paradigm

Paradigm is a framework of theories, methods, and standards that define legitimate practice within a scientific field or other intellectual community. The term derives from the Greek paradeigma, meaning pattern or example. In practice, a paradigm guides what questions to ask, which methods to employ, and how to interpret results, shaping research agendas and accepted explanations.

In the philosophy of science, the term gained prominence through Thomas Kuhn, who popularized it in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions (1962). A paradigm encompasses the norms of normal science: the shared vocabulary, techniques, and standards by which data are collected and evaluated. Over time, persistent anomalies may challenge a paradigm, potentially leading to a scientific revolution and a paradigm shift in which an older framework is replaced by a new one that can accommodate new evidence.

Examples include the shift from Ptolemaic geocentrism to Copernican heliocentrism, and the later development of relativity and quantum theory alongside Newtonian mechanics. Beyond natural science, paradigms appear in social science as competing research approaches—positivism, interpretivism, critical theory, and others—and in business and technology as dominant models of markets, innovation, and user needs. Paradigm shifts in these domains often accompany disruptive technologies or new organizational theories.

Critiques note that the term can be vague or overextended, especially outside science. Some observers warn that “paradigm shift” is used to describe minor reforms, while others emphasize that researchers frequently work within overlapping or hybrid paradigms rather than a single replacement.