Pseudoscience and the Claim of Practical Utility: The Case of Thomas Erikson's Surrounded by Idiots

Abstract

It has been suggested that, by definition, pseudoscientists must assert that their theories are scientific or represent the best available knowledge. However, in business consultation and self-help literature, pseudoscientists do not often make such strong claims. Instead, they commonly appeal to the practical utility of their theories. We argue that what nevertheless makes such theories pseudoscientific is some association or connotation with science. In addition, we suggest that the concept of social pseudotechnology can function as a useful tool in the theoretical examination of the claimed functionality of these self-help and working life practices. This concept allows for the recognition that there are several possible alternative explanations for their alleged success. Due to this underdetermination, a vulgar pragmatist argument along the lines ‘It works, so it must be true’ is unjustified. We examine and illustrate these issues through the pseudoscientific DISC or DISA personality classification system and Thomas Erikson's bestseller Surrounded by Idiots (2019). We argue that since Erikson's book and DISA analyses are used to solve practical problems, and not just to describe the world, they are best understood as social pseudotechnologies. We outline six alternative social mechanisms that could explain the potential functionality of these social pseudotechnologies without their underlying pseudotheory being correct.