Philosophers now commonly reject the value free ideal for science by arguing that non-epistemic values, including personal or social values, are permissible within the core of scientific research. However, little attention has been paid to the normative political consequences of this position. This paper explores these consequences and shows how political theory is fruitful for proceeding in a world without value-neutral science. I draw attention to an oft-overlooked argument employed by proponents of the value free ideal I dub the “political legitimacy argument.” This argument claims that the value-free ideal follows directly from the foundational principles of liberal democracy. If so, then the use of value-laden scientific information within democratic decision making would be illegitimate on purely political grounds. Despite highlighting this unaddressed and important argument, I show how it can be rejected. By appealing to deliberative democratic theory, I demonstrate scientific information can be value-laden and politically legitimate. The deliberative democratic account I develop is well suited for capturing the intuitions of many opponents of the value free ideal and points to a new set of questions for those interested in values in science.
...More
Thesis
Intemann, Kristen K.;
(2004)
Should Science Be Value-Free? Rethinking the Role of Ethical and Political Values in the Justification of Scientific Theories
(/isis/citation/CBB001562070/)
Book
Lacey, Hugh;
(2005)
Values and Objectivity in Science: The Current Controversy about Transgenic Crops
(/isis/citation/CBB000601025/)
Book
Kincaid, Harold;
Dupré, John;
Wylie, Alison;
(2007)
Value-Free Science? Ideals and Illusions
(/isis/citation/CBB000772377/)
Book
Machamer, Peter;
Wolters, Gereon;
(2004)
Science, Values, and Objectivity
(/isis/citation/CBB000501500/)
Article
McCormick, Sabrina;
(2007)
Democratizing Science Movements: A New Framework for Mobilization and Contestation
(/isis/citation/CBB000780240/)
Essay Review
Manuela Fernández Pinto;
(2016)
Democratic Values and Their Role in Maximizing the Objectivity of Science
(/isis/citation/CBB766748721/)
Article
Shavit, Ayelet;
(2004)
Shifting Values Partly Explain the Debate over Group Selection
(/isis/citation/CBB000501630/)
Book
Wayne Melville;
Donald Kerr;
(2020)
Virtues as Integral to Science Education: Understanding the Intellectual, Moral, and Civic Value of Science and Scientific Inquiry
(/isis/citation/CBB298334343/)
Book
Michael Polanyi;
(2015)
Personal Knowledge: Towards a Post-Critical Philosophy
(/isis/citation/CBB914837869/)
Book
Péter Hartl;
Adam Tamas Tuboly;
(2021)
Science, Freedom, Democracy
(/isis/citation/CBB476631277/)
Book
Giuseppe Boscarino;
(2016)
Le forme e i mutamenti della scienza
(/isis/citation/CBB208526052/)
Article
Pietro Daniel Omodeo;
(2020)
The Struggle for Objectivity: Gramsci’s Historical-Political Vistas on Science against the Background of Lenin’s Epistemology
(/isis/citation/CBB011713085/)
Chapter
Evandro Agazzi;
(2016)
Il valore culturale della scienza
(/isis/citation/CBB882918228/)
Article
Stefania Achella;
(2020)
Ragioni della scienza e ragioni politiche. Alcune considerazioni filosofiche
(/isis/citation/CBB319793049/)
Book
Sandra Harding;
(2015)
Objectivity and Diversity: Another Logic of Scientific Research
(/isis/citation/CBB383080414/)
Book
Kitcher, Philip;
(2001)
Science, Truth and Democracy
(/isis/citation/CBB000470656/)
Book
Mauro Dorato;
(2023)
Science and Representative Democracy: Experts and Citizens
(/isis/citation/CBB191701282/)
Chapter
Gerhardt, Uta;
(2006)
Zäsuren und Zeitperspektiven. Überlegungen zu “Wertfreiheit” und “Objektivität” als Problemen der Wissenschaftsgeschichte
(/isis/citation/CBB000953811/)
Article
Lyria Bennett Moses;
(September 2018)
Is Your Algorithm Dangerous?
(/isis/citation/CBB606456975/)
Article
Hansson, Sven Ove;
(2007)
Values in Pure and Applied Science
(/isis/citation/CBB000830385/)
Be the first to comment!