Article
Generalization and Hume's Problem of Induction: Misconceptions and Clarifications
Research Collection School of Social Sciences
Publication Type
Working Paper
Version
publishedVersion
Publication Date
5-2007
Abstract
In Generalizing Generalizability in Information Systems Research Lee and Baskerville (2003) attempt to clarify generalization and distinguish four types of generalization. Although this is a useful objective, what they call generalization is often not generalization at all in the proper sense of the word. We elucidate generalization by locating their major errors. A main source of these is their failure to understand the depth of Hume’s problem of induction. We give a thorough explication of the problem and then give a solution. Lastly, we propose an alternative taxonomy of generalization: theoretical, within-population, cross-population, contextual, and temporal.
Keywords
- Research Methodology,
- Generalization,
- Generalizability,
- Induction,
- Deduction,
- Hume’s Problem of Induction
Discipline
Publisher
Singapore Management University
City or Country
Singapore
Copyright Owner and License
Author
Creative Commons License
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works 4.0 International
Citation Information
Eric W. K. TSANG and John N. Williams. "Generalization and Hume's Problem of Induction: Misconceptions and Clarifications" (2007) p. 1 - 31 Available at: http://works.bepress.com/john_williams/30/
Published in MIS Quarterly, 2012, 36(3), 729 - 748.