Full text not available from this repository.

Abstract

Thick concepts, namely those concepts that describe and evaluate simultaneously, present a challenge to science. Since science does not have a monopoly on value judgments, what is responsible research involving such concepts? Using measurement of wellbeing as an example, we first present the options open to researchers wishing to study phenomena denoted by such concepts. We argue that while it is possible to treat these concepts as technical terms, or to make the relevant value judgment in-house, the responsible thing to do, especially in the context of public policy, is to make this value judgment through a legitimate political process that includes all the stakeholders of this research. We then develop a participatory model of measurement based on the ideal of co-production. To show that this model is feasible and realistic, we illustrate it with a case study of co-production of a concept of thriving conducted by the authors in collaboration with a UK anti-poverty charity Turn2us.

Item Type:	Article
Authors/Creators:	Alexandrova, A and Fabian, M
Keywords:	philosophy of science, measurement, participatory governance
Journal or Publication Title:	European Journal for Philosophy of Science
Publisher:	Springer Netherlands
ISSN:	1879-4912
DOI / ID Number:	https://doi.org/10.1007/s13194-021-00437-7
Copyright Information:	© The Author(s) 2022
Item Statistics:	View statistics for this item

Actions (login required)

Item Control Page