Operationism VS Essentialism
- This is a preview of the essay.
To view the full text you must login!
Operationism vs. Essentialism
Science is a progressive enterprise. For the natural progression of science it is implausible to assume that there is an absolute answer to a question. However, this assumption is the basis of essentialism, "the idea that the only good scientific theories are those that give ultimate explanations of phenomena in terms of their underlying essences or their essential properties" (Stanovich, 2004, p.35). Questions asked in the scientific discipline can be answered only on a provisional basis. Therefore, questions posed in science must be operationally defined, stated in terms of quantifiable observations, and operationally answered. For without the operational definitions of worldly phenomenon, the theories would be unfalsifiable, and intrinsically flawed.
"Operationism is simply the idea that concepts in scientific theories must in some way be grounded in, or linked to, observable events that can be measured" (Stanovich, 2004, p.37)...