Model (philosophy)
Definition: The process by which a verbal description is formalised to remove ambiguity, while also constraining the dimensions a theory can span. The model is thus data derived. “Many scientific models are representational models: they represent a selected part or aspect of the world, which is the model’s target system” (Frigg & Hartman, 2020).
Related terms: Hypothesis, Theory, Theory building
References:
- Guest, O., & Martin, A. E. (2020). How computational modeling can force theory building in psychological science. Perspectives on Psychological Science. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691620970585
- Frigg, R., & Hartmann, S. (2020). Models in Science. In E. N. Zalta (Ed.), The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy (Spring 2020). Metaphysics Research Lab, Stanford University. https://plato.stanford.edu/archives/spr2020/entries/models-science/
- Glass, D. J., & Hall, N. (2008). A brief history of the hypothesis. Cell, 134(3), 378–381. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cell.2008.07.033
Originally drafted by: Mahmoud Elsherif
Reviewed by: Charlotte R. Pennington, Michele C. Lim