The mention of the word science elicits a wide array of interpretation in the minds of scholars because intellectuals have various views of the subject. People rely on different approaches to comprehend the meaning of science. Science is social determination to comprehend or gain deeper knowledge, the progression of the human society and how it functions with noticeable proof as the foundation of the knowledge. Its comprehension is made by the assessment of the natural sensations and conducting the experiments that try to mimic normal progressions under meticulous settings (Lin, 2011). All the developments and progress that has occurred in life are exclusively attributed to science as it forms the basis of everything, and is considered to be the primary source of knowledge. There have been discussions about itd purpose and significance in human life. Scholars give divergent opinions concerning the importance of science. There are also concerns about the association of science and other subjects, for example, the natural ones. The study will mainly focus on establishing the relationship between science and natural science by exploring their roles in human life.
Development
Social science is a discipline that accommodates all studies that deal with human behavior within the cultural and social aspects (Kende, 2016). This branch incorporates a wide range of issues that cut across such subjects as sociology, anthropology, culture, social psychology, economics and politics. In a broader sense, social sciences incorporate various fields under humanities, for instance, law, history, archaeology and linguistics (Kende, 2016). It plays a significant role in people's cultures and touches on all the aspects of life. The term is occasionally used specifically to imply to the subject in sociology that deals with the natural scientific methods.
The positivist societal researchers capitalize on the strategies that relate with the natural foundations as the basis to acquire appropriate knowledge about civilization and explain science in this context. On the contrast, the interpretive scientists use social critique or symbolic clarification instead of coming up with empirically false models, and thus, understand science in its broader sense (Singer, 2005). In the contemporary academic practices, a majority of the researchers are usually heterogeneous, using several methodologies for example through the combination of both qualitative and quantitative research (Kende, 2016).
The purpose of social science is based on significance in transforming people’s lives as they help to open the minds to imagine alternative futures. The essential purpose here is to create a platform where people can debate and offer their opinions on shaping the future. Since the inception, the fields have helped people to comprehend the impacts and applications of the new technologies that are developed at any point in time. The key innovations that have transformed the world emerged as a result of the role of social sciences in helping people to focus on the future alternatives. Social sciences play a significant role in assisting in making important decisions, for example, regarding financial problems (Lin, 2011). The purposes of social sciences are experienced across all the fields including one’s health and wellbeing. The invention of activities that help to mitigate threatening health conditions, for example, sports and physical exercises is based on the knowledge acquired through social sciences as they are significant in creating safe environments for inhabitation by human beings. The policies that are generally formulated, for example the measures to prevent environmental degradation, are based on the understanding of social values. A primary purpose of this branch is helping to solve the significant challenges affecting humanity. Social scientists work continuously to ensure that they find proper solutions for some issues affecting human life.
Positivism is the term used to refer to the perspective of examining the community and it relies on the science examples, measurements and experimentations to come up with a reliable explanation of how the community functions. The claim of science is generally inherent regarding the positivist theory of science and inquiry (Singer, 2005). There is the appropriate connection between the concepts of social science and positivism as modern terms. Positivism operates on certain assumptions that justify how social sciences are viewed at the positivist point of view. According to this angle, social science is identical in its logic to natural science by suggesting that science is mainly concerned with the search for general laws concerning pragmatic phenomena (Lin, 2011). Another positivism assumption is that the explanation and discovery rely exclusively upon a laborious empirical inquiry of the concept under investigation (Kende, 2016). Besides, positivism is doubtful concerning realism taking into consideration fundamental relations between experimental data. The role of science in life has made it clear that it requires a detailed empirical inquiry. In addition, it is evident that positivist programs turn out to be poorly suited to research and explanation in social science. Such a scenario exists as a result of several reasons, for example, the fact that social phenomena do not fall into distinct and fixed types where the members of the kind are homogeneous. There are few laws like generalizations in regards to social processes and entities. Other concepts can be generalized but revolution cannot because it has a unique form (Nickles, 2012). Every revolution, for instance, proceeds in accordance with historically specific circumstances and set of causes (Nickles, 2012). The discovery of new paradigms in human life has been exclusively based on the scientific revolutions that have taken place over time. The concepts that have been known before were interrupted by the periods of revolutionary science (Nickles, 2012). The discovery of the new paradigms is dependent on the development of anomalies during the scientific revolution. New paradigms can inquire the old information, go beyond the usual puzzle solving of the past paradigm and revolutionize the map that directs new investigation (Lin, 2011). The essential scientific discoveries that have changed humans’ lives over the past years are deeply rooted in the revolution that has occurred in social sciences, which incorporate all the issues and changes that have taken place over the period and are directly related to the modifications in life.
Paradigms in social sciences refers to the view or the matrix of models, theories, in addition to the exemplary achievements through which the social scientists view the world relevant to its particular discipline. Social scientists hold divergent views about the world but they come to be united by the paradigmatic views; that constitutes to normal science. Normal science refers to what the scientists do when they are under the influence of paradigms. The shifting of allegiance from one paradigm to another results in the scientific revolution that has led to the scientific developments that have been experienced across the world (Nickles, 2012). On the other hand, paradigms refers the basic belief systems or the perception of the world which guides the researchers, not only in the selections of method but in epistemologically and ontologically significant ways. The revolutions or paradigms is also seen as metaphysics or a set of basic beliefs that deals with first principles. The paradigms represents a perception of the world that defines the nature of the world, the position of man in it, and the relationship between the society and the world. The paradigms are responsible for the scientific revolution that has occurred because they help the researchers to understand what they are about, as well as what falls within and outside the limits of legitimate inquiry. The basic beliefs that define inquiry paradigms fall in three fundamental questions; the epistemological question, ontological, and the methodological question. Scientists rely on the three principle questions to make the major innovations that have led to scientific revolution (Young, 2006).
Ever since the scientific revolution has led to the inception of contemporary science, there has also been a positive reflection that the future society will mainly be created on an equivalence with the science of the landscape. The social and social sciences are mutually exclusive since social sciences are mainly based on the view of society. Social scientists are mainly concerned with describing the behavior of the society and how the community shapes the world around it. The scientists set the background for current scientific discoveries that have led to the improvement of life through making fundamental discoveries in such essential fields as medicine and engineering, which have improved the quality of life for people (Nickles, 2012).
Most of the things that people find through the natural sciences reflect the fundamental aspects that formed the developments that have occurred in life through the scientific revolutions. On the other hand, human sciences mainly sociology explain how a person interacts with science, which forms the relationship between society and social sciences (Lin, 2011). People participate in the society, and they are not distinct from the event because the natural phenomena are independent, humans are the parts of the experiences.
The significant instruments for the inquiry in social sciences include problem-posing, reflective skepticism, multi-perspectivity and systemic thinking (Frankfort-Nachmias, Nachmias, & DeWaard, 2015). The first tool is used to put forward critical concerns that elicit further investigations on the issues that are usually taken for granted (Frankfort-Nachmias, Nachmias, & DeWaard, 2015). It works by provoking people to acknowledge the need to carry out the inquiries about specific matters. The reflective skepticism instrument ensures that people comprehend queries about the issues in reality and the justification for a methodical examination (Frankfort-Nachmias, Nachmias, & DeWaard, 2015). The multi-perspectivity is utilized to identify, create and organize various viewpoints that are necessary for appreciation of a problem or a topic (Frankfort-Nachmias, Nachmias, & DeWaard, 2015). Systemic thinking works by deconstructing and reconstructing more extensive and multifaceted arrangements and progressions upon which the society acts and specific proceedings occur (Frankfort-Nachmias, Nachmias, & DeWaard, 2015).
Conclusion
Science is the main element responsible for the transformation of the world. Science has played a noteworthy role in transforming people’s lives as a result of the innovations that have been made in various fields like medicine and engineering. Science forms the basis for every aspect of life since all the knowledge is attributed to it. Social science is a branch of a discipline that covers all the subjects that deal with human behavior in the cultural and social facets. According to the positivism point of view, social science is undistinguishable in its lucidity to natural science by perceiving that science is largely related to the search for over-all rules regarding pragmatic phenomena. Another positivism assumption is that the explanation and discovery rely exclusively upon a laborious empirical inquiry of the concept under investigation The critical instruments for inquiry in social sciences include Problem-posing, Reflective skepticism, Multi-perspectivity, and Systemic thinking.
References
Frankfort-Nachmias, C., Nachmias, D., & DeWaard, J. (2015). Research methods in the social sciences.
Kende, A. (2016). Separating Social Science Research on Activism from Social Science as Activism. Journal of Social Issues, 72(2), 399-412. doi:10.1111/josi.12172
Lin, S. (2011). Social Sciences and Sustainability. Social Sciences, 1(1), 1-1. doi:10.3390/socsci1010001
Nickles, T. (2012). Scientific Revolutions. Oxford Bibliographies Online Datasets. doi:10.1093/obo/9780195396577-0048
Singer, M. (2005). The Philosophy of Positivism. The Legacy of Positivism, 3-18. doi:10.1057/9780230288522_1
Young, M. (2006). The scientific revolution. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press.
