Objectives and competences
Objectives:
Students should understand that:
Critical thinking includes understanding of a distinction between „real world“ and „social construction“ of the world.
Limits and problems of different kinds of relativism.
Pro et contra in the case of naturalism.
Introducing of regional ontologies
Content (Syllabus outline)
The question of the nature of social reality and its relation to physical and psychological reality.
Explanations in social sciences and how they resemble, or differ from, explanations in natural sciences.
The role of rationality in the constitution and understanding of social phenomena.
Types of laws and theories in social sciences.
(Dis)Ability of social sciences to predict, understand and explain phenomena such as September 11th.
Learning and teaching methods
— Lectures
— Position papers-controversial topics (pro et contra).
— Research papers and their presentations
Intended learning outcomes - knowledge and understanding
• The ability to read and comprehend philosophical writings.
• The ability to critically and philosophically examine significant issues in society.
• The ability to cogently argue (verbal and written) for or against a variety of issues
• The ability to offer new viewpoints on competitive approaches to common problems of reality.
• The ability to rationalize and defend ontological positions in the field of social reality.
• The ability to make sound ethical decisions relative to different specific processes and practices in social reality.
Intended learning outcomes - transferable/key skills and other attributes
• The ability to critically examine significant issues in different fields of social practices.
• The ability to cogently argue (verbal and written) for or against a variety of issues
• The ability to relate different ontological, epistemological and ethical questions and problems and to find proper answers to these challenges.
Readings
Viri (odlomki iz tekstov):
Berilo/Reader: izbor iz sodobnih tekstov.
Hacking, I. (1983). Representing and Intervening. Cambridge: CUP.
Hacking, I. (1999). The Social Construction of What? Cambridge, Mass.: HUP.
Hacking, I. (2002). Historical Ontology. Cambridge, Mass.: HUP.
Searle, J. R. (1995). The Construction of Social Reality. New York: The Free Press.
