O modus tollens, o holismo de Duhem-Quine e as ciências sociais

Abstract

The idea that scientific interference consists of the exercise of directing the modus tollens to given statements currently enjoys canonical status in the social sciences. This idea requires that statements about the world have a supply of empirical consequences that can be isolated and referred to as proper to them. However, according to Duhem-Quine’s holistic vision of knowledge, such a demand cannot be met. This article discusses the implications, for the social sciences, of the holistic critique towards the canonical model of scientific interference, given that two pillars of this area of knowledge, i.e., Suicide, by Emile Durkheim, and The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, by Max Weber, are tributaries of said canonical model.