Giant with Feet of Clay: Leo Strauss’s Criticism And the Insecurity of Quantitative Research’s Body of Knowledge?
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.61462/cujss.v48i1.760Keywords:
Leo Strauss, scientism, objectivityAbstract
Humans are ordinarily afraid of uncertainty in life. They therefore hope to be able to predict future happenings so as to be prepared to deal with the problems which might arise. It is such that they could ensure a good future. Accordingly, “science” is called into service as it has a strict methodology and, it is believed, is able to foresee and predict natural happenings of the future. The scientific method thus became popular. However, when it came to be applied in a variety of disciplines in the form of quantitative research, with the use of statistics in testing hypotheses, the much praised principles of “science”, such as neutrality and objectivity, became blemished. This was when it became impossible for researchers, who after all are ordinary human beings, to completely avoid being biased in line with their own preferences. The scientific method and its practice thus became out of sync in the testing of hypotheses and consequently in arriving at research results. The most that could be done was to arrive at “statistical probability”, in fact prediction on the basis of uncertainty. However, present day technological advances have lessened the problem. It is therefore time to reconsider Leo Strauss’s defamatory criticism that modern body of knowledge is like a giant with feet of clay.
Downloads
References
Acharawan Ngamyan. 2011. “An Nueang Ma Tae Sut Yamane.” [Because of Yamane’s Formula]. Journal of Business Administration 34(131): 46 – 60. (in Thai)
Anon Sakworawitch. 2017. “Hacking P-value Withikan Kong Hai Phon Kan Totsop Thang Sathiti Mi Nai Samkhan Thang Sathiti 7 Prakan.” [Hacking P-value; the 7 Methods of Cheating the Significance of Statistical Results]. Business Analytics and Intelligence @NIDA. April 1. Accessed August 29, 2017.https://goo.gl/nJuyax (in Thai)
Atip Assawanun. 2014. “Khwam Khaochai Thi Phit Phit Kiaokap Big Data Lae Analytics (1).” [Misunderstandings about Big Data and Analytics (1)]. Bangkok Biz News, September 30. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/NrLrbk. (in Thai)
Briggs, William M. 2015. P-Value Hacking Is Finally Being Noticed. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/rjt2Jc.
Cohen, Jacob. 1994. “The Earth Is Round (p < .05).” American Psychologist 49(12): 997 – 1003.
-----.1977. Statistical Power Analysis for the Behavioral Sciences. 2nd ed. Revised. 1969. New York: Academic Press.
Ekkapollanut Nuttapattanun. 2017. Kanwikhro Kanmueang: Khwamru Bueangton Thang Ratthasat. [Analyzing Politics: An Introduction to Political Science]. Nakhon Pathom: Silpakorn University Printing House. (in Thai)
Fisher, Ronald A. 1926. “The Arrangement of Field Experiment.”Journal of Ministry of Agriculture of Great Britain 33: 503 - 513.
----. 1950. Statistical Methods for Research Workers. Edinburgh: Oliver and Boyd.
Haig, Brian D. 2013. “The Philosophy of Quantitative Methods.” In The Oxford Handbook of Quantitative Methods, edited by Todd D. Little, 7 – 31. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Halsey, Lewis G., Douglas Curran-Everett, Sarah L. Vowler, and Gordon B. Drummond. 2015. “The Fickle P Value Generates Irreproducible Results.”Nature Method 12(3): 179 – 185.
Hawkesworth, Mary. 2004. “Political Science in a New Millennium: Issues of Knowledge and Power.” In Encyclopedia of Government and Politics, edited by Mary Hawkesworth and Maurice Kogan, 3 – 34. London: Routhledge.
Head, Megan. 2015. Scientists Unknowingly Tweak Experiments. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/a4jye7.
Huff, Darrell. 1954. How to Lie with Statistics. New York: W. W. Norton & Company, Inc.
Keuth, Herbert. 2005. The Philosophy of Karl Popper. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Molek [pseud.]. 2015. “Big Datas Khomun Mahasan Thi Thamhai Kantham Kantalat Nan Atchariya Khuen.” [Big Data and Better Marketing]. MarketingOops!, January 24. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/uJpJts. (in Thai)
Neyman, Jerzy. 1937. “Outline of a Theory of Statistical Estimation Based on the Classical Theory of Probability. “Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Mathematical and Physical Sciences 236(77): 333 – 380.
Neyman, Jerzy, and Ergon S. Pearson. 1933. “On the Problem of the Most Efficient Tests of Statistical Hypotheses.”Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series A, Containing Papers of a Mathematical or Physical Character 231: 289 – 337.
O’Hear, Anthony.1980. Karl Popper. London: Routledge and Kegan Paul. Pornlapas Boonsorn. n.d. “Ya Kae Wat.” [Medication for Colds]. Haamor.COM. Accessed August 28, 2017. https://goo.gl/QM9cFy. (in Thai)
“10 Phon Wichai Witthayasat Sut Plaek Pracham Pi 2013.” [10 Strange Scientific Research Findings in 2013]. 2013. Thairath Online News, December 27. Accessed August 28, 2017. https://goo.gl/Cx8mvK. (in Thai)
Siegfried, Tom. 2015. “P Value Ban: Small Step for a Journal, Giant Leap for Science.” Science News, March 17. Accessed August 28, 2017. https://goo.gl/PQdikD.
Smith, Peter K. 2000. “Philosophy of Science and Its Relevance for the Social Sciences,” In Research Training for Social Scientists, edited by Dawn Burton, 5 – 20. London: SAGE.
Stigler, Stephen M. 1986. The History of Statistics: The Measurement of Uncertainty before 1900. Cambridge, MA: The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press.
Strauss, Leo. 1983. Studies in Platonic Political Philosophy. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Strauss, Leo. 1989a. An Introduction to Political Philosophy: Ten Essays. Detroit: Wayne State University Press.
Strauss, Leo. 1989b. The Rebirth of Classical Political Rationalism: An Introduction to the Thought of Leo Strauss. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Thanes Rattanakul. 2016. “20 Kan Khonphop Thang Witthayasat Thi Na Chotcham Thisut Haeng Pi 2016.” [The 20 Most Noteworthy Scientific Findings in 2016]. The Matter, December 22. Accessed August 28, 2017.https://goo.gl/TfCaGg. (in Thai)
Trafimow, David and Michael Marks. 2015. “Editorial.” Basic and Applied Social Psychology 37(1): 1-2.
Thompson, Bruce. 2013. “Overview of Traditional/Classical Statistical Approaches.” In The Oxford Handbook of Quantitative Method, edited by Todd D. Little, 7-25. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Tukey, John W. 1991. “The Philosophy of Multiple Comparisons.” Statistical Science 6(1): 100 – 116.
Waraporn Waikakul, Rojnarin Komonhirun, and Patthrapon Sonkhammee. 2014. “Kansueksa Khwam Phitphlat Khong Kan Chai Sathiti Samrap Kanwichai Thang Wisan-yi-witthaya.” [Statistics in Anesthesia Research: A Review of Most Common Pitfalls]. Thai Journal of Anesthesiology 40(1): 64 – 77. (in Thai)
Wasserstein, Ronald L. 2016. “American Statistical Association Release Statement on Statistical Significance and P-values.” ASA News, March 7. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/QNhzdQ.
Wasserstein, Ronald L., and Nicole A. Lazar. 2016. “The ASA's Statement on p-Values: Context, Process, and Purpose.” The American Statistician 70(2): 129 – 133. Accessed August 29, 2017. https://goo.gl/hf4OMA.
Williams, Malcom. 2000. Science and Social Science: An Introduction. London: Routledge.
Yamane, Taro. 1967. Statistics: An Introductory Analysis. 2nd ed. New York: Harper & Row.
Zuckert, Catherine and Michael Zuckert. 2006. The Truth about Leo Strauss: Political Philosophy and American Democracy. Chicago: The University of Chicago Press.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2018 Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
Public Licensing Terms
Copyright and Licensing Policy
The Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science publishes all content under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0).
Copyright
All published articles in the Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science are the copyright of the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University. Authors transfer all rights to the journal upon acceptance of their manuscript for publication.
CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 License
Under this license:
-
Attribution (BY): Users must give appropriate credit to the authors, the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University, and the Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. They may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses them or their use.
-
NonCommercial (NC): Users may not use the material for commercial purposes. Commercial use requires prior written permission from both the authors and the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University.
-
NoDerivatives (ND): If users remix, transform, or build upon the material, they may not distribute the modified material. Adaptations of the work require prior written permission from both the authors and the Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University.
Open Access Statement
The Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science provides immediate open access to its content on the principle that making research freely available to the public supports a greater global exchange of knowledge. Users are allowed to read, download, copy, distribute, print, search, or link to the full texts of the articles without asking prior permission from the publisher or the author, in accordance with the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license.
Self-Archiving Policy
Authors may archive the final published version, preprints, or postprints of their articles in institutional repositories or on their personal websites, provided that they acknowledge the original publication in the Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science with a complete citation and a link to the journal's website.
Permissions
For any use beyond those covered by the CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license, please contact:
Editorial Office
Chulalongkorn University Journal of Social Science
Faculty of Political Science, Chulalongkorn University
Email: cusocscij@gmail.com
For more information about the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, please visit: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/