Description
The idea of approaching epistemological questions in a way that is simultaneously philosophical and respectful of the social dimensions of knowledge is relatively new. Epistemology through the 20th century was mostly focused on individual believers/knowers. Social Epistemology shifts the focus towards groups of believers/knowers and how social arrangements impact on the production, possession, and transmission of knowledge.
This course will examine issues in social epistemology that have a bearing on the history and philosophy of science. We will consider social epistemology as the challenge to more traditional individualistic approaches to knowledge- with the sciences and their practice functioning as the major focus area and primary source of case studies.
Major topics areas will include testimony and its problematisation in traditional epistemology, the veristic approach to social epistemology, the development of a genuine communitarian epistemology of science, constructivism and the sociology of scientific knowledge, the possibility of group knowers, disagreement, epistemic injustice and the nature of scientific expertise and its relation to democracy.
Module deliveries for 2024/25 academic year
Last updated
This module description was last updated on 19th August 2024.
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