Positivism

In the field of philosophy, Positivism generally refers to any empiricist system that confines itself to the data of experience of certain metaphysical speculations. Earlier, this term was first introduced by French Philosopher Sir Auguste Comte in 1798.

This module will discuss the various aspects and concepts of Positivism, why a person should be positive in life, and what is the effect of positivity on an individual’s life and day-to-day habits.

Positivism as a philosophy and a movement originally took shape because of a French Philosopher named Comte, who also named and structured the field of sociology. It eventually progressed through multiple phases known as empirio-criticism, logical positivism, and logical empiricism, combining it with the previously existing analytic philosophy and calling it Positivism.

Principles of Positivism

1. Fact- People believe more in factual content than in bluffs and theories that have no proof.
2. Laws which are Scientific – Laws that are used for prediction and science-based
3. Atomism – A concept or a study can be simplified by breaking it down into smaller fragments or parts.
4. Naturalism- The principles of Nature and sciences must be taken into consideration.
5. Phenomenalism- Valid information is only provided by observed phenomena.
6. Nominalism- Scientific terms have unique and separate meanings. The presence of a term does not imply that the thing it describes exists.

What do you mean by Positivism?

Positivism in the field of sociology is defined as a study of an approach to the study of society that specifically relies on a piece of evidence-based science to reveal the true nature of the functions of a society.

Positivism can also relate to an analytical technique based on strict empiricism that entails collecting measurements, counting objects, and doing statistical analysis. It is most commonly used as a philosophical foundation for scientific inquiry.

The phrase, Positivism, relates to the principle of seeking facts without any regard for hypotheses. Facts are gathered through collection or experiments and can be grouped in ways that make them more understandable through basic processes or procedures.

Forms of Positivism

Despite the fact that positivism has subsequently been demonstrated to be insufficient for studying the whole spectrum of human experience, it has had a great impact on and continues to influence the substantial use of experimentation and statistics in social science. Forms of Positivism include-

1. Social Positivism that was described by Comte showed the evolution of people.
2. Logical Positivism was described by Vienna Circle and Von Mises
3. Critical Positivism was described by Ernst Mach who focused on the experience that was witnessed immediately.

Three Cultural Stages of Society

Sir Auguste Comte created the concept of three phases in his book, The Course in Positive Philosophy. It says that civilization as a whole, as well as any individual science, progresses through three stages (also called as the Three Cultural Stages of Society)

(1) The Stage of Theology – The appeal to personified deities is referred to as the theological stage. People used to assume that all natural events were the result of divine or supernatural intervention. Adults and children alike were unable to determine the natural explanations of many events, therefore they attributed them to a superhuman or heavenly force.

(2) The Stage of Metaphysics – The theological stage is followed by the metaphysical stage. It refers to the use of impersonal abstractions to explain anything. People frequently attempt to define God as an impersonal being.

(3) The Stage of Positivity – Is a term that refers to a scientific explanation that is based on observation, experimentation, and comparison. Positive explanations are justified using a different technique, the scientific method.

Positivism and One’s Thoughts and Emotions

Joy, love, and inspiration are feelings connected with positivity. A person in this mental state chooses constructive and positive attitudes and emotions while avoiding negative and miserable sentiments. This may be not easy at first, but with a little practice, it becomes achievable.

Thoughts connected with Positivism include courage, self-esteem, assurance, success, the strength of character, and consciousness. Such a person’s mentality prefers to think in terms of “I can do it”, “Everything is simple and possible”, and “I am trying and will surely do my best to improve myself and my life.”

Positivism in Business

Managers and designers must comprehend and anticipate what individuals desire and want to accomplish. That entails researching individual consumers and groups, producing products and services to meet their demands, and closely monitoring consumer demand patterns. Customer-driven marketing is another term for this type of marketing management.

Positivism is a collection of rules or standards that govern how a business should operate. According to the positivist management style, the ultimate purpose of a firm is to delight its consumers. For this to happen, products and services must be designed to meet the needs of those customers.

Features of Positivism

1. It helps give validity and purpose to research.
2. The point of Positivism is to uncover the laws that govern human behaviour.
3. It corresponds to the theory of truth.
4. Research is done by working with observable social reality.
5. It believes that the social world can be observed by collecting objective facts.

Influence of Positivism

1. Sir Auguste Comte’s Positivism influences modern society’s views on the foundations of science, cultural evolution and progress, objectivity and truth, and history.
2. In detail, Sir Auguste Comte’s views have had and influenced the various categories of thought processes in the scientific world.
3. Positivism is influenced by the presence of positivity in that specific field.
4. It believes that human nature is entirely based on social norms as society plays an important role in shaping humans.

Conclusion

Today being positive is everything. Half the success comes one’s way if he/she is confident and positive. Being positive helps a person and builds an aura of happiness at workstations and every field of work. Positivism tells us the importance of providing evidence – personal judgments and perceptions are not accepted as ‘scientific’ information. To sum it up, Positivism has had important and lasting effects on science and economic research. But when it comes to philosophy, it has its restrictions.

A positive person will grow and achieve greatness in life.