Novelty vs. Replicability: Virtues and Vices in the Reward System of Science

Felipe Romero Toro

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticleScientificpeer-review

    Abstract

    The reward system of science is the priority rule (Merton, 1957). The first
    scientist making a new discovery is rewarded with prestige while second runners
    get little or nothing. Strevens (2003, 2011), following Kitcher (1990), defends
    this reward system arguing that it incentivizes an efficient division of cognitive
    labor. I argue that this assessment depends on strong implicit assumptions about
    the replicability of findings. I question these assumptions based on meta-scientific
    evidence and argue that the priority rule systematically discourages replication. My
    analysis leads us to qualify Kitcher and Strevens’ contention that a priority-based
    reward system is normatively desirable for science.
    Original languageEnglish
    JournalPhilosophy of science: Official journal of the Philosophy of Science Association
    Publication statusPublished - 2017

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