I shall to discuss the power of theories to shape our conceptuali>ation of psychological issues. I will contrast two theories: contextualism and positivism. I argue that the ontological principles of contextualism are more helpful than positivism for conceptuali>ing what culture is, and the relation between culture and psychology. Moreover, the ontological principles of contextualism lead to ep...

On the face of it, the idea of formal re-inquiry has clear roots in positivism, in the idea that social science is a progressive enterprise of rejecting falsehood and building truth. Either qualitative or quantitative methodology can be part of the positivist project. Taking a position of pluralism in the militant middle, I argue that both positivism and humanism have a great deal to offer cons...

This paper revisits the debate between positivism and its alternatives in the field of information systems from a philosophical point of view. It will argue that the heart of the debate is the ontological difference between the views of reality as observer-independent versus observer-dependent. The logical axiom of the excluded third (tertium non datur) informs us that two contradictory options...