Epistemic niche construction and non-epistemic values: the case of 19th century craniology

Abstract

In this paper, we will focus on a specific way in which non-epistemic values can influence scientific inquiry, i.e., how they affect the way in which members of a scientific community apply epistemic values. We will first introduce the concept of epistemic niche construction in science, that is, the idea that the epistemic commitments underlying the practice of a scientific community result from a feedback-loop process between the scientific practice itself and the related disciplinary matrix. We will then describe how non-epistemic values can affect the different steps of this feedback-loop process. We will substantiate our argumentation through a historical case study: the rise and fall of nineteenth-century craniology.