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Meaning of instrumentalism | Babel Free

Noun CEFR C2

Definitions

In the philosophy of science, the view that concepts and theories are merely useful instruments whose worth is measured not by whether the concepts and theories are true or false (or correctly depict reality), but how effective they are in explaining and predicting phenomena.

countable, uncountable

Equivalents

Examples

“Instrumentalism views truth as simply the value belonging to certain ideas in so far as these ideas are biological functions of our organisms, and psychological functions whereby we direct our choices and attain our successes.”

CEFR level

C2
Mastery
This word is part of the CEFR C2 vocabulary — mastery level.

See also

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