primer in theory construction

Primer in Theory Construction

Advanced Theories of Management (Dr.Arabiun)Mohammad Kermani, Fall 2015

University of Tehran, Faculty of Entrepreneurship

Honorary Professor Paul Reynolds

After twenty years as a sociology faculty member in three universities, I chose to focus on business creation and over the past 23 years have been affiliated with five business schools.• BS, Engineering, University of Kansas, 1960• MBA, Stanford University, 1964• MA, Psychology, Stanford University, 1966• PhD, Sociology, Stanford University, 1969

A scientific body of knowledge consists of those concepts and statements that scientists consider useful for achieving the purposes of science.

A scientific body of knowledge consists of those concepts and statements that scientists consider useful for achieving the purposes of science.

There is no substitute for a good idea

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

Scientific knowledge is basically a system for description and explanation,

not everything can be explained by science.

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

• Why is there a moon?• Why are there societies?• Why is there life?

They are beyond the capacity of science. These “Why does it exist?” questions are more of a religious or philosophical nature and cannot be resolved with an empirically based science.

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

• How does the moon affect the oceans of the earth?• What changes a person’s status

in a social system?• Under what conditions does ‘life’

(an organism capable of reproduction) exist?

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

Scientific knowledge is basically a system for description of things

and Explanation of events,

not everything can be explained by science.

Things

Typology

Events

Events

NOW

Explanations Prediction

Events

NOW

Explanations Prediction

Causes

Events

NOW

Explanations Prediction

Causes Control

For What Should Scientific Knowledge Be Useful?

Most people would probably want scientific knowledge to provide:1. A method of organizing and categorizing “things,” a typology;2. Predictions of future events;3. Explanations of past events;4. A sense of understanding about what causes events.And occasionally mentioned as well is:5. The potential for control of events.

Typology

Typology

Typology

Typology

• Exhaustivenessof all the “things” being classified, there is no item that cannot be placed in the scheme

• Mutual exclusivenessthat there is no ambiguity about where each “thing” is to be placed in the scheme

Predictions and Explanations

Predictions and Explanations

If the rate of succession (changes in membership) in an organization is constant, then an increase in organizational size will be followed by an increase in formalization (of the structure and procedures).

Predictions and Explanations

If A then B.If C and D then E.

Etc.

Sense of Understanding

If the ability to control events is taken literally as a desirable characteristic of scientific knowledge, then much of the current subject matter of science would be excluded.

if a theory related to a particular phenomenon is scientifically useful, then scientists and “men of action” can examine their ability to influence the variables that will affect the events they wish to control.

Theorythe use of the term “theory” will refer to abstract statements that are considered part of scientific knowledge in either the set-of-laws, the axiomatic, or the causal process forms.

How Does a Concept or Statement Become Part of a Scientific Body of Knowledge?1. as each individual scientist becomes more confident that the idea is

useful for the goals of science2. as the number of scientists that consider the idea useful for the

goals of science increases

scientist’s attitude toward a concept or statement

1. The scientist’s confidence that he understands the meaning of the concept or statement;2. The scientist’s confidence that the concept or statement is useful for achieving the purposes of science.

An untestable idea is, then, one scientist’s view of the phenomenon, not

knowledge that can be shared by all scientists.

Like any individual in a situation of uncertainty, they check their interpretations by comparing it with the interpretations of someone else, another scientist. If there is substantial disagreement among scientists,then no one scientist can be sure that he has

correctly understood the meaning of a concept or statement.

Desirable Characteristics of Scientific Knowledge

1. Abstractness (independence of time and space);2. Intersubjectivity (agreement about meaning among relevant scientists);3. Empirical relevance (can be compared to empirical findings).

Abstractness

Explanations unique to one specific event, can be called historical

explanations.

Intersubjectivity (Meaning)

“Intersubjectivity” means shared agreement among relevant individuals with respect to (1) the events or phenomena encompassed by a concept, and (2) the relationship between concepts specified by one or more statements.

Intersubjectivity (Logical Rigor)

• Develop a logical system• Use a shared logical system by the relevant scientific audience• Math• Symbolic Logic• Computer Languages

Empirical Relevance

it is desirable that any scientist be able to examine the correspondence between a particular theory and objective empirical data.

Mohammad Kermani

moh.Kermani@gmail.comMoh.Kermani@ut.ac.irtelegram.me/mohkermaniInstagram.com/MohkermaniTwitter: @mohkermaniLinkedin: mohkermani