Philosophy of science: Analytic feminist approaches

Abstract

<p>Feminist philosophy of science in the analytic tradition converges towards feminist empiricism that comes in three types: critical contextual empiricism, radical empiricism, and standpoint empiricism. Each type of feminist empiricism provides important resources for feminist philosophers of science especially when they seek to solve the bias paradox. The bias paradox arises when one aims to criticize some biases as epistemically harmful while at the same time acknowledge that some other biases are epistemically beneficial. The challenge is to understand how pernicious bias can be distinguished from an innocuous one. Critical contextual empiricism aims to solve the bias paradox by introducing epistemic norms for scientific communities and radical empiricism by subjecting biases to empirical testing. Standpoint empiricism emphasizes the importance of generating new evidence by empowering disadvantaged social groups. While feminist philosophers of science have abandoned the ideal of value-free science, they have not given up the concept of objectivity. Objectivity of scientific knowledge comes in degrees and depends on how well scientific communities facilitate criticism and succeed in eliminating pernicious bias.</p>