Theories and models

Frigg, Roman ORCID: 0000-0003-0812-0907 (2024) Theories and models. In: Knuuttila, Tarja, Carrillo, Natalia and Koskinen, Rami, (eds.) The Routledge Handbook of Philosophy of Scientific Modeling. Routledge Handbooks in Philosophy. Routledge, Abingdon, UK, pp. 26-41. ISBN 9781032071510

Text (Theories and models_25_01_03_11_49_48) - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (209kB)

• Author
• Publisher
• Scopus publication

Abstract

This chapter discusses the question of how models and theories relate. Its main contention is that there is no such thing as “the” relation between models and theories: models can stand in a multiplicity of relations to theories. After a brief review of how the relation between models and theories is analysed in the Syntactic View and the Semantic View of theories, the chapter discusses cases in which models are independent from theories, designed to explore properties of theories, live in a symbiotic relation with theories by completing them, aid the application of abstract theories to concrete target systems, and serve as mediators between theory and the world. The chapter then discusses where the line between models and theories should be drawn, and it ends with a short conclusion.

Item Type:	Book Section
Additional Information:	© 2025 selection and editorial matter Tarja Knuuttila, Natalia Carrillo, and Rami Koskinen; individual chapters, the contributors
Divisions:	Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method
Subjects:	B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > B Philosophy (General) Q Science > Q Science (General)
Date Deposited:	05 Jan 2024 15:03
Last Modified:	25 Jan 2025 17:04
URI:	http://eprints.lse.ac.uk/id/eprint/121181

Actions (login required)

View Item