Barriers to the Development of Theory

Theories are driven by well-prepared and -executed experiments.

The progression of science depends on the continual development of scientific theories. As theories develop, we can better predict phenomena, understand the world around us in new ways and control processes that contribute to the quality of life of human beings. However, there are several ways for the development of theories to become stifled.

Bad Experiments

One of the most serious barriers to the development of theories is the carrying out of bad experiments; experiments must follow a particular method if they are to be deemed valid. For example, if you are testing a the effects of a new drug on a group, it is necessary to have a control group that is subject to the same circumstances of the test group except that they will not be given the new drug. Failure to set up an appropriate control group results in bad experiments, which can hold up the development of theories.

Scientific Fraud

Many bad experiments are the result of a lack of knowledge, a lack of skill or some other incompetency on the part of the scientists involved; however, some researchers will intentionally set out to conduct an experiment fraudulently in order to gain support for their ideas. As there is no one organization that is responsible for discovering scientific fraud, it falls to individual scientists to discover these dishonest people via the peer review process. When discovered as a fraud, your credibly within the scientific community is threatened.

Anomalies

Sometimes, when investigating the truth of a theory, scientists discover data that is not the result of bad experimentation or fraud, but that does not fit with the predictions of the theory. When this occurs, it is a sign that the theory, while perhaps approximately right, is not a perfectly accurate description of reality. This is when scientists must get to work and seek out a better theory that incorporates all the data observed previously in addition to the new, anomalous data.

Funding

Funding is necessary for any research program to get off the ground. While funding is available from private and public sources, it can often be difficult to obtain sufficient funding for a research program. No matter how good an idea is, or how resourceful a scientist might be, without proper funding the development of theory cannot progress.

References

• Science Buddies: Steps of the Scientific Method
• Visionlearning: The Scientific Method
• Popper, Karl: The Logic of Scientific Discovery
• NaturalNews.com: The Scientific Fraud Pandemic: Few Honest Scientists Remain