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Method and matter in the social sciences: Umbilically tied to the Enlightenment

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  08 September 2015

Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi*
Affiliation:
Department of Psychology, University of Haifa, 3498838 Haifa, [email protected]://hevra.haifa.ac.il/~psy/index.php/en/faculty?id=112

Abstract

This commentary deals with the nonconformity of academics and the ethos of social science. Academics in all fields deviate from majority norms in politics and religion, and this deviance may be essential to the academic mind and to academic norms. The Enlightenment legacy inspires both methods and subject matter in academic work, and severing ties with it may be impossible.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2015 

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