The “cognitive neuroscience revolution” is not a (Kuhnian) revolution. Evidence from scientometrics

Abstract

Fueled by the rapid development of neuroscientific tools and techniques, some scholars consider the shift from traditional cognitive psychology toward cognitive neuroscience to be a revolution (most notably Boone and Piccinini). However, the term “revolution” in philosophy of science can easily be construed as involving a paradigm shift in the sense of Kuhn’s The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Is a Kuhnian account sound in the case at hand? To answer this question, we consider heuristic indicators of two features of paradigm shifts: the incommensurability of ontologies; and a gap between scientific communities. Based on our evidence, we argue that no revolution has occurred (at least, not yet).

Keywords

• cognitive neuroscience
• cognitive psychology
• philosophy of science
• thomas kuhn
• scientometrics