POSITIVISM
Charles François (2004). POSITIVISM, International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics, 2(2): 2591.
| Collection | International Encyclopedia of Systems and Cybernetics |
|---|---|
| Year | 2004 |
| Vol. (num.) | 2(2) |
| ID | ◀ 2591 ▶ |
| Object type | Epistemology, ontology or semantics |
- “The belief that the only qualities of systems which are real or meaningful are those which can be directly measured” (R. ROSEN, 1979, p.175).
This is R. ROSEN's systemic definition of positivism, that he comments in the following way: “Invariably such a belief is coupled with an extremely narrow view as to what in fact constitutes a measurement or observation, and leads inexorably to an assertion that whatever falls outside this narrow framework does not exist. Worst of all, an exclusively empirical approach gives rise to an utterly false dichotomy between ”experiment“ and ”theory“, which has done boundless mischief in the world…” (Ibid).