- Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá
Howard University, Philosophy, Faculty Member
- Full Professor of Philosophy, Howard University, Washington DC, United Statesedit
There is a view in contemporary philosophy of science according to which scientific methodology itself is subject to radical change as part of scientific progress. According to this view, change in science is not confined to accepted... more
There is a view in contemporary philosophy of science according to which scientific methodology itself is subject to radical change as part of scientific progress. According to this view, change in science is not confined to accepted theories. The core principles of scientific theory appraisal, including the rules and categories used to rank and confer truth-values on theories, are also said to be subject to radical change as science develops. In this paper, I examine Ian Hacking’s (1975; 1980; 1982; 1983; 1985; 1996; 1999; 2012) version of this no-invariant-methodology thesis. I argue that, just like Thomas Kuhn’s “paradigms,” Larry Laudan’s “research traditions,” and Imre Lakatos’ “research programmes,” Hacking’s “styles of reasoning” fail to give an adequate account of scientific progress.
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Notwithstanding the fact that scholars such and William Twining, Peter Tiller, David Schum, Mike Redmayne, John Jackson, Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá, and many others, who fall roughly within “the New Evidence Scholarship” School now focus on proof,... more
Notwithstanding the fact that scholars such and William Twining, Peter Tiller, David Schum, Mike Redmayne, John Jackson, Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá, and many others, who fall roughly within “the New Evidence Scholarship” School now focus on proof, not enough has been done on the nature of forensic inference itself. In particular, the manner in which different inferences combine to facilitate the process of reasoning in forensic contexts is often left out.
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This paper examines the role of history in forensic inference. It maintains that forensic reasoning has a structure that is understandable only if we pay attention to the evolution of inference in adjudication. In developing this point, a... more
This paper examines the role of history in forensic inference. It maintains that forensic reasoning has a structure that is understandable only if we pay attention to the evolution of inference in adjudication. In developing this point, a distinction is made between two types of history, and it is argued that both histories are crucial to the validity and cogency of forensic conclusions.
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This paper examines the roles of culture and virtues in medical ethics. It argues that principlism, which is the general approach to medical ethics in Western societies, is not comprehensive enough to fully understand how medical moral... more
This paper examines the roles of culture and virtues in medical ethics. It argues that principlism, which is the general approach to medical ethics in Western societies, is not comprehensive enough to fully understand how medical moral dilemmas are resolved in Western and non-Western societies. This is because principlism overlooks the importance of culture and virtues in the medical profession. To fully understand the nature of medico-ethical decision-making, we need to shift focus from principles to the virtues of the medical profession itself and the cultures of the societies within which medicine is practiced. I illustrate these claims with the example of abortion in Islamic ethics.
Research Interests: Sociology, Ethics, Applied Ethics, Environmental Ethics, Medical Ethics, and 15 moreIslamic Studies, Islamic Ethics, Islam, Abortion, Cultural Philosophy, Ética Aplicada, Practical Ethics, Cultural Pluralism, Aborto, Philosophical Ethics, Principlism, Pluralismo Cultural, Islamismo, abortion in Islam, and principialismo
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Are there universal principles, categories, or forms of reasoning that apply to all aspects of human experience—irrespective of culture and epoch? Numerous scholars have explored this very question from Africana perspectives: Kwasi Wiredu... more
Are there universal principles, categories, or forms of reasoning that apply to all aspects of human experience—irrespective of culture and epoch? Numerous scholars have explored this very question from Africana perspectives: Kwasi Wiredu (1996) explored the philosophical issue of whether there are culturally defined values and concepts; Hallen and Sodipo (1986) examined the question of whether there are unique African indigenous systems of knowledge; Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o (1994) evaluated the role of colonialism in the language of African literature; Oyerò nkẹ ́ ́ Oyěwumi (1997) argued that “gender” is a Western cultural invention that is foreign to Yorùbá systems of sociation; and Helen Veran (2001) argued that even though science, mathematics, and logic are not culturally relative, “certainty” is nonetheless derived from cultural practices and associations. Building on these and other works, this essay argues that: (i) incommensurability of “worldviews,” “perspectives,” “paradig...
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There is a view in contemporary philosophy of science according to which scientific methodology itself is subject to radical change as part of scientific progress. According to this view, change in science is not confined to accepted... more
There is a view in contemporary philosophy of science according to which scientific methodology itself is subject to radical change as part of scientific progress. According to this view, change in science is not confined to accepted theories. The core principles of scientific theory appraisal, including the rules and categories used to rank and confer truth-values on theories, are also said to be subject to radical change as science develops. In this paper, I examine Ian Hacking's version of this no-invariant-methodology thesis. I argue that, just like Thomas Kuhn's "paradigms," Larry Laudan's "research traditions," and Imre Lakatos' "research programmes," Hacking's "styles of reasoning" fail to give an adequate account of scientific progress.
Research Interests:
"Disease", "health" and "wellness" are difficult concepts to define. One reason for this is that they express value judgments that are derived from specific cultures. Thus, I illustrated these claims with a comparative analysis between... more
"Disease", "health" and "wellness" are difficult concepts to define. One reason for this is that they express value judgments that are derived from specific cultures. Thus, I illustrated these claims with a comparative analysis between the structural elements of Òrìṣà/Yorùbá and Western medicine. Herein, I argued that in its journey from Africa to the Americas, Òrìṣà medicine has retained its sacred approach to health, disease, wellness, and wholeness. Specifically, this sacred conception of medicine is founded on two important pillars: (a) a sacred conception of the human person and (b) a supematuralistic conception of disease and illness. The concert between these two essential pillars of Òrìṣà medicine require the reconceptualization of medicine and effective remedies in contemporary multicultural societies.
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This paper examines the roles of culture and virtues in medical ethics. It argues that principlism, which is the general approach to medical ethics in Western societies, is not comprehensive enough to fully understand how medical moral... more
This paper examines the roles of culture and virtues in medical ethics. It argues that principlism, which is the general approach to medical ethics in Western societies, is not comprehensive enough to fully understand how medical moral dilemmas are resolved in Western and non-Western societies. This is because principlism overlooks the importance of culture and virtues in the medical profession. To fully understand the nature of medico-ethical decision-making, we need to shift focus from principles to the virtues of the medical profession itself and the cultures of the societies within which medicine is practiced. I illustrate these claims with the example of abortion in Islamic ethics.
Research Interests:
Notwithstanding the fact that scholars such and William Twining, Peter Tiller, David Schum, Mike Redmayne, John Jackson, Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá, and many others, who fall roughly within “the New Evidence Scholarship” School now focus on proof,... more
Notwithstanding the fact that scholars such and William Twining,
Peter Tiller, David Schum, Mike Redmayne, John Jackson, Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá, and many others, who fall roughly within “the New Evidence Scholarship” School now focus on proof, not enough has been done on the nature of forensic inference itself. In particular, the manner in which different inferences combine to facilitate the process of reasoning in forensic contexts is often left out.
Peter Tiller, David Schum, Mike Redmayne, John Jackson, Kọ́lá Abímbọ́lá, and many others, who fall roughly within “the New Evidence Scholarship” School now focus on proof, not enough has been done on the nature of forensic inference itself. In particular, the manner in which different inferences combine to facilitate the process of reasoning in forensic contexts is often left out.
Research Interests:
This paper examines the process by which forensic investigators generate, discover and configure evidence in pre-trial legal processes. Contrary to the received view in which forensic evidence is regarded as an archetype of objectivity, I... more
This paper examines the process by which forensic investigators generate, discover and configure evidence in pre-trial legal processes. Contrary to the received view in which forensic evidence is regarded as an archetype of objectivity, I argue that the validity, adequacy and persuasiveness of forensic proof is dependent upon elements of Reason that forensic investigators acquire by way of belief and individual interpretation of experiences. Using the examples of fingerprint identification and the analysis of evidence by police offices during the early stages of crime investigations, I argue that forensic evidence is to a large extent subjective.
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This paper examines the roles of culture in the principles of biomedical ethics. Drawing on examples from African, Navajo and Western cultures, the paper maintains that various elements of culture are indispensable to the application of... more
This paper examines the roles of culture in the principles of biomedical ethics. Drawing on examples from African, Navajo and Western cultures, the paper maintains that various elements of culture are indispensable to the application of the principles of biomedical ethics.
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My paper considers the role of questions and answers in the inferential tasks of fact investigators (investigators such as police officers and crime scene examiners) prior to trial and indeed prior to arrest. My contention is that the... more
My paper considers the role of questions and answers in the inferential tasks of fact investigators (investigators such as police officers and crime scene examiners) prior to trial and indeed prior to arrest. My contention is that the reasoning processes of these investigators obey an internal, simple, successful, but dangerous, logic.
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This paper examines the role of history in forensic inference. It maintains that forensic reasoning has a structure that is understandable only if we pay attention to the evolution of inference in adjudication. In developing this point, a... more
This paper examines the role of history in forensic inference. It maintains that forensic reasoning has a structure that is understandable only if we pay attention to the evolution of inference in adjudication. In developing this point, a distinction is made between two types of history, and it is argued that both histories are crucial to the validity and cogency of forensic conclusions.
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Research Interests: Law and Modern Law
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O que levou ao colapso o velho império Oyo? Uma versão popular da história oral é que o império caiu porque o alafim Awole (1789-c.1796), fraquíssimo imperador que sucedeu ao alafim Abiodun (c.1774-1789), rogou uma praga no povo iorubá!
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Although many scholars refer to “the Yorùbá of Southwest Nigeria” as a “tribe”, I argue here that “the Yorùbá” are not, and never were, a tribal group. Rather the hallmarks of “Yorùbá” are to be found in a unique set of... more
Although many scholars refer to “the Yorùbá of Southwest Nigeria” as a “tribe”, I argue here that “the Yorùbá” are not, and never were, a tribal group. Rather the hallmarks of “Yorùbá” are to be found in a unique set of religio-philosophical beliefs on the basis of which the Yorùbá organize, regulate and moderate their day-to-day lives. I refer to these religio-philosophical beliefs as “practical beliefs” because they are not just about faith; these beliefs also explicitly (but often implicitly) guide and govern practical conduct.
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Following the positivistic philosophy of Karl Popper and Hans Reichenbach, many traditionalist thinkers on rational proof in law still assume a sharp distinction between “the context of discovery” and “the context of justification.” These... more
Following the positivistic philosophy of Karl Popper and Hans Reichenbach, many traditionalist thinkers on rational proof in law still assume a sharp distinction between “the context of discovery” and “the context of justification.” These traditionalists regard the context of justification as the proper province of legal reasoning. Justification deals with the analysis and appraisal of decisions, judgments, arguments, and verdicts once they are already “on the table.” Thus, questions about the rational adequacy of a judge’s verdict, or about a police decision to charge a suspect, or about the viability of a case that the District Attorney chooses to prosecute are all important to traditional theories. However, questions about discovery play little or no role in many accounts of evidential reasoning in law.
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This paper provides a philosophical assessment of two institutions and their practices: the institution of traditional medicine and the ethical issues generated by its practice; and, the institution of contemporary African philosophy and... more
This paper provides a philosophical assessment of two institutions and their practices: the institution of traditional medicine and the ethical issues generated by its practice; and, the institution of contemporary African philosophy and the relevance of its practice to African societies. Taking one contemporary African society as an example, I argue that the metaphysical assumptions implicit within the practice of medicine provide new insights into the relationship between morality and religion. These assumptions also provide new guidelines on how to make philosophy more relevant to contemporary African societies.
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It has become fashionable for scholars of religion writing through the medium of European languages to employ the use of the term, “African Traditional Religion” (ATR), to refer to the autochthonous religions of Africa. It is my... more
It has become fashionable for scholars of religion writing through the medium of European languages to employ the use of the term, “African Traditional Religion” (ATR), to refer to the autochthonous religions of Africa. It is my considered view that this is incorrect. In addition, it seems that the use of this term “ATR” seems to diminish from the value of the indigenous religions of Africa as authentic religions. Some scholars even use the term “ancestral religion”. Both of the terms seem to imply that the indigenous religions of Africa are not real religions in the full sense of the word.
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If God is such a nice guy, why is there so much misery and suffering in the world?