Theme 3: Research and theory - Post-reflection

During the lecture and followed up at our seminar discussions we identified different types of theories. The most common scientific theory that is well confirmed by the currently modern methods of science. It is motivated by consistency and can always be explained and measured. The other larger type of theory is philosophical theories, that is not based in empirical data but solely in people’s conviction; hence not being false until proven so, according to scientific measures.

Furthermore we discussed theories correlation to hypotheses and found it to be very close. Sometimes even hard to determine whether a topic, observation or experience is theory or hypothesis. The conclusion of our discussion, based on what we interpreted from the lecture, was that it is all objective and dependent on our presuppositions and previous experiences. For example we discussed the image of a frozen, snowy forest that Leif showed us during the lecture. In our context, in Sweden and where most of us if not all in that lecture hall are also brought up in Sweden, our first thought is that the image is of a frozen, snowy forest. The theory around that image is unified. On the other hand, if the image would have been shown in a classroom in Africa or a place on earth where snow never falls and the citizens have never experienced it, the interpretations would have differed. They might even have claimed that the trees and ground was painted in white. In that context, that would have been their theory. This comes down to our conclusion of our discussion that theories are hypotheses until scientifically proven, philosophically agreed upon which in itself takes us to our core thought: if enough people within a context are unified and convinced about a phenomena, it turns into theory for them.

However, during the group discussion with the entire class this distinction was not entirely agreed upon. Rather we said that a hypothesis is: concise formulation of a particular expectation that you then experiment within. Hypotheses need not build on a theory and can be tested and determined whether true or false. Also, theories are not necessarily divided into different types but something abstract we construct in order to enhance our understanding of the world. Nevertheless, Leif said during his lecture that “Theory is a coherent reasoning for explaining phenomena and is used until proven inapplicable by another theory. [...] it can take a long time to convince people that a new theory is valid and should replace the old theory.”, a statement that is in line with our initial reasoning. Leif also said that there are different views on what theory is, which could hence describe our varying opinions during the open class discussion.

The divergence we got round up in however, regarding what defined theory, when sitting in the smaller groups, was a mix up of theory and truth. While theory is as discussed above, truth is something a unified crowd believes in and is convinced about. Take religion as an example. Even though we have never been able to find any evidence or proof of a higher force or God, people still believe there is one. Yet they live by and consider religion as truth.