The concept of "method" (from the Greek "methodos" - the path to something) means a set of techniques and operations for the practical and theoretical development of reality. The doctrine of the method began to develop in the science of modern times.

17th century English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561-1626) compared the method of knowledge to a lantern that illuminates the way for a traveler walking in the dark.

He is rightfully considered the founder of the scientific method, he believed that all knowledge should be based on facts and experiment, and argued that when collecting data, one must not only look for what confirms our thoughts, but take into account facts that contradict them. By this, Bacon anticipated the works of the philosopher of the 20th century. Karl Popper, who made falsification, not verification, the true test of the hypothesis. "The decisive test of a theory occurs when you find facts that contradict it." Bacon saw mechanical causality in nature, that is, the essence of things lies directly in the past, and is not determined by goals related to the future. Bacon and others (including Newton) were inclined to recognize two divine books: one was the Bible - the truth told to people, the other - nature. But it was mechanical causality that led to the elimination of the influence of religion and personality on the scientific method. Only science began to explore the world methodically, rationally and impartially, but at the same time constantly demonstrating the practical benefits of its discoveries.

It is no coincidence that F. Bacon put forward the famous aphorism: "Knowledge is power" and promoted the experiment as the main method of scientific research, believed that only with the scientific inquisition (torture of nature) the secrets of nature are revealed (comparison - the Russian word "naturalist").

Scientific discoveries are based on the observations made and the logical conclusions from them. Science does not take anything for granted and its key rule is to verify, and in science the methods of obtaining new knowledge are combined into a certain system, the so-called research methodology.

The scientific method is a set of techniques or operations used in research activities from observing an object and event to building a theory and testing it.

Any scientific method is a set of regulatory rules for the development of new knowledge (empirical or theoretical).

Knowing how knowledge is obtained means the ability, firstly, to reproduce and verify the reliability of existing knowledge, and secondly, to obtain new knowledge.

The essence of the scientific method can be represented as such a procedure for obtaining scientific knowledge that allows it to be reproduced, tested and transferred to others, and science stands out because the methods for obtaining new knowledge have become the subject of analysis and open discussion.

And only in the XVI-XVII centuries, the importance of the experimental-mathematical method was realized (G. Galileo and R. Descartes), on the basis of which classical natural science grew.

The scientific method is a tool in the hands of man. He can suggest how to achieve this or that result. Science can significantly increase the degree of comfort of our existence, it knows or will know how to do it. But in the name of what all this must be done, what ultimately a person wants to establish on Earth - these questions are beyond the competence of science.

The expectations of the civilized world of the last century from the prospects for the development of science have clearly become unenthusiastic: at least, science has clearly failed to ensure the general well-being, but this is not part of the function of science as a social institution.

On the way to the omnipotence of science is the very nature of man - as beings of the macrocosm with macro-representations that are in no way suitable for the micro- and mega-world. It is impossible to form a macro-image fully adequate to the micro-world and the mega-world. Our "cognitive apparatus" in the transition to areas of reality that are far from everyday experience, loses its reliability.

Undoubtedly, while opening up great possibilities for man, science simultaneously highlights the areas of the impossible. All this testifies to one thing - the real world is much richer and more complex than its image created by science.

Scientific methods are divided into empirical and theoretical.

Empirical methods include: observation, description, measurement, experiment, modeling.

1) Observation is a purposeful perception of the phenomena of objective reality in order to establish the essential properties of objects of knowledge.

2) Description - fixation by means of a natural or artificial language of information about objects.

3) Measurement - a quantitative characteristic of the properties of objects or a comparison of objects according to some similar properties or sides.

4) Experiment - observation (research) in specially created and controlled conditions in order to establish a causal relationship between the given conditions and the characteristics of the object under study.

5) Modeling - reproduction of the properties of an object (original) on its specially created analogue (model), which allows you to explore the processes characteristic of the original.

Theoretical methods include: idealization, formalization, theorization, mathematical modeling, hypothetical-deductive method, method of checking the theory for adequacy.

1) Idealization - mental selection of essential and abstraction from non-essential properties of phenomena or objects.

2) Formalization - the construction of abstract mathematical models that reveal the essence of the studied processes and phenomena of reality.

3) Theorization - the construction of theories based on axioms - statements, the proof of the truth of which is not required.

4) Mathematical modeling of processes or properties of objects based on the study of a system of equations describing the original being studied.

5) Hypothetical-deductive (conceptual-deductive) method - obtaining the necessary information using known laws (hypotheses) and the deductive method (movement from the general to the particular).

6) The method of checking the theory for adequacy (the method of confirmation) is a comparison of the consequences arising from the theory and the results of mathematical modeling for compliance with empirical facts.

Methods are also classified according to the degree of generality of their application:

For example, general scientific methods of cognition are used in all areas of scientific knowledge, they are universal and work both at the empirical and theoretical levels of cognition, and even at the level of everyday consciousness.

The universal methods of human activity are: analysis, synthesis, abstraction, comparison, generalization, induction, deduction, analogy, modeling, classification.

Theoretical methods of cognition are what is commonly called "cold reason". A mind versed in theoretical research. Why is that? Remember the famous phrase of Sherlock Holmes: “And from this place, please, speak in as much detail as possible!” At the stage of this phrase and the subsequent story of Helen Stoner, the famous detective initiates a preliminary stage - sensual (empirical) knowledge.

By the way, this episode gives us grounds for comparing two degrees of cognition: only primary (empirical) and primary together with secondary (theoretical). Conan Doyle does this with the help of the images of the two main characters.

How does retired military doctor Watson react to the girl's story? He fixates on the emotional stage, having decided in advance that the story of the unfortunate stepdaughter was caused by her unmotivated suspicion of her stepfather.

Two stages of the method of cognition

Ellen Holmes listens in a completely different way. He first perceives verbal information by ear. However, the empirical information obtained in this way is not the final product for him, he needs them as raw material for subsequent intellectual processing.

Skillfully using theoretical methods of cognition in processing every grain of information received (none of which passed by his attention), the classical literary character seeks to resolve the mystery of the crime. Moreover, he applies theoretical methods with brilliance, with analytical sophistication that fascinates readers. With their help, there is a search for internal hidden connections and the definition of those patterns that resolve the situation.

What is the nature of theoretical methods of cognition

We deliberately turned to a literary example. With his help, we hope that our story did not begin impersonally.

It should be recognized that science at its present level has become the main driving force of progress precisely because of its "tool set" - research methods. All of them, as we have already mentioned, are divided into two large groups: empirical and theoretical. A common feature of both groups is the goal - true knowledge. They differ in their approach to knowledge. At the same time, scientists practicing empirical methods are called practitioners, and theoretical ones - theorists.

We also note that often the results of empirical and theoretical studies do not coincide with each other. This is the reason for the existence of two groups of methods.

Empirical (from the Greek word "empirios" - observation) are characterized by purposeful, organized perception, defined by the research task and subject area. In them, scientists use the best forms of fixing the results.

The theoretical level of cognition is characterized by the processing of empirical information using data formalization techniques and specific information processing techniques.

For a scientist practicing theoretical methods of cognition, the ability to use creatively as a tool that is in demand by the optimal method is of paramount importance.

Empirical and theoretical methods have common generic features:

• the fundamental role of various forms of thinking: concepts, theories, laws;
• for any of the theoretical methods, the source of primary information is empirical knowledge;
• in the future, the data obtained are subject to analytical processing using a special conceptual apparatus, the information processing technology provided for them;
• the purpose, due to which theoretical methods of cognition are used, is the synthesis of inferences and conclusions, the development of concepts and judgments as a result of which new knowledge is born.

Thus, at the primary stage of the process, the scientist receives sensory information using the methods of empirical knowledge:

• observation (passive, non-interference tracking of phenomena and processes);
• experiment (fixing the passage of the process under artificially given initial conditions);
• measurements (determining the ratio of the parameter being determined to the generally accepted standard);
• comparison (associative perception of one process compared to another).

Theory as the result of knowledge

What kind of feedback coordinates the methods of theoretical and empirical levels of cognition? Feedback when testing the truth of theories. At the theoretical stage, based on the received sensory information, the key problem is formulated. To resolve it, hypotheses are made. The most optimal and elaborated ones develop into theories.

The reliability of a theory is checked by its correspondence to objective facts (data of sensory cognition) and scientific facts (reliable knowledge, verified many times before for truth.) For such adequacy, it is important to select the optimal theoretical method of cognition. It is he who should ensure the maximum correspondence of the studied fragment to objective reality and the analytical presentation of its results.

Concepts of method and theory. Their commonality and differences

Properly chosen methods provide a “moment of truth” in cognition: the development of a hypothesis into a theory. Actualized, the general scientific methods of theoretical knowledge are filled with the necessary facts in the developed theory of knowledge, becoming its integral part.

If, however, such a well-functioning method is artificially singled out from a ready-made, universally recognized theory, then, having considered it separately, we will find that it has acquired new properties.

On the one hand, it is filled with special knowledge (incorporating the ideas of the current research), and on the other hand, it acquires common generic features of relatively homogeneous objects of study. It is in this that the dialectical relationship between the method and the theory of scientific knowledge is expressed.

The commonality of their nature is tested for relevance throughout the entire time of their existence. The first one acquires the function of organizational regulation, prescribing to the scientist a formal order of manipulations in order to achieve the goals of the study. Being involved by the scientist, the methods of the theoretical level of knowledge bring the object of study beyond the framework of the existing previous theory.

The difference between method and theory is expressed in the fact that they are different forms of knowledge of scientific knowledge.

If the second expresses the essence, the laws of existence, the conditions of development, the internal connections of the object under study, then the first one orients the researcher, dictating to him a “road map of knowledge”: requirements, principles of subject-transforming and cognitive activity.

It can be said in another way: the theoretical methods of scientific knowledge are addressed directly to the researcher, regulating his thought process in an appropriate way, directing the process of obtaining new knowledge by him in the most rational direction.

Their significance in the development of science led to the creation of its separate branch, which describes the theoretical tools of the researcher, called methodology based on epistemological principles (epistemology is the science of knowledge).

List of theoretical methods of cognition

It is well known that the following variants of theoretical methods of cognition include:

• modeling;
• formalization;
• analysis;
• synthesis;
• abstraction;
• induction;
• deduction;
• idealization.

Of course, the qualifications of a scientist are of great importance in the practical effectiveness of each of them. A knowledgeable specialist, after analyzing the main methods of theoretical knowledge, will choose the right one from their totality. It is he who will play a key role in the effectiveness of cognition itself.

Modeling Method Example

In March 1945, under the auspices of the Ballistic Laboratory (US Armed Forces), the principles of PC operation were outlined. It was a classic example of scientific knowledge. A group of physicists, reinforced by the famous mathematician John von Neumann, participated in the research. A native of Hungary, he was the principal analyst for this study.

The above-mentioned scientist used, as a research tool, the modeling method.

Initially, all devices of the future PC - arithmetic-logical, memory, control device, input and output devices - existed verbally, in the form of axioms formulated by Neumann.

The mathematician clothed the data of empirical physical research in the form of a mathematical model. In the future, it was she, and not her prototype, that was subjected to research by the researcher. Having received the result, Neumann "translated" it into the language of physics. By the way, the thinking process demonstrated by the Hungarian made a great impression on the physicists themselves, as evidenced by their feedback.

Note that it would be more accurate to give this method the name "modeling and formalization". It is not enough to create the model itself, it is equally important to formalize the internal relations of the object through the coding language. After all, this is how the computer model should be interpreted.

Today, such computer simulation, which is performed using special mathematical programs, is quite common. It is widely used in economics, physics, biology, automotive, radio electronics.

Modern computer modeling

The computer simulation method involves the following steps:

• definition of the object being modeled, formalization of the installation for modeling;
• drawing up a plan of computer experiments with the model;
• analysis of the results.

There are simulation and analytical modeling. Modeling and formalization in this case are a universal tool.

Simulation reflects the functioning of the system when it sequentially performs a huge number of elementary operations. Analytical modeling describes the nature of an object using differential control systems that have a solution that reflects the ideal state of the object.

In addition to mathematical, they also distinguish:

• conceptual modeling (through symbols, operations between them and languages, formal or natural);
• physical modeling (object and model - real objects or phenomena);
• structural-functional (graphs, diagrams, tables are used as a model).

abstraction

The abstraction method helps to understand the essence of the issue under study and solve very complex problems. It allows, discarding everything secondary, to focus on the fundamental details.

For example, if we turn to kinematics, it becomes obvious that researchers use this particular method. Thus, it was originally distinguished as primary, rectilinear and uniform motion (by such abstraction, it was possible to isolate the basic parameters of motion: time, distance, speed.)

This method always involves some generalization.

By the way, the opposite theoretical method of cognition is called concretization. Using it to study changes in speed, the researchers came up with a definition of acceleration.

Analogy

The analogy method is used to formulate fundamentally new ideas by finding analogues to phenomena or objects (in this case, analogues are both ideal and real objects that have an adequate correspondence to the studied phenomena or objects.)

An example of the effective use of analogy can be well-known discoveries. Charles Darwin, taking as a basis the evolutionary concept of the struggle for the means of subsistence of the poor with the rich, created the evolutionary theory. Niels Bohr, relying on the planetary structure of the solar system, substantiated the concept of the orbital structure of the atom. J. Maxwell and F. Huygens created the theory of wave electromagnetic oscillations, using, as an analogue, the theory of wave mechanical oscillations.

The analogy method becomes relevant when the following conditions are met:

• as many essential features as possible should resemble each other;
• a sufficiently large sample of known features must actually be associated with an unknown feature;
• analogy should not be interpreted as identical similarity;
• it is also necessary to consider the fundamental differences between the subject of study and its analogue.

Note that this method is most often and fruitfully used by economists.

Analysis - synthesis

Analysis and synthesis find their application both in scientific research and in ordinary mental activity.

The first is the process of mentally (most often) breaking the object under study into its components for a more complete study of each of them. However, the stage of analysis is followed by the stage of synthesis, when the studied components are combined together. In this case, all the properties revealed during their analysis are taken into account and then their relationships and methods of connection are determined.

The complex use of analysis and synthesis is characteristic of theoretical knowledge. It was these methods in their unity and opposition that the German philosopher Hegel laid at the foundation of dialectics, which, in his words, "is the soul of all scientific knowledge."

Induction and deduction

When the term "methods of analysis" is used, deduction and induction are most often meant. These are logical methods.

Deduction involves the course of reasoning, following from the general to the particular. It allows us to single out some consequences from the general content of the hypothesis that can be substantiated empirically. Thus, deduction is characterized by the establishment of a common connection.

Sherlock Holmes, mentioned by us at the beginning of this article, very clearly substantiated his deductive method in the story “The Land of Crimson Clouds”: “Life is an endless connection of causes and effects. Therefore, we can cognize it by examining one link after another. The famous detective collected as much information as possible, choosing the most significant from the many versions.

Continuing to characterize the methods of analysis, let us characterize the induction. This is the formulation of a general conclusion from a series of particular ones (from the particular to the general.) Distinguish between complete and incomplete induction. Full induction is characterized by the development of a theory, and incomplete - hypotheses. The hypothesis, as you know, should be updated by proving. Only then does it become a theory. Induction, as a method of analysis, is widely used in philosophy, economics, medicine, and jurisprudence.

Idealization

Often in the theory of scientific knowledge, ideal concepts that do not exist in reality are used. Researchers endow non-natural objects with special, limiting properties, which are possible only in "limiting" cases. Examples are a straight line, a material point, an ideal gas. Thus, science singles out certain objects from the objective world that are completely amenable to scientific description, devoid of secondary properties.

The idealization method, in particular, was applied by Galileo, who noticed that if we remove all external forces acting on a moving object, then it will continue to move indefinitely, rectilinearly and uniformly.

Thus, idealization allows in theory to obtain a result that is unattainable in reality.

However, in reality, for this case, the researcher takes into account: the height of the falling object above sea level, the latitude of the point of impact, the effect of wind, air density, etc.

Training of methodologists as the most important task of education

Today, the role of universities in the training of specialists who creatively master the methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge is becoming obvious. At the same time, as the experience of Stanford, Harvard, Yale and Columbia Universities testifies, they are assigned a leading role in the development of the latest technologies. Perhaps that is why their graduates are in demand in science-intensive companies, the share of which has a constant tendency to increase.

An important role in the training of researchers is played by:

• flexibility of the educational program;
• the possibility of individual training for the most talented students capable of becoming promising young scientists.

At the same time, the specialization of people who develop human knowledge in the field of IT, engineering, production, and mathematical modeling implies the presence of teachers with relevant qualifications.

Conclusion

The examples of methods of theoretical knowledge mentioned in the article give a general idea of ​​the creative work of scientists. Their activity is reduced to the formation of a scientific reflection of the world.

It, in a narrower, special sense, consists in the skillful use of a certain scientific method.
The researcher summarizes empirical proven facts, puts forward and tests scientific hypotheses, formulates a scientific theory that advances human knowledge from ascertaining the known to understanding the previously unknown.

Sometimes the ability of scientists to use theoretical scientific methods is like magic. Even centuries later, no one doubts the genius of Leonardo da Vinci, Nikola Tesla, Albert Einstein.

There is a movement from ignorance to knowledge. Thus, the first stage of the cognitive process is the definition of what we do not know. It is important to clearly and rigorously define the problem, separating what we already know from what we do not yet know. problem(from the Greek. problema - task) is a complex and controversial issue that needs to be resolved.

The second step in is the development of a hypothesis (from the Greek. Hypothesis - assumption). Hypothesis - this is a scientifically based assumption that needs to be tested.

If a hypothesis is proved by a large number of facts, it becomes a theory (from the Greek theoria - observation, research). Theory is a system of knowledge that describes and explains certain phenomena; such, for example, are evolutionary theory, the theory of relativity, quantum theory, etc.

When choosing the best theory, the degree of its testability plays an important role. A theory is reliable if it is confirmed by objective facts (including newly discovered ones) and if it is distinguished by clarity, distinctness, and logical rigor.

Scientific facts

Distinguish between objective and scientific facts. objective fact is a real-life object, process or event. For example, the death of Mikhail Yurievich Lermontov (1814-1841) in a duel is a fact. scientific fact is knowledge that is confirmed and interpreted within the framework of a generally accepted system of knowledge.

Estimates are opposed to facts and reflect the significance of objects or phenomena for a person, his approving or disapproving attitude towards them. Scientific facts usually fix the objective world as it is, and assessments reflect the subjective position of a person, his interests, the level of his moral and aesthetic consciousness.

Most of the difficulties for science arise in the process of moving from hypothesis to theory. There are methods and procedures that allow you to test a hypothesis and prove it or reject it as incorrect.

Method(from the Greek methodos - the path to the goal) is the rule, method, method of knowledge. In general, a method is a system of rules and regulations that allows you to explore an object. F. Bacon called the method "a lamp in the hands of a traveler walking in the dark."

Methodology is a broader concept and can be defined as:

• a set of methods used in any science;
• general doctrine of method.

Since the criteria of truth in its classical scientific understanding are, on the one hand, sensory experience and practice, and on the other hand, clarity and logical distinctness, all known methods can be divided into empirical (experimental, practical methods of cognition) and theoretical (logical procedures).

Empirical methods of knowledge

basis empirical methods are sensory cognition (sensation, perception, representation) and instrumental data. These methods include:

• observation- purposeful perception of phenomena without interference in them;
• experiment— study of phenomena under controlled and controlled conditions;
• measurement - determination of the ratio of the measured value to
• standard (for example, a meter);
• comparison- identifying the similarities or differences of objects or their features.

There are no pure empirical methods in scientific knowledge, since even for simple observation, preliminary theoretical foundations are necessary - the choice of an object for observation, the formulation of a hypothesis, etc.

Theoretical methods of cognition

Actually theoretical methods based on rational knowledge (concept, judgment, conclusion) and logical inference procedures. These methods include:

• analysis- the process of mental or real dismemberment of an object, phenomenon into parts (signs, properties, relationships);
• synthesis - connection of the sides of the subject identified during the analysis into a single whole;
• - combining various objects into groups based on common features (classification of animals, plants, etc.);
• abstraction - distraction in the process of cognition from some properties of an object with the aim of in-depth study of one specific side of it (the result of abstraction is abstract concepts such as color, curvature, beauty, etc.);
• formalization - displaying knowledge in a sign, symbolic form (in mathematical formulas, chemical symbols, etc.);
• analogy - inference about the similarity of objects in a certain respect on the basis of their similarity in a number of other respects;
• modeling— creation and study of a substitute (model) of an object (for example, computer modeling of the human genome);
• idealization- creation of concepts for objects that do not exist in reality, but have a prototype in it (geometric point, ball, ideal gas);
• deduction - moving from the general to the particular;
• induction- the movement from the particular (facts) to the general statement.

Theoretical methods require empirical facts. So, although induction itself is a theoretical logical operation, it still requires experimental verification of each particular fact, and therefore is based on empirical knowledge, and not on theoretical. Thus, theoretical and empirical methods exist in unity, complementing each other. All the methods listed above are methods-techniques (specific rules, action algorithms).

Wider methods-approaches indicate only the direction and general way of solving problems. Methods-approaches can include many different techniques. These are the structural-functional method, hermeneutic, etc. The most common methods-approaches are philosophical methods:

• metaphysical- consideration of the object in mowing, static, out of connection with other objects;
• dialectical- disclosure of the laws of development and change of things in their interconnection, internal inconsistency and unity.

Absoluteization of one method as the only true one is called dogma(for example, dialectical materialism in Soviet philosophy). An uncritical piling up of various unrelated methods is called eclecticism.

Method - a way of knowing, studying the phenomena of nature and social life; it is a method, method or mode of action. General logical methods of cognition in science, the so-called general scientific, or general logical, methods and techniques of cognition are widely used. Among them are:

1. Analysis and synthesis. Analysis is the real or mental division of an object into its component parts. Synthesis is the combination of constituent parts into a single whole.

2. Abstraction - the process of abstraction from a number of properties and relations of the phenomenon under study with the same name selection of the properties of interest to the researcher.

3. Idealization is a mental procedure associated with the formation of abstract (idealized) objects that are fundamentally unrealizable in reality (“point”, “ideal gas”, “absolutely black body”, etc.). Idealization is closely related to abstraction and thought experiment.

4. Induction and deduction. Induction is the movement of thought from the individual (experience, facts) to the general (their generalizations and conclusions). Deduction is the ascent of the process of cognition from the general to the individual.

5. Analogy (correspondence, similarity) - the establishment of similarities in some aspects, properties and relationships between non-identical objects. On the basis of the revealed similarity, an appropriate conclusion is made - a conclusion by analogy.

6. Modeling - a method of studying certain objects by reproducing their characteristics on another object - dressed, cat. is an analogue of one or another fragment of reality (real or mental) - the original model.

Between the model and the object of study, there must be a known similarity (similarity) in physical characteristics, structure, functions, etc. The forms of modeling are very diverse. For example, subject (physical) and symbolic. An important form of sign modeling is mathematical (computer) modeling. Some authors also include classification and a systematic approach to general logical methods of research.

Theoretical methods of scientific knowledge

Theoretical knowledge is most fully and adequately expressed in thinking. Thinking is a process of generalized and indirect reflection of reality, which is carried out in the course of practical activity and ensures the disclosure of its main regular connections (based on sensory data) and their expression in an abstraction system.

There are two levels of thinking

1. Reason is the ability to reason consistently and clearly, correctly build one's thoughts, clearly classify, and strictly systematize facts. Reason is ordinary everyday thinking, healthy statements and evidence, focusing on the form of knowledge, and not on its content.

2. Mind (dialectical thinking) - the highest level of theoretical knowledge, the creative operation of abstractions and the conscious study of their own nature.

With the help of reason, a person comprehends the essence of things, their laws and contradictions. The main task of the mind is to unite the diverse, to identify the root causes and driving forces of the studied phenomena. The logic of reason - dial., presented as a doctrine of the formation and development of knowledge in the unity of their content and form. The process of development includes the interconnection of reason and reason and their mutual transitions from one to another and vice versa. An important place in knowledge - intuition Intuition is divided into sensual and intellectual. Intuition is direct knowledge, cat. does not rely on logical proof. Cognition is connected with practice - the material development of the surrounding world by a social person, the interaction of a person with material systems. Practice and knowledge, practice and theory are interconnected and influence each other. There is a contradiction in their relationship. The parties may be in harmony, but there may also be disharmony, reaching the point of conflict. Overcoming contradictions leads to the development of both theory and practice. Among the scientific methods of theoretical research, there are formalization, the oxyomotic method and the hypothetical-deductive method.

Formalization- this is a display of meaningful knowledge in a sign form (formalized language).

Axiomatic Method- a method of constructing a scientific theory based on some initial provisions - axioms (postulates), from which the rest of all the statements of this theory are derived in a purely logical way, through proof. To derive theorems from axioms (and in general some formulas from others), special rules of inference are formulated.

Hypothetical-deductive method- this is the creation of a system of deductively interconnected hypotheses, from which statements about empirical (experimental) facts are ultimately derived. (Deduction is the derivation of conclusions from hypotheses (premises), the true conclusion of which is unknown). This means that the conclusion, the conclusion obtained on the basis of this method, will inevitably be only probabilistic.

Research hypothesis- this is a scientifically based assumption about the structure of the phenomenon under study or about the nature of the relationships between its components. Empirical cognition is characterized by fact-fixing activity: Theoretical cognition is essential cognition, carried out at the level of abstraction of high orders. Here the tools are concepts, categories, laws, hypotheses, etc.



The concept of the method of scientific knowledge.

1. Method (the path of research, or knowledge) is a way of building and substantiating a system of philosophical knowledge. This is a set of techniques and operations of practical and theoretical development of reality.

The roots of the method go back to the practical activity of man. The methods of practical activity had to be consistent with the properties and laws of reality.

The development and differentiation of methods of thinking in the course of the development of knowledge led to the doctrine of the method - methodology.

In our time, there are several opinions regarding the classification of methods of scientific knowledge. Among them: general, general, partial. Universal, that is, dialectical - materialistic.

The American philosopher R. Merton came to the conclusion that there are not two - empirical and theoretical, but three levels of scientific knowledge: empirical, empirical-theoretical and actually theoretical.

Accordingly, the methods of scientific knowledge are divided into:

a) methods of the empirical level of the study;

b) methods that are used at the empirical and theoretical levels;

c) theoretical level methods.

The methods of the empirical level of research are:

Observations are carried out according to the plan with the help of sense organs, instruments, tools. The object is studied with the help of sensations.

Measurements - temperature, water level in the river, atmospheric pressure, radiation, etc.;

Description - recording of observational data and theoretical understanding;

Experiment - the purpose of this method is to obtain new knowledge about the object, process.

Experiments are divided into three groups: search, verification, and implementation.

The first are carried out to find previously unknown properties, features of the object;

The latter are carried out to confirm or refute the hypotheses put forward.

Still others are carried out in order to create previously unknown substances, to apply them in practice.

2. The methods that are used at the empirical and theoretical levels are as follows:

1 . Analysis and synthesis- they are defined as a process of conditional division of an object into parts in order to study each of them in detail and also conditionally combine them into a whole.

2.Induction and deduction. Induction is a form of inference and a method of scientific inquiry. There are 3 types of inductive reasoning:

a) Complete induction - a conclusion about a class of objects or phenomena based on the study of all its elements.

b) Popular induction - a statement based on the definition of the most characteristic features, features of several elements that are inherent in the entire class of objects;

c) Scientific induction determines the characteristic features, attributes, properties, but considers them taking into account the internal connections and relationships between them.

Deduction - this method characterizes the transition from the general to the individual.

Axiom: Everything that is affirmed or denied in relation to the whole class is necessarily affirmed or denied in relation to the individual objects of this class.

This method is used in the construction of scientific theories, in economics in assessing the efficiency of production.

3. Abstraction is a mental detachment of a separate object or phenomenon for the purpose of studying it in detail, and then the same mental return, introduction into a system in which it interacts with its other elements.

4. Analogy and modeling. Analogy is a method of scientific research, when, based on the similarity of objects in one way, a conclusion is made about the possible similarity of these objects in other ways. But this knowledge must be checked (moon, mountains, seas, people).

Modeling - when they first create a model of a future object: a ship, an aircraft, they study its behavior in different situations..

5. Formalization - the content of this method is the replacement of the verbal form with symbols, formulas. Used in mathematics, physics, chemistry.

The methods of theoretical research include:

6. The method of ascent from the abstract to the concrete. The abstract is the result of thinking, and the concrete as a variety of sensually perceived things and phenomena. It expresses the movement of theoretical thought from abstractions in their most general form to an ever more complete and varied reproduction of an object or phenomenon.

The ascent from the abstract to the concrete is the enrichment of the abstract with new, varied content.

7. Unity of historical and logical:

a) Historical - it is a real historical process of development of nature and society.

This is a way of reproducing in thinking the historical process in chronological order and concreteness.

b ) Boolean- this is the same historical, but abstracted from specific historical ones, which expresses in theoretical form the direction of development.

in) System - structural analysis- thanks to this method, the study of the object is provided, both in the integrity of its structure and its components.

It is used in the study of complex phenomena in physics, biology, social, technical, agricultural sciences.

The study begins with the study of the properties characteristic of a certain structure of the object, then the next element of the structure is studied, and then the internal relationships between all elements of the object are analyzed. This approach avoids errors in the learning process.

Answer the questions:

1. What is the method?

2. What is the content of the method of science?

3. What methods of scientific knowledge do you know?

4. What levels of scientific knowledge do you know?

5. What refers to the methods of the empirical level of research?

6. What three groups of experiments do you know?

7. What methods are used at the empirical and theoretical levels?

8. The essence of analysis and synthesis?

9. Essence and types of induction?

10. The essence of deduction?

11. What is abstraction, analogy, modeling, formalization?

12. What methods of theoretical research do you know?

13. What is the essence of the method of ascent from the abstract to the concrete?

14. What is the essence of the historical and logical?

15. The essence of system-structural analysis?

Literature: 1. Spirkin A.G. "Philosophy" Moscow 2000

2. Kalashnikov V.L. "Philosophy (lecture course) Moscow 1999

3. Gerasimchuk A.A. "Philosophy" (course of lectures) Kiev 1999