Critical realists argue that the condition of possibility of the sciences is that they are based on a correct set of ontological assumptions or definitions. The task of philosophy is to underlabor for the sciences, by ensuring that the explanations developed are congruent with the ontological condition of possibility of the sciences. This requires critical realists to justify their claims about ontology and, to do this, they turn to ontological assumptions that are held to obtain in natural scientific knowledge and social agents’ lay knowledge. A number of problems with this approach are discussed and a problem-solving alternative is advocated.
Archer, M.S.1995. Realist social theory: The morphogenetic approach. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
2.
Archer, M.S.2000. For structure: Its reality, properties and powers: A reply to Anthony King. Sociological Review48 (3): 464-72.
3.
Archer, M. S., R. Bhaskar , A. Collier, and T. Lawson, eds. 1998. Critical realism: Essential readings. London: Routledge.
4.
Baert, P.2005. Philosophy of the social sciences: Towards pragmatism . Cambridge, UK: Polity.
5.
Benton, T.1981. Realism and social science: Some comments on Roy Bhaskar’s "The Possibility of Naturalism." Radical Philosophy27: 13-21.
6.
Benton, T., and I. Craib.2001. Philosophy of social science: The philosophical foundations of social thought. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave.
7.
Berger, P., and T. Luckmann.1966[1991]. The social construction of reality: A treatise in the sociology of knowledge. London: Penguin.
8.
Bhaskar, R.1991. Philosophy and the idea of freedom. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
9.
Bhaskar, R.1997[1975]. A realist theory of science. 2nd ed. London: Verso.
10.
Bhaskar, R.1998[1979]. The possibility of naturalism: A philosophical critique of the contemporary human sciences. 3rd ed. London: Routledge.
11.
Collier, A.1994. Critical realism: An introduction to Roy Bhaskar’s philosophy. London: Verso.
12.
Collier, A.1998. Explanation and emancipation. In Critical realism: Essential readings, edited by M. S. Archer, R. Bhaskar, A. Collier, and T. Lawson , 444-72. London: Routledge.
13.
Giddens, A.1979[1993]. Central problems in social theory: Action, structure, and contradiction in social analysis. London: Macmillan.
14.
Giddens, A.1995[1984]. The constitution of society. Cambridge, UK: Polity.
15.
Gunn, R.1988. Marxism and philosophy: A critique of critical realism . Capital and Class37:87-116.
16.
Holmwood, J.1996. Founding sociology? Talcott Parsons and the idea of general theory. London: Longman.
17.
Holmwood, J.2001. Gender and critical realism: A critique of Sayer. Sociology35 (4): 947-65.
18.
Holmwood, J., and S. Stewart.1991. Explanation and Social Theory. London: Palgrave.
19.
Kemp, S.2005. Critical realism and the limits of philosophy. European Journal of Social Theory8 (2): 171-91.
20.
King, A.1999. Against structure: A critique of morphogenetic social theory. Sociological Review47 (2): 199-227.
21.
King, A.2004. The structure of social theory. London : Routledge.
22.
Locke, J.1996 [1988]. An essay concerning human understanding: An abridgement, edited by J. W. Yolton.London: Everyman.
23.
Marsh, D., and C.H. Buller, J. Johnston, P. Kerr, S. McAnulla, and M. Watson.1999. Postwar British politics in perspective . Cambridge, UK: Polity.
24.
Papineau, D.1982. Review of Bhaskar. 1979. The possibility of naturalism . British Journal for the Philosophy of Science33:444-48.
25.
Pleasants, N.1999. Wittgenstein and the idea of a critical social theory: A critique of Giddens, Habermas, and Bhaskar. London: Routledge.
26.
Popper, K.R.1963[1972a] Conjectures and refutations: The growth of scientific knowledge. London: Routledge.
27.
Popper, K.R.1972b. Objective knowledge: An evolutionary approach. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press.
28.
Popper, K.R.1983[1996]. Realism and the aim of science. London: Routledge.
29.
Popper, K.R.1996[2003]. Representing reality: Discourse, rhetoric, and social construction. London: SAGE .
30.
Potter, J.1998. Fragments in the realization of relativism. In Social constructionism, discourse, and realism, edited by I. Parker.London: SAGE.
31.
Rorty, R.1996. Achieving our country: Leftist thought in twentieth-century America. London: Harvard University Press.
32.
Rorty, R.1998. Truth and progress: Philosophical papers, vol. 3. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
33.
Sayer, A.1984[1992]. Method in social science: A realist approach. 2nd ed. London: Routledge .
34.
Sayer, A.2000. Realism and social science. London : SAGE.
35.
Shotter, J.1993[2002]. Conversational realities: Constructing life through language. London: SAGE.
36.
Trigg, R.1985[2001]. Understanding social science: A philosophical introduction to the social sciences. 2nd ed. Oxford, UK: Blackwell.
37.
Weber, M.1994 [1978]. Selections in translation, edited by W. G. Runciman, translated by E. Matthews. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
