philosophy of social science
The social sciences raise a host of fascinating methodological, ontological, and ethical questions. Philosophers from various subdisciplines--philosophy of anthropology, economics, psychology, and sociology; analytic metaphysics; and social and political philosophy--are all grappling with these questions in different ways. What is more exciting is that social scientists are often engaging these issues with the same enthusiasm as philosophers, but with fresh perspectives owing to differences in training. The time is ripe for greater dialogue between these diverse researchers. Most of my work in the near future will be in this area. It will take the form of two book projects, tentatively titled Segregation and Social Inquiry and Race in the Social Sciences. In addition to addressing issues specific to the philosophy of social science, these works also address several issues in general philosophy of science (e.g., representation, realism, and science and values).
Professional Activities
- I'm a member of the Steering Committee for the Philosophy of Social Science Roundtable and have served on the Scientific Committees for the European Network for the Philosophy of Social Science and Asian Network for the Philosophy of the Social Sciences.
- I started the Philosophy of Social Science Network on Facebook. Feel free to join us.
- Along with Randall Harp, I organized the Philosophy of Social Science Roundtable in Burlington, VT. April 12-13, 2019. Because I'm a glutton for punishment, I also co-organized the 2020 roundtable with Mark Risjord in Atlanta, GA.
Special Issues Edited
As a member of the steering committee of the Philosophy of Social Science Roundtable, I am responsible for co-editing a special issue in the journal, Philosophy of the Social Sciences, nearly every year:
- 2023. Papers from the Roundtable on Philosophy of the Social Sciences, Lincoln, Nebraska, April 1-2, 2022. Philosophy of the Social Sciences. 53 (2). (co-edited with David Henderson, Mark Risjord, Paul Roth, Deborah Tollefsen and Stephen Turner)
- 2022. Joint Conference of the Asian Network for the Philosophy of the Social Sciences, the European Network for the Philosophy of the Social Sciences, and the Philosophy of Social Science Roundtable, Hitotsubashi University, March 4-7, 2021. Philosophy of the Social Sciences. 52 (1-2). (with R. Gotoh et al.)
- 2021. Philosophy of the Social Sciences 51(2): Roundtable on Philosophy of the Social Sciences Atlanta March 13-15, 2020. (co-edited with David Henderson, Mark Risjord, Paul Roth, Deborah Tollefsen and Stephen Turner)
- 2020. Philosophy of the Social Sciences 50(2): Roundtable on Philosophy of the Social Sciences University of Vermont, April 12-14, 2019. (co-edited with Randall Harp, David Henderson, Mark Risjord, Paul Roth, and Stephen Turner)
Book Projects
- Race in the Social Sciences. (with Richard Lauer)
- Segregation and Social Inquiry: The Politics of Scientific Representation. (with Jared Millson and Mark Risjord)
Articles and Book Chapters
- 2023. Should ordinary race talk be ontologically privileged? Moving social science into the philosophical mainstream. Synthese 202 (5): 144. (with Richard Lauer)
- 2021. Do the social sciences vindicate race's reality? Philosophers' Imprint. 21 (21): 1-17. (with Richard Lauer)
- 2021. Estimating the reproducibility of experimental philosophy. Review of Philosophy and Psychology. 12: 9-44 (with Florian Cova et al.)
- 2020. Understanding, truth, and epistemic goals. Philosophy of Science 87 (5):944-956. (This is a general philosophy of science paper that uses some social-scientific examples).
- 2020. Explanatory obligations. Episteme. 17 (3): 384-401. (with Jared Millson. This is a general philosophy of science paper that uses some social-scientific examples).
- 2019. Idealizations and understanding: much ado about nothing? Australasian Journal of Philosophy. 97 (4):673-689. (with Emily Sullivan. This is a general philosophy of science paper that uses some social-scientific examples).
- 2019. Is Verstehen scientific understanding? Philosophy of the Social Sciences. 49(4): 282-306.
- 2016. Realism and antirealism. in Rosenberg, A. and L. McIntyre (eds.), Routledge companion to philosophy of social science (London: Routledge). (with Randall Harp)
- 2015. What are stylized facts? Journal of Economic Methodology 22 (2): 143-156. (with Leticia Arroyo Abad)
- 2004. Erotetic contextualism, data-generating procedures, and sociological explanations of social mobility. Philosophy of the Social Sciences 34 (1): 38-54.