2. Review – Natural Science Definition - understanding nature of science through evidence, meaningful experiments, weighing of possibilities, testing hypothesis, and establishing theories, to get to conclusion
3. so… What is Human Science? Definition - the study and interpretation of the experiences, activities, constructs, and artifacts associated with human beings - attempts to expand and enlighten the human being's knowledge of his or her existence
4. Four key aspects applied to the study of Human Science Observation Measurement Experiments Laws …What is the problem?
5. Observation We cannot directly observe other people’s mind Questionnaires may be misleading or biased (= loaded questions) Observing people may affect the way they behave (= observer effect)
6. Measurement Social phenomena are difficult to measure e.x.) “How many thoughts have you had today?” Impossible to answer this because there is no way to measure thoughts.’
7. Experiments Human sciences study complex social situations in which it is difficult to run controlled experiments Various moral considerations limit our willingness to experiment
8. Laws Human sciences are not very good at predicting things Human sciences usually uncover trends rather than laws Science laws are probabilistic in nature
9. Conclusion They are neither as flawed as their critics believe nor as successful as their defenders hope. Human sciences seem to lack the explanatory power of the natural science Since we typically explain human behavior in terms of its meaning and purpose, we may never be able to reduce the human sciences to natural science.
10. Work Cited “Natural science and Pseudo science” – ppt from Nanase/ Manaka “Theory of Knowledge” – van de Lagemaat Filippo, David San. "What Is Human Science?" Lutz-San Filippo - Home. 20 Feb. 1991. Web. 11 Nov. 2010. Bekoff, Marc, and Gay Bradshaw. "Integrating Natural and Human Sciences." Animal Liberty. Web. 11 Nov. 2010.
