Under the Sheep’s Tale and Other Realist Tales: a bottom-line argument on the realist/relativist debate

Abstract

The realism/relativism debate - one which simmers I unresolved in the philosophy of science - has been reignited in a recent 2001 issue of the journal, History of the Human Sciences. In psychology, it has been embedded in the Potter/Parker debate - both of whom employ extreme form arguments to undermine the other's position and assert their own. In doing so, they construct a dualism implying an "essential" epistemological irreconcilability without specifying the form of relativism/realism to which they are referring. In this talk, drawing inter alia on the writings of Quine, von Bertalanffy, Bruner and Gergen, the author proposes a dialogic position that dissolves the dualism and discusses the implications for psychological knowledge and critical research.