Descriptive Theory

What is descriptive theory? How should it be defined?

There are some propositions that attempt to describe and explain the world. It is important to provide this class of propositions with a proper scientonomic definition.

In the scientonomic context, this question was first formulated by Zoe Sebastien in 2016. The question is currently accepted as a legitimate topic for discussion by Scientonomy community. Descriptive Theory (Sebastien-2016) is currently accepted by Scientonomy community as the best available definition of the term. Descriptive Theory (Sebastien-2016) states "A set of propositions that attempts to describe something."

History

Acceptance Record

Here is the complete acceptance record of this question (it includes all the instances when the question was accepted as a legitimate topic for discussion by a community):

Community	Accepted From	Acceptance Indicators	Still Accepted	Accepted Until	Rejection Indicators
Scientonomy	16 February 2017	The question became accepted as legitimate with the publication of Sebastien (2016).	Yes

All Theories

The following theories have attempted to answer this question:

Theory	Formulation	Formulated In
Descriptive Theory (Sebastien-2016)	A set of propositions that attempts to describe something.	2016

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Accepted Theories

The following theories have been accepted as answers to this question:

Community	Theory	Accepted From	Accepted Until
Scientonomy	Descriptive Theory (Sebastien-2016)	15 February 2017

Suggested Modifications

Here is a list of modifications concerning this topic:

Modification	Community	Date Suggested	Summary	Verdict	Verdict Rationale	Date Assessed
Sciento-2016-0002	Scientonomy	3 September 2016	Accept a new taxonomy for theory, normative theory, descriptive theory to reintroduce normative propositions (such as those of ethics or methodology) to the scientific mosaic.	Not Accepted	Since this modification consisted of two interrelated but essentially distinct suggestions - one definitional and one ontological - it was decided by the community to divide it into two modifications so that the gist of the proposed suggestions is properly articulated. In particular, it was agreed that there are two modifications in "the heart of this single modification - one ontological, the other definitional".c1 It was also agreed that the current formulation "is exclusively definitional, and does not give the community an opportunity to appreciate (and, well, accept) the ontological changes that come along with it".c2 Consequently, it was decided to divide this modification into two modifications - one definitional and one ontological.c3	23 January 2017
Sciento-2017-0001	Scientonomy	23 January 2017	Accept new definitions for theory, normative theory, and descriptive theory. Also, modify the definition of methodology to reflect these changes.	Accepted	The community agreed that this is "an important addition to theoretical scientonomy".c1 It was agreed that since "the paradox of normative propositions has been solved, a revised set of definitions was needed".c2 It was emphasized that if we're going to have any sort of conversation on the status of normative propositions in the mosaic, "then we need to start from a definition".c3	15 February 2017

Current View

In Scientonomy community, the accepted definition of the term is Descriptive Theory (Sebastien-2016). It is defined as: "A set of propositions that attempts to describe something."

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Related Topics

This topic is also related to the following topic(s):

• Theory
• Normative Theory

Contributors

Hakob Barseghyan (100.0%)