Faculty of Philosophy
Department of Philosophy and Methodology of Science
Author: professor Iryna Dobronravova
Working program description
“Methodology and organization of scientific researches”
“International Methodology of European Law Research”
(Module 1)
for Master’s
Institute of International Relations
Specialization: “European Law”
Kyiv – 2022
Introduction
Discipline “Methodology and organization of scientific researches” is compulsory course. Taught during second semester 1 year Master’s program of Institute of International Relations, specialization: “European Law”.
Total amount of hours – 11.
Including:
Lectures – 6 hours;
Seminars – 4 hours;
Consultation – 1 hour.
For course evaluation, “modular-rating” system is used.
Objective: to provide the students with basic knowledge about methodologies, methods and organization of scientific processes as a part of training for their professional scientific career.
Course tasks:
- create the overview of modern methodology concepts, basic scientific learning methodologies and scientific research methods;
- create an overall image about the process of scientific research;
Discipline subject:
Methods and methodology of science during organization of the scientific research process.
Knowledge and skills pre-requests:
- to understand the need of methodology skill in further professional scientific career;
- to know the characteristics of basic reasoning methods (inductive, deductive inference) and methodology models (hypothetic-deductive, empiric and inductive);
- to be capable to apply basic methodology principles of scientific activity;
- to learn main evaluation criteria of scientific knowledge and requirements for the research activity.
Course role at a program scale:
“Methodology and organization of scientific researches” - is a mandatory course for a Master’s degree program.
Course Plan
(Module 1)
Theoretical basics of methodology and organization of scientific researches
CURRICULA
(6h. - lectures, 4 h. - seminars, 1h. – consulting, 19 h. – independent work of students) ___-
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Lectures |
Workshops |
Independent work of students. |
Current control evaluation |
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Methodology of scientific researches |
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1 |
Main methodologic traditions and variety of methodological systems. |
lecture 2 hours test |
workshop 2 hours speech |
6 hours preparation for presentation or essay |
20 points |
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2 |
.Science as research activity. |
Lecture 2 hours test |
workshop 1hour speech |
6 hours preparation for presentation or essay |
15 points |
|
3 |
Nonlinear style of thinking in post non-classical science. |
Lecture 2 hours test |
Workshop 1 hour speech |
7 hours preparation for presentation or essay |
15 points |
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|
|
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|
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Lecture 1. Methods and methodology of scientific researches. Main methodologic traditions in Europe of New Age and variety of methodological systems in XX century.
Main definitions: method, methodic. Reasoning in method application – methodology. Methodology as a philosophical discipline – history of methodology, Methodological traditions (empiricism and rationalism),
Variety of methodologic systems in philosophy of science in XX century.
Analytic methodological systems: logical empiricism (Vienna circle) and critical rationalism (K. Popper). Historical school: T.Kuhn, I.Lacatos, P. Feyerabend. Scientific realism (H.Putnam). Rational criticism of scientific values. (Laudan)
Workshop 1. Methodology and methods of scientific research. Main methodologic traditions and variety of methodological systems in XX century.
1. Main definitions: method, methodic. Reasoning in method application – methodology.
2. Methodological traditions in European philosophy of New Age. Empiricism (F. Bacon) and rationalism (R/Descartes)
3. Variety of methodologic systems in philosophy of science in XX century. Analytic methodological systems: logical empiricism (Vienna circle) and critical rationalism (K. Popper)
4. Historical school: T. Kuhn, I. Lacatos, P. Feyerabend.
5. Scientific realism (H. Putnam)
6. Rational criticism of scientific values. (L. Laudan)
Lecture 2. Science as research. Historical types of scientific rationality.
Basic approaches for science understanding: science as knowledge, social institute and research activity. Science of New Age in Europe as research. Foundations of science: ideals and norms of scientific researches, scientific world picture, philosophical foundations. Systems of foundations as historical types of scientific rationality. Global scientific revolution as a way to transit to new type of rationality. Classical, non-classical and post non-classical science/
Workshop 2. Science and scientific researches in a modern world.
1. Basic approaches for science understanding: science as knowledge, social institute and research activity.
2. Ideals and norms as regulative principles of scientific research activity and estimation of scientific knowledge.
3. Scientific world picture, its relation to scientific theories.
4. System of philosophical foundations of science.
5. Globally scientific revolutions and historical types of scientific rationality.
Lecture 3. Nonlinear style of thinking in post non-classical science.
Nonlinearity as basis of self-organization in open media far from equilibrium.
Synergetics as transdisciplinary program of researches of self-organization. Synergy means joint action. Self-organization as becoming of new integrative systems. Cooperative effects as coherence in movement of non-linear media elements to certain attractors, Joint actions of elements form the part of a new whole in subordination to becoming of complex whole system.
Critical points as points of branching of nonlinear dynamics. Bifurcation point as turning point of choice by chance of new real necessity, which contains a chance. Bifurcation situation as situation of formation the effective cause. Outer or inner impacts are conditions of choice one of alternative possibilities. System in bifurcation point is in uncertain state and even small impact can define further development as condition in formation of effective cause. It is bonus for human influence on free choice of favorable variant. However, it means risk and responsibility of human activity in such situations.
Order out of chaos and scenario of transition to dynamic chaos. Fractals (from “fractional dimension”) Fractals are complex structures with scale invariance (scale self-similarity). They appear in the edge of chaos in competition of different attractors.
Forms of social self-organization: exited crowd, game and myth.
.
Recommended literature:
Handbooks:
Andersen, H., Hepburn, B. Scientific method // https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/scientific-method/
Gauch, H.G. Jr. (2012) Scientific Method in Brief. Cambridge University Press.
The Oxford handbook of philosophy of social science /edited by Harold Kincaid. 2012.
Staddon, J. (2018) Scientific method. How Science Works, Fails to Work, and Pretends to Work. Routledge, New York, London
Original sources:
Kuhn T. Structures of Scientific Revolutions. Chicago, 1962
Laudan L. Science and Values. University of California Press. 1984.
Lakatos I.. Falsification and the Methodology of Scientific Research Programs / Criticism and the growth of Knowledge. Cambr. Univ. Press. 1970.
Feyerabend P. Against Method. First published by New Left Books, 1975.
Karl Popper Conjectures and Refutations. Routledge, 2002. Chapter 10.
Putnam H. Realism with a Human Face. Publisher: Harvard University Press, Year: 1992. Preface. Chapter 1.
Putnam H. Realism and Reason. Cambridge Univ. Press, 1983.
Stepin V. Theoretical Knowledge. A C.I.P. Catalogue record for this book is available from the Library of Congress. Published by Springer, P.O. Box 17, 3300 AA Dordrecht, The Netherlands. 2005. Chapters 3, 5.
Additional literature:
Dobronravova I.S. Dialectic as a Means for Understanding Nonlinear Science //" Dialectic, Cosmos, and Society, No. 10 (1997), 7-15. http://philsci.univ.kiev.ua/ENG/DOBRO/Dialec.html
Dobronravova
I. Nesterova M. Social Self-Organization as Cohesion Driver in Socio-Cultural
Sphere // Socio-Cultural Management
Journal. Volume 5 (2022), Number 1, pp. 58-73
doi: https://doi.org/10.31866/2709-846x.1.2022.257669
Multimedia resources:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-wrCpLJ1XAw&t=187s
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ioyWeUEyvo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IawIjqOJBU8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-X8Xfl0JdTQ&t=13s
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Evaluation scale
|
Mark (points) |
University scale |
ECTS scale |
|
90-100 |
Pass |
A – pass |
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85-89 75-84 |
Pass |
B – pass C - pass |
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65-74 60-64 |
Pass |
D – pass E - pass |
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1-59 |
Fail |
FX – fail F - fail |
For first module mark: max – 50 points, min -30 points.