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Based on the provided text, explain why inquiries that involve subjective value judgments are considered non-empirical and remain definitively outside the scope of scientific testing.
Question: Based on the provided text, explain why inquiries that involve subjective value judgments are considered non-empirical and remain definitively outside the scope of scientific testing.
Sample answer: Inquiries involving subjective value judgments are considered non-empirical because they cannot be settled through scientific observation. These questions focus on how the world ought to be, rather than how it literally is. Because the scientific method relies on empirical observation, inquiries about morality or what behaviors ought to be illegal cannot be tested scientifically.
Key points:
- Subjective value judgments cannot be settled through scientific observation.
- These questions ask how the world ought to be.
- The scientific method addresses how the world literally is.
- Therefore, they remain outside the scope of scientific testing.
Rubric: A full-credit response must state that subjective value judgments cannot be settled through observation and distinguish between questions asking how the world ought to be versus how it literally is.
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KPU
Research Methods in Psychology - 4th American Edition @ KPU
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