The sciences are different and the differences matter

Richard Nelson

Research Policy, 2016, vol. 45, issue 9, 1692-1701

Abstract: While biology often has been identified as the field of science where over the past half century progress has been most dramatic, physics continues to be the widely held model of what a field of science should aim to be like. The ideal hallmarks are quantitative characterization of the subject matter studied and mathematical specification of theory. The central argument of this paper is that the subject matter of many important fields of science is very different from that of physics – several of the physical sciences and much of biology, as well as the social sciences, are good examples – and that trying to ape the descriptive and analytic characteristics of physics in these fields hinders the development of understanding. Research on innovation is among this class.

Keywords: Quantification; Rich description; Mathematical theory; Qualitative analysis (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (7)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:respol:v:45:y:2016:i:9:p:1692-1701

DOI: 10.1016/j.respol.2015.05.014

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