This book explores new findings on the long-neglected topic of theory construction and
discovery and challenges the orthodox current division of scientific development into
discrete stages: the stage of generation of new hypotheses the stage of collection of relevant
data the stage of justification of possible theories and the final stage of selection from
among equally confirmed theories. The chapters written by leading researchers offer an
interdisciplinary perspective on various aspects of the processes by which theories rationally
should and descriptively are built. They address issues such as the role of problem-solving
and heuristic reasoning in theory-building how inferences and models shape the pursuit of
scientific knowledge the relation between problem-solving and scientific discovery the
relative values of the syntactic semantic and pragmatic view of theories in understanding
theory construction and the relation between ampliative inferences heuristic reasoning and
models as a means for building new theories and knowledge. Through detailed arguments and
examinations the volume collectively challenges the orthodox view's main tenets by
characterizing the ways in which the different stages are logically temporally and
psychologically intertwined. As a group the chapters provide several attempts to answer
long-standing questions about the possibility of a unified conceptual framework for building
theories and formulating hypotheses.
