Jutila: Reconstructing Global Interconnectedness

Jutila, Matti. Reconstructing Global Interconnectedness: The Complementary Roles of Philosophy and Social Sciences: A conversation with Roy Bhaskar and Keikki Patomaki.

Critical Realism has a unique genealogy that can be traced back through the works of Bhakshar and Harre, among many others. "In short, the content of CR is understood with the help of three philosophical theses: ontological realism, epistemological relativism and judgmental rationalism. Ontological realism means that the world is not only real but it must also be differentiated, structured, layered and possess causal powers. This forms the basis for our knowledge of the different aspects of the world, but this knowledge is always socially produced, contextual and fallible...This interpretative pluralism does not mean that all knowledge claims are equally valid. According to judgmental rationalism, we can always compare various interpretations, explanations and models to make well-grounded and plausible judgments about their truth" (2).

The remainder of the piece is an interview with both Bhaskar and Patomaki regarding their positioning of critical theory within philosophy and social science.