paradigms

Paradigm is a framework of theories, methods, and standards that defines a scientific discipline at a given time. The term originated in the philosophy of science and has since entered broader usage. In science, a paradigm shapes what counts as a legitimate question, what counts as evidence, and how experiments are designed and interpreted.

In the Kuhnian view, research proceeds through normal science conducted within an existing paradigm. Anomalies accumulate, producing crisis, and eventually a scientific revolution that yields a new paradigm. This paradigm shift redefines problems, questions, and solutions, and often reorganizes the field’s methods, vocabulary, and underlying assumptions. Shifts are typically gradual in appearance but involve a fundamental reconfiguration of how the discipline understands and investigates the world.

Outside science, the term describes a prevailing pattern or worldview within any field or practice, such as education, economics, or software development. A paradigm guides research questions, analytic tools, and standards for evidence and success, and it can influence what is considered legitimate inquiry or effective practice.

Critics of the term argue that it is vague, overextended, or ambiguously defined. Some philosophers challenge the idea of incommensurability between paradigms, while others offer refinements, such as Lakatos’s notion of competing research programs and Feyerabend’s epistemological anarchism. Despite debates, the concept remains a common way to describe large-scale, lasting frameworks that shape how communities think and work. In contemporary usage, a paradigm shift denotes a significant reorientation in approach, sometimes across disciplines.