Methodology Can Shape Method theorem (Barseghyan-2015)
This is an answer to the question Role of Methodology in Scientific Change that states "A methodology can shape employed methods, but only if its requirements implement abstract requirements of some other employed method."
Methodology Can Shape Method theorem was formulated by Hakob Barseghyan in 2015.1 It is currently accepted by Scientonomy community as the best available answer to the question.
Contents
Scientonomic History
Acceptance Record
| Community | Accepted From | Acceptance Indicators | Still Accepted | Accepted Until | Rejection Indicators |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Scientonomy | 1 January 2016 | The theorem became de facto accepted by the community at that time together with the whole theory of scientific change. | Yes |
Question Answered
Methodology Can Shape Method theorem (Barseghyan-2015) is an attempt to answer the following question: What role do methodologies play in scientific change? Are methodologies capable of affecting employed methods?
See Role of Methodology in Scientific Change for more details.
Description
A methodology can affect an employed method when it implements one or more abstract requirements of another employed method. Thus, the role normative methodology plays in the process of scientific change is a creative role, in which methods are changed through the implementation of other abstract requirements from some other employed method.
This theorem follows from the third law which states that a method becomes employed only when it is deducible from other employed methods and accepted theories of the time.
The third law leaves some room for methodologies’ to play an active role in scientific change, specifically, in cases when a concrete method fulfills the requirements of an employed abstract method. The same abstract requirements can usually be implemented in a wide range of different ways (e.g. there is a whole array of concrete cell counting methods all implementing the same abstract requirement that when counting the number of cells, the resulting value is acceptable only if it is obtained with an "aided" eye).1pp. 151-152 In such cases, methodology can play a decisive role in method employment; what later becomes the requirements of the employed method can be first suggested as a methodology. Thus, the double-blind trial method was first devised as a methodology, as a set of explicitly stated rules, and only after that did it become actually employed as a method of drug testing.1pp. 240-243
Reasons
No reasons are indicated for this theory.
If a reason supporting this theory is missing, please add it here.
Questions About This Theory
There are no higher-order questions concerning this theory.
If a question about this theory is missing, please add it here.
