Stödhypoteser

Stödhypoteser, or auxiliary hypotheses, are supplementary assumptions or propositions introduced to support or justify a primary hypothesis. In scientific inquiry and argumentation, a main hypothesis might face challenges or lack sufficient direct evidence. Stödhypoteser serve to bridge these gaps, offering additional reasoning or evidence that, when combined with the primary hypothesis, strengthens its overall plausibility or explanatory power.

The concept is particularly relevant in fields like philosophy of science, where it's discussed in the context of theory confirmation and falsification. When a primary hypothesis is tested and fails to align with observations, it might be argued that the failure is not necessarily due to the primary hypothesis itself, but rather to the truthfulness of one or more stödhypoteser. This allows for the protection of the core theory by suggesting that the problem lies in the supporting assumptions, which can then be revised or rejected independently.

For instance, in astronomical observations, if a predicted celestial event doesn't occur as expected, a stödhypotes could be that the observational equipment was faulty, or that an unknown atmospheric condition interfered. Rejecting the primary astronomical hypothesis prematurely might be avoided by first examining and potentially revising these stödhypoteser. The strength of a primary hypothesis is thus intricately linked to the validity and number of supporting stödhypoteser.