Syllabus

Title
5547 Logic and Methodology of Social Sciences
Instructors
Maximilian Margreiter, MA, BA, BSc (WU), ao.Univ.Prof. Dr. Gabriele Mras
Type
VUE
Weekly hours
2
Language of instruction
Englisch
Registration
02/27/23 to 03/02/23
Registration via LPIS
Notes to the course
Subject(s) Bachelor Programs
Dates
Day Date Time Room
Tuesday 03/14/23 03:30 PM - 04:30 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Tuesday 03/21/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Tuesday 03/28/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Tuesday 04/11/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Tuesday 04/18/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Tuesday 04/25/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.0.10 Audimax
Friday 05/05/23 02:30 PM - 03:30 PM Online-Prüfung
Tuesday 05/09/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.4.03
Tuesday 05/16/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.4.03
Tuesday 05/23/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.4.03
Tuesday 05/30/23 03:30 PM - 06:00 PM TC.4.03
Monday 06/26/23 01:30 PM - 02:30 PM Online-Einheit
Contents

This is an introductory course into logic, the philosophy of science and the philosophy of the social sciences. It deals with questions concerning

* the aims of scientific inquiries,

* the differences between science and non-science

* the potential validity of reasoning based on empirical data in distinction to deductive reasoning, and

* the presuppositions of all empirical inquiries.

The questions we will pursue are 

- questions in the philosophy of science and the history of the philosophy of science,

- epistemological and 

- metaphysical or ontological questions.

In order to answer these questions we will look into the beginning of philosophical reasoning from Antiquity to the Middle Ages to the “Scientific Revolution”. What are early views of “demonstration” of empirical investigations (Aristotle, Francis Bacon)? We will then focus on the scepticism concerning the foundations of such methods (David Hume), and Immanuel Kant's dissolution of these doubts in his „Copernican Turn“. 

Toward the end of part A of this course we’ll have a look into the rise of the idea of “social sciences” in the 19th century  (J. St. Mill, William Whewell, Auguste Comte) and the development of a "new mathematical" logic by Gottlob Frege. Then we will focus on the most influential methodological views in the 20th century based on this "mathematical" logic: Logical Empiricism and Critical Rationalism. 

(Part A) The philosophy of science

The lecture part (= part A) of this course consists of an introduction and overview of the course structure, 4 lectures, and a session where we will look back at 2000 years of methodological thought. 

0. Introduction: 14th March 2023

1. Scientific Reasoning in Antiquity: 21st March 2023

2. Scholasticism and the Scientific Revolution: 28th March 2023

3. Induction and the Presuppositions of all Empirical Observation: 11th April 2023

4. "Theories of Confirmation" and the development of a new, mathematical logic: 18th April 2023

5.  Overview and Repetition: 25th April 2023

The fifth session is Q&A session. There is NO attendance requirement for part A. The lectures take place in HS TC.0.10. The most important parts of the 4 lectures are available as audio/slides. 

Learning outcomes

Learning outcomes in general

(i) to develop an appreciation for the scientific enterprise as such, to become familiar with the history of methodological thinking,

(ii) to develop the deductive and analytical skills needed in scientific reasoning to enhance the ability to approach questions in the empirical sciences by raising questions about the adequate methods, and

(iii) to gain knowledge of the debates about the potential difference between natural and social sciences

The learning outcomes in particular of part (A) are

(i) to gain knowledge on the history of methodological thinking,

(ii) to construe premises and valid conclusions in deductive syllogistic arguments,

(iii) to be able to identify the specific character of inductive arguments,

(iv) to understand the limitations concerning the possibility of justifying the results of empirical inquiries, and

(v) to apply various methods of empirical reasoning in the light of these limitations

The learning outcomes in particular of part (B) are:  

(vi) to understand the difference in the ontological status of the social sciences, and

(vii) to apply the various methods and concepts that you have learned in part A .

Attendance requirements

The course  is divided into a lecture part (part A) and a “Übung” (part B).

For part A (lectures) of this course, there is NO attendance requirement.  

Between part A and part B the multiple choice exam will take place.

Part B  (Application) requires 100% attendance (sessions on the 9th May, 16th May, 23rd May, 30th May)

 

Teaching/learning method(s)

Lecture part (A): (unsurprisingly) consits of a number of lectures. 

There is a lecture-manuscript as text in Learn, slides and multiple choice and SC questions with automated feedback. To make sure that we all are "on board", there are 3 weekly assignments, and weekly MC/SC tests (don't worry there is really enough time for 15 questions — namely 60 minutes, you have almost 1 week time to choose when to do the 60 minutes MC/SC test), (plenty of) literature (primary and secondary) is made available in LearnWU. 

Application part  (B): this is really the part for discussion.

There will be a very short talk (not more than 20 minutes) at the beginning of first three sessions. We will use the concepts and ideas that you have learned in Part A to analyze and critically discuss questions and/or problems in the philosophy of social science. You will have to read one text per session and you will be provided with key question to structure your reading. We will be using various discussion formats.  You are required to write your own paper in a group, final dicussion at the end in the form of a „world cafe“. 

Assessment

Please study the requirements and the assessment information carefully

1. Final MC/SC-test: 30 questions (30 minutes): Max. points: 80.

2. Weekly assignments: 3 weekly assignments — 5 questions, max. 3 points for every question (depending on the sub-questions), 15 max points for every assignment. In total, for 5 x 3 assignments = 45 points. Points are given on an all or nothing principle. 8 points have to be reached in order for one assignment to be positive = to get 15 points

3. Weekly MC/SC tests: Maximum points for 4 MC/SC tests (à 5 points) are 20 points.

Please understand that I cannot comment every individual of the 260 assignments. In case of a negative assignment, please contact Mr. Konstantin Philipp or me by email; or altrnatively consult me in my office hours (during part A). There will be no discussion/feeeback to your grading of part A after part A ended. 

4. contribution in discussion sessions and during the world cafe. 

5. Short paper, Max: 55 points (groups of  5), deadline: June 6, 23:55. 

6. There are  + points for answering questions of your colleagues in the “foren”: max 10 points (1 point for raising a relevant question, 2,5 points for answering a question of a colleague of yours). Questions, which are raised in „Foren“ after the course ended, do not count. 

Points in total: 200

182 - 200:      very good (1)

162 - 180:      good (2) 

140 - 160:      satisfactory (3) 

110 - 138:      sufficient (4) 

below 110:     fail (5)

180, 5 181, 181, 5 points will be treated as „in-between“-grades  (as 160, 5 etc.) with the possibility to get a higher grade by adding points from your contribution to “foren”- discussions (e.g. answering questions of your colleagues in the “foren”: see above. So if you had in total 181,5 points and if you had answered 1 questions in the foren, you would receive a 1 as final grade.

 

Prerequisites for participation and waiting lists

Progress in your studies. 

Readings

Please log in with your WU account to use all functionalities of read!t. For off-campus access to our licensed electronic resources, remember to activate your VPN connection connection. In case you encounter any technical problems or have questions regarding read!t, please feel free to contact the library at readinglists@wu.ac.at.

Recommended previous knowledge and skills

Knowledge in critical thinking, logic and philosophy is welcomed but not required.

Warning: You might feel at first not comfortable with the level of generality needed in thinking about “logic and methodology” at first — just give it a while to “sink in” + raise questions in „Foren“ (I indeed look into them every day). Don‘t forget:  In part B there will be lots of discussion of the theoretical aspects in part A. 

Availability of lecturer(s)

For all questions and problems concerning Learn and the structure of the course please only contact: Konstantin Philipp: konstatin.philipp@wu.ac.at

E-mail: gabriele.mras@wu.ac.at, maximilian.margreiter@wu.ac.at

Phone: 31336-4257

In the office hours: D4, 3rd floor  (Thursday: 11:00 - 12:00)

You might also contact Ms. Bettina Gerdenich: bettina.gerdenich@wu.ac.at

Other

Please make yourself familiar with LearnWU:

What is the lecture part (A), What is UE part (B): see description in the syllabus: "course-content" + description of single sessions. What is the attendance requirement for the lecture part (A), What is the attendance requirement for UE part (B): see description in the syllabus "attendance requirement"  for lecture part (a) and UE part (B).

Where are the"To Dos"(Assignments/MC tests), when are the deadlines? see Learn "Assignments"

What is the max. group-size for the assignments? assignments are individual for part A!   Groups of 5 for the short paper in part B. 

How can I answer the "To Dos"(Assignments): see Learn "Part A, PhilOfScience Lecture Texts 1-5" (should be enough), there are also slides ... and certainly the "recommended literature" (uploaded). 

How much of the literature has to be read in oder to be able to answer the assignment-questions? The idea (and my hope) is that the lecture texts + slides + the strongly recommended readings are really enough to understand the topics and enough to be able to answer the assignments and the MC test.

It is not expected that you study all the uploaded literature. The additional literature is mainly secondary literature and chosen because of its value for further study. Please, do not "google around"(sometimes WIKIPEDIA for example is very good, sometimes it is too superficial, and sometimes is its just not correct at all). 

How can I get help for the weekly MC Test? see "Part A, PhilOfScience Lecture Texts 1-5" there are Part A MC questions  with automated feedback. ... ATTENTION:  After the deadlines no MC TEST/assignment will be accepted. 

What are the assessment criteria? Information about assessment criteria, etc can be found in Learn/the syllabus

How will the final MC/SC test be organized? The Final Exam will be held online via LEARN:  5th May 14:30-15:30. It will be supervised by WU ZID and you have to give us your consent ... for video supervision etc you must not forget to verify your ID days before the exam etc.. (We will send an info email 1 week before). In case of proven internet connection problems, there will be a 2nd date for the exam. 

What if you miss the MC Test in May? — There will be a 2nd date for this Test: in the last week of June (DistanceLearning will inform us, but not before the middle of May). BUT: we need an official confirmation, why, if, you cannot attend it!

What about grades, points etc... ? see "assessment criteria". Information about assessment criteria, etc can be found in Learn/the syllabus. Discussion about the sum of the points for weekly assignments + MC tests + final MC test + the short paper presentation at the end of this course only.

MC tests: above 60% = 100%, weekly assignments: 3 of 5 questions have to be positive for 15 points, if not 0 points. Information about assignments deficiencies per email only (please write me an email). 

Whom can I ask, if I have questions, problems ... ? Me, Maximilian Margreiter, Konstantin Philipp.

ECTS Points — Work Load

This course has 6 ECTS points.

The workload for this course is therefore ca. 150 hours. If one substracts 30 hours for the preparation for the 1/2 hour MC exam (I don’t think that you will need that much time, however), there are 120 hours left.

This means that you should reserve roughly 70 hours as workload for the part A (exam preparation excluded) for listening to the audios, reading the lecture-texts, and the literature, answering the weekly assignments of part A; so roughly 2 days per week. 

Unit details
Unit Date Contents
1 14.03.2023: 15:30-18:00

Our first meeting is one where questions concerning the organization of this course as well as questions concerning your course contributions are discussed (where you can find x in Learn, where to upload the assignments, how they are graded, what the MC exam will be like … ). I in addition will give a brief overview of the structure and the purpose of this course. 

I hope to see — but there is a very rich syllabus, too (in case you cannot come). 

2 21.03.2023: 15:30-18:00

1. “Scientific Reasoning in Antiquity: Aristotle‘s Logic, the Stoa, and the School of Baghdad“ (Lecture)

Required Readings:

  • Lecture-text in LearnWU

Recommended Readings:

Additional:

Info:

  • Aristotle and Plato  in: "History of Ideas"
3 28.03.2023: 15:30-18:00

2. „The Middle Ages and the ‚Scientific Revolution‘ — Scholasticism and the search for a method in the empirical sciences“ (Lecture) 

Required Readings:

  • Lecture-text in LearnWU

Recommended Readings:

Additional:

Info:

  • Biography Galileo Galilei
  • Bacon, Kepler, Kopernikus and Galileo Galilei in: "History of Ideas"
  • Observing Facts in: "Question about the objectivity observation and its reliability"
4 11.04.2023: 15:30-18:00

3. The „problem of induction“ and its significance for methodological questions. Some thoughts about Kant‘s solution of „Hume‘s problem“ + some comments about J.St. Mill‘s conclusions from „Hume‘s problem“. (Lecture)

Required Readings:

  • Lecture-text in LearnWU

Recommended Readings:

Additional:

Info:

  • Hume and Kant in: "History of Ideas"
5 18.04.2023: 15:30-18:00

4. „Theories of confirmation in the 20th century and the question of the reducibility of the social sciences to other empirical sciences“ (Lecture) 

  • Lecture-text in LearnWU

Recommended Readings:

Additional:

Info:

  • Carnap and Popper in: "History of Ideas"
6 25.04.2023: 15:30-18:00

Overview and Repetition

7 05.05.2023: 14:30-15:30

MC test for part A  — online (!) exam with video supervision. Yes, it is an online exam — we wanted to be on „the safe side“. 
If you cannot take part, we need an official justification why not. 

There will be a second date for the MC test in the last week of June (DistanceLearning will inform us when exactly in late May — as soon as we know we will post it here). 

8 09.05.2023:

Introduction, Philosophy of Social Science, Assignment of topics

Required Readings:

9 16.05.2023:

Ontological Issues

Required Readings:

Background Readings:

  • Tollefsen, D.: Social Ontology; in N. Cartwright and E. Montuschi (eds.), Philosophy of the Social Sciences: A New Introduction, Oxford University Press 2014, pages: 85-101
10 23.05.2023:

Correlation and Causation

Required Readings:

  • Salmon, W.: Introduction; in: Logic, Prentice-Hall, 1973. pages: 81-116.
11 30.05.2023:

Paper presentation in the form of a world cafe.

The topics for your papers will be assigned after the first session of Part B so please be ready to form groups after the first session

 

I am looking forward to your discussions and your presentations!

12 26.06.2023

Final exam second 13:30-14:30

Last edited: 2023-06-26



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