Evidence-based medicine (EBM) makes use of explicit procedures for grading evidence for causal claims. Normally, these procedures categorise evidence of correlation produced by statistical trials as better evidence for a causal claim than evidence of mechanisms produced by other methods. We argue, in contrast, that evidence of mechanisms needs to be viewed as complementary to, rather than inferior to, evidence of correlation. In this paper we first set out the case for treating evidence of mechanisms alongside evidence of correlation in (...) explicit protocols for evaluating evidence. Next we provide case studies which exemplify the ways in which evidence of mechanisms complements evidence of correlation in practice. Finally, we put forward some general considerations as to how the two sorts of evidence can be more closely integrated by EBM. (shrink)

It is customary to apply the term “ideology” to political statements and statements about politics believed to be saturated with irrational elements. Since more often than not it is applied to the political science and policies of parties of the extreme, one may suspect that this usage is itself colored by political interests. However, “ideology” can be redefined at the level of a meta-science that reduces, though it cannot altogether eliminate, the partisan function of language about politics. Ideological thinking can (...) then be shown to involve a logical error that is the counterpart of the genetic fallacy. Surprisingly, in this usage liberal political science, or that with liberal preconceptions, is a more frequent offender against the logic of science than a science of politics with illiberal preconceptions. (shrink)

Deep Republicanism: Prelude to Professionalism reveals a subversive republicanism in Machiavelli's political theories that is at odds with the demoliberalism often perceived as his primary political agenda. It also establishes the importance of this republican agenda in understanding the major revolutions of the modern world.

Hodges (philosophy and political science, Florida State U.) contends that the immensely influential political tract is not, as it claims, a forthright and faithful expression of what communists believed in 1848. He explores its conspiratorial past in the French Revolution, Marx and Engel's informal amendments, and the adaptations and interpretations that have pulled it in different directions for the past century and a half. He shows how it played a key ideological role in both the rise and fall of the (...) Soviet Union. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR. (shrink)

According to current hierarchies of evidence for EBM, evidence of correlation (e.g., from RCTs) is always more important than evidence of mechanisms when evaluating and establishing causal claims. We argue that evidence of mechanisms needs to be treated alongside evidence of correlation. This is for three reasons. First, correlation is always a fallible indicator of causation, subject in particular to the problem of confounding; evidence of mechanisms can in some cases be more important than evidence of correlation when assessing a (...) causal claim. Second, evidence of mechanisms is often required in order to obtain evidence of correlation (for example, in order to set up and evaluate RCTs). Third, evidence of mechanisms is often required in order to generalise and apply causal claims. While the EBM movement has been enormously successful in making explicit and critically examining one aspect of our evidential practice, i.e., evidence of correlation, we wish to extend this line of work to make explicit and critically examine a second aspect of our evidential practices: evidence of mechanisms. (shrink)

In his discussion of "Psychological Egoism" (PPR, June, 1960), Professor Lemos chooses to legislate it out of existence by means of a definition; so I choose to legislate it back into existence by a similar device. The pertinent question is whether definitions of psychological egoism are arbitrary or not.

Class Politics in the Information Age uncovers the origins, development, aims, means, and moral and political hypocrisy of the new class of professionals.