Universal Darwinism and the methodology of social science

Abstract

Controversy surrounding evolved and rationally organized social structures is fueled by: the failure to appreciate that biological structures are relevant in a social context; the use of indirect evolutionary analogues; a rivalry between methodological holism and individualism; and a belief that individualism pre-empts phylogeny. Seminal contributions by Richard Dawkins and Henry Plotkin show the direct relevance of biological to social evolution. Plotkin's application of the evolutionary thesis to epistemology (following Donald T. Campbell) provides a basis to assess the merits of the rival methodologies.