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Set Theory, Constructivism, and Science: A Symposium on James Mahoney’s The Logic of Social Science

Symposium
Symposium May 25
Thursday, May 25, 2023, 3:45 pm – 6:00 pm

Hybrid Event (all speakers online – audience invited to attend at CEU)

Moderator: Carsten Q. Schneider (CEU)

Wine and cheese reception to follow.

In this hybrid symposium, a panel of scholars discuss James Mahoney’s recent book, The Logic of Social Science.  The book develops a scientific constructivist approach that uses set-theoretic analysis to avoid essentialist biases in the production of knowledge. This scientific constructivist approach recognizes that social categories depend on collective understandings for their existence, but it insists that this recognition need not hinder the use of explicit procedures for the rational assessment of truth. Mahoney argues that set-theoretic analysis enables scholars to avoid the pitfalls of essentialism and produce findings that rest on a firm scientific foundation.

Detailed schedule TBC.