And Nothing to Get Hung up On...

I am walking one of my students through her applied linguistics textbook. After giving a history of the modern discipline of language teaching, the survey chapter concludes with this statement:

“The cyclical nature of theories underscores the fact that no single theory or paradigm is right or wrong. It is impossible to refute with finality one perspective with another. Some truth can be found in virtually every critical approach to the study of reality.”

This is a strikingly false statement. It summarizes the fatal problem with social science generally, and how it has poisoned the wider society.

It is impossible to refute any theories?

This is exactly counter to Karl Popper’s definition of science. Science proceeds by refutation: theories are tested by experiment, and falsified.

Would a scientist be content with the statement that the theory of gravity, or of relativity, is neither right nor wrong?  That they are in the end no more accurate a description of reality than geocentrism or the flat earth concept?

The problem is that, in the social sciences, no theories have ever passed this test. Everything gets refuted within about twenty years, and no progress is ever made.

The proper conclusion to be drawn is that the scientific method cannot grasp the human mind. Unfortunately, too many careers, too many institutions, entire industries are based on the fallacy that it can.

Therefore, instead of conceding the error, the field blames reality and the human mind for failing to conform to its demands. And has chosen to dispense with both; or to deny they exist.

So hey, let’s just burn it all down.