In a message dated 4/1/2001 7:05:46 PM Central Daylight Time,
drobbins@socket.net writes:
> 1). Vygotsky warned against the dangers of placing various aspects of
>
Dot,
I think perhaps you have theory confused with conceptual framework.
Mathematics has many theories yet has only one conceptual framework from
which it operates, the numberline. All disciplines that have made major
contributions to both the understanding of the world and of its people have
not done so until they were able to nail down a specific conceptual framework
that explained all previous findings and were able to facilitate the
prediction of future events. The study of how bodies moved and reacted was
not fully understood until Newton invented Calculus. How living things
differ from nonliving things was not fully understood until the cell was
discovered. Currently in the discipline of Social Science there is great
debate concerning methodology (qualitative vs quantitative) and to what
extent theories of the past were beneficial or detrimental. For example
Bruno Bettelheim (who was quite astute and provided much perceived progress
in his day) is no longer cited in research because of his untrue belief that
autism was caused from an abnormal relationship between mother and child.
Currently the social sciences have many theories that attempt to
explain one system or a specific behavioral defect or an activity that can
manipulate others, but there is not one set conceptual framework that allows
all these individual theories to cooperate under a unified methodology. I
agree that there is room for many theories but they must be coordinated and I
believe YE has made a valiant attempt at giving present day social
scientists a good starting point.
Eric
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