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Chapter 4 - Inquiry in Medical Science

The Understanding Thesis

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  16 May 2024

Somogy Varga
Affiliation:
Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
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Summary

The chapter delves into the question of whether medicine is a science, examining arguments that suggest medicine is not a science due to differing aims, progress criteria, and moral commitments (as proposed by Munson 1981; Pellegrino 1998; Miller and Miller 2014). The chapter counters these arguments by challenging assumptions about science’s aims. Rather than simply increasing knowledge, the chapter defends the "Understanding Thesis" (informed by debates in epistemology and philosophy of science with reference to authors such as Kitcher 2001; 2008; 2011; Kvanvig 2003; Bird 2007; 2019a; 2019b; Douglas 2009; Pritchard 2010; Grimm 2014; Potochnik 2017), which holds that science’s aim is understanding, making the world more transparent. This aim is inherently practical, driven by our interest in manipulating the environment and bolstering our agency, thus making scientific inquiry responsive to promoting human agency and autonomy. As such, science, like medicine, is a moral enterprise, and there is no significant difference in terms of aims, progress criteria, or moral commitments that would disqualify medicine from being considered a science. It concludes by discussing the implications of this for scientists’ responsibilities.

Type
Chapter
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Science, Medicine, and the Aims of Inquiry
A Philosophical Analysis
, pp. 85 - 105
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
Print publication year: 2024

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  • Inquiry in Medical Science
  • Somogy Varga, Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
  • Book: Science, Medicine, and the Aims of Inquiry
  • Online publication: 16 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009449977.006
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  • Inquiry in Medical Science
  • Somogy Varga, Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
  • Book: Science, Medicine, and the Aims of Inquiry
  • Online publication: 16 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009449977.006
Available formats
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Save book to Google Drive

To save content items to your account, please confirm that you agree to abide by our usage policies. If this is the first time you use this feature, you will be asked to authorise Cambridge Core to connect with your account. Find out more about saving content to Google Drive.

  • Inquiry in Medical Science
  • Somogy Varga, Aarhus Universitet, Denmark
  • Book: Science, Medicine, and the Aims of Inquiry
  • Online publication: 16 May 2024
  • Chapter DOI: https://doi.org/10.1017/9781009449977.006
Available formats
×