic situation involving humans.
• Formulation of a hypothesis: Proposing a possible explanation.
• Deduction of consequences: Determining the implications of the hypothesis if it were true or false.
• Contrastation of the assumption: Checking whether or not the consequences occur.
• Refutation of the hypothesis: The rejection of hypotheses when they do not meet the expected consequences.
• Getting results: Formulating a new law or theory.

Regarding the hypothesis, the method does not strictly establish how they arise; they may emerge through imagination, luck, or chance.

Karl Popper: Verification and Falsification

According to Karl Popper, verification involves checking the truth of a hypothesis, while falsification serves as an alternative to the problems associated with verification.

Progress and the Frontiers of Science

Popper argued that one cannot consider any theory as absolute truth because it can always be falsified. In contrast, Thomas Kuhn noted that theories are not abandoned simply because they are challenged. Instead, anomalies may produce a crisis that eventually leads to a scientific revolution.

The Institutionalization of Science

This involves collective knowledge, which a society considers correct, versus personal knowledge, which allows for the steady development of ideas even when society is reluctant to accept them. However, certain facts force us to abandon this view:

• Scientific research depends on political and economic institutions.
• Economic priorities determine scientific objectives.
• The existence of a global scientific community.