• Home
• Study
• Study Information
• Modules
• Module Information

Social Epistemology

Module description

The production and transmission of knowledge do not take place in a vacuum but are influenced by institutional arrangements and social norms. This module will explore several questions that arise from this observation. When deferring to others, whose testimony should we trust? Do pragmatic or moral considerations affect what it is rational to believe? Do search engines and social media have the power to manipulate what people believe? This module will offer an opportunity to explore these and related questions, through engaging with new and cutting-edge philosophical work on topics in social epistemology.

Some of the authors of the weekly readings may be invited to discuss their work, giving students an opportunity to meet and interact with them. There are no pre-requisites for this module. This module may be suitable for non-specialist students with a keen interest in philosophy, and for interdisciplinary pathways.

Module aims - intentions of the module

• You will learn to identify and critically assess current debates in social epistemology and critically engage with philosophical work in this area.
• You will learn research skills in both self-motivated and group contexts.
• You will develop core philosophical skills such as critical reflection, argumentation and clarity of expression.
• Examining recent and forthcoming work will help you cover new research methods and trends, understand the relevance of interdisciplinary inputs in philosophical research, and learn about situating philosophical work within disciplinary context.

Intended Learning Outcomes (ILOs)

ILO: Module-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 1. Demonstrate familiarity with current work on social epistemology.
• 2. Demonstrate knowledge and critical appreciation of different theoretical approaches to the social dimensions of knowledge.

ILO: Discipline-specific skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 3. Understand and critically engage with philosophical arguments.
• 4. Problematise and critically assess philosophical implications of interdisciplinary issues.

ILO: Personal and key skills

On successfully completing the module you will be able to...

• 5. Develop clear and concise written and oral communication skills.
• 6. Demonstrate comprehension of complex ideas and writing.

Syllabus plan

Whilst the precise content may vary from year to year, it is envisaged that the syllabus will cover all or some of the following topics:

• Pragmatic and moral encroachment: can pragmatic or moral considerations affect what one ought to rationally believe?
• Social epistemology of science: is peer review a good idea? How do social incentives influence the work of scientists?
• Social epistemology and the internet: how do search engines and social media influence what we believe?
• Varieties of epistemic injustice: what do we owe to each other as epistemic agents?
• Collective epistemic virtues and vices.

Learning activities and teaching methods (given in hours of study time)

Details of learning activities and teaching methods

Formative assessment

Summative assessment (% of credit)

Details of summative assessment

Details of re-assessment (where required by referral or deferral)

Indicative learning resources - Basic reading

• Bright, Liam Kofi (2021). ‘Why do Scientists Lie?’ in Royal Institute of Philosophy Supplements Vol. 89, No.1; 117-129.
• Fricker, Miranda (2007). Epistemic Injustice: Power and the Ethics of Knowing. Oxford University Press.
• Gardiner, Georgi (forthcoming). ‘Attunement: On the Cognitive Virtues of Attention’. In Social Virtue Epistemology, eds. Mark Alfano, Jeroen de Ridder, & Colin Klein. Routledge.
• Nguyen, C. Thi. ‘Echo Chambers and Epistemic Bubbles’. Episteme, Volume 17, Issue 2, June 2020, pp. 141-61.
• O’Connor, Cailin and James Owen Weatherall (2020). The Misinformation Age: How False Beliefs Spread. Yale University Press.
• Rini, Regina. ‘Fake News and Partisan Epistemology’. Kennedy Institute of Ethics Journal, Volume 27, Number 2 Supplement, June 2017, pp. E-43-E-64.

Key words search

Epistemology; Social Epistemology; Epistemic Justice; Social Networks