On the philosophy of applied social sciences

Ilkka Niiniluoto

pp. 265-274

in: Hanne Andersen, Dennis Dieks, Thomas Uebel, Wenceslao J. Gonzalez, Gregory Wheeler (eds), New challenges to philosophy of science, Berlin, Springer, 2013

Abstract

The distinction between basic and applied research, widely used for the purposes of science policy, is notoriously vague and ambiguous. In earlier papers, I have argued that there is nevertheless a viable and systematic way of separating these two types of research.¹ An important form of applied research includes design sciences or 'sciences of the artificial" in the sense of Herbert Simon.² Applied social sciences, which pursue knowledge with the purpose of influencing social behavior and social institutions into a desired direction, can be counted as important examples of such design sciences.