The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

by

Thomas S. Kuhn

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Disciplinary Matrix Term Analysis

In Kuhn’s postscript to The Structure of Scientific Revolutions, he uses the term “disciplinary matrix” to clarify what he initially meant by “paradigm.” Like paradigms, disciplinary matrices describe groups of scientists with a shared set of beliefs. But Kuhn specifies three crucial pillars of a disciplinary matrix: first, scientists must have a shared set of symbols and definitions. Second, scientists must have a shared set of metaphysical beliefs about the world. Third, scientists must have a shared set of values.
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Disciplinary Matrix Term Timeline in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions

The timeline below shows where the term Disciplinary Matrix appears in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. The colored dots and icons indicate which themes are associated with that appearance.
Postscript - 1969
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...than saying that scientists all share a single paradigm, he coins the new term “ disciplinary matrix ” to describe the shared set of theories, rules and beliefs that guide a given... (full context)
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One important part of any disciplinary matrix is the “symbolic generalizations” shared by a group of scientists (whether that is a set... (full context)