Beyerstein's pseudo-science criteria
What are the characteristics of pseudo-science? Here is Beyerstein's list of characteristics of pseudoscience as exposed in Patrick’s Lambe’s post on “Is KM a pseudoscience?“:
- Isolation – failure to connect with prior and parallel disciplines
- Non-falsifiability – no means to invalidate hypotheses
- Misuse of data – leveraging data out of context or beyond validity
- No self-correction, evolution of thought – often centred round a single ‘thought-leader’
- Special-pleading – the claim that this is a special-case that can’t be measured in any other terms
- Unfounded optimism – unrealistic expectations
- Impenetrability – an over-dependence on complicated ideology and obfuscation, or bluster in place of debate
- Magical-thinking – such as “the belief that good things will result from willpower alone”
- Ulterior motives – particularly ulterior motives of a commercial kind
- Lack of formal training – including certification schemes that link back to #4
- Bunker mentality – such as complaints about being ‘misunderstood’ by others, and often linked to #5 and #7
- Lack of replicability of results – especially replicability by others under controlled conditions
It sounds familiar though. I would dare apply the criteria to technology not only scientific work. Does this apply to what we do, frameworks, standards, best practices? Surely not.
Is this valid for what you do? I'll leave you think about it.The list is thought provoking and worth checking.
Adrian
Posted
03-19-2010 3:32 AM
by
Adrian Grigoriu