WORKSHOP: Discovery in the social sciences: Towards an empirically-informed philosophy of social science

WORKSHOP: Discovery in the social sciences: Towards an empirically-informed philosophy of social science
University of Leuven, Belgium, March 22-23, 2011
Submission deadline for abstracts: 31 December, 2010.
Notification of acceptance: January 15, 2011.
Keynote speakers
Alison Wylie (University of Washington): "transformative criticism as a catalyst for discovery: Community Based Collaborative Practice in archaeology"
Jack Vromen (Erasmus University Rotterdam)
website: http://www.hiw.kuleuven.be/ned/workshop/index.html
Call for abstracts:
The aim of this workshop is to bring together scholars who are working in the philosophy of the social sciences, especially those interested in scientific practice. The theme is discovery in the social sciences.
Submissions of extended abstracts (about 1000 words) are invited, and the organizers are especially eager to hear from young researchers, including graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, tenure-track professors and other recent PhDs, working in the philosophy of the social sciences or related fields. They are interested in both case studies that examine specific instances of discovery in social sciences, and in more theoretical or methodological papers that are informed by scientific practice. They take 'discovery' in a broad sense, meaning discovery of empirical phenomena, theories and laws. 'Social sciences' refers to a broad range of disciplines, including (but not limited to) economics, anthropology, history, archaeology, psychology (including neuroscience), linguistics, and sociology.
A non-exhaustive list of possible topics:
- What is specific to discoveries in the social sciences?
- What is the epistemic role of artefacts in discovery, for example in neuroscientific research?
- Can we discern patterns in discovery in the social sciences?
- The discovery of laws in social sciences.
- Case-studies of discovery in specific social sciences.
- Creativity in social scientific practice.
Abstract, preferably as pdf or rtf should be sent to Helen De Cruz, using the following e-mail address philosophy.social.sciences[at]gmail.com by December 31 2010. Please also indicate your position (e.g., graduate student, postdoc, assistant professor).
Scientific committee: Helen De Cruz (University of Leuven), Eric Schliesser (Ghent University), Farah Focquaert (Ghent University), Raymond Corbey (University of Leiden and Tilburg University).
This workshop is supported by funding from the University of Leuven and Ghent University.