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Varieties Of Dissent, Brian Martin

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

• A scientist publishes a research paper questioning the dominant view on global warming.
• A minister gives a sermon suggesting the Holy Ghost is irrelevant to Christian belief.
• A company accountant meets with the boss to query the boss's favored tax write-off scheme.
• Protesters join rallies against corporate globalization.
• A doctor in China sends e-mails alleging corruption in the Communist Party.

Each of these might be considered a form of dissent. What they have in common is questioning or challenging a dominant belief system, dominant either via widespread acceptance or via the power of those in charge.

Dissent is both lauded …

Challenging Dominant Physics Paradigms, J. M. Campanario, Brian Martin

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

There are many well-qualified scientists who question long-established physics theories even when paradigms are not in crisis. Challenging scientific orthodoxy is difficult because most scientists are educated and work within current paradigms and have little career incentive to examine unconventional ideas. Dissidence is a strategic site for learning about the dynamics of science. Dozens of well-qualified scientists who challenge dominant physics paradigms were contacted to determine how they try to overcome resistance to their ideas. Some such challengers obtain funding in the usual ways; others tap unconventional sources or use their own funds. For publishing, many challengers use alternative journals …

Dissent And Heresy In Medicine: Models, Methods, And Strategies, Brian Martin

Faculty of Arts - Papers (Archive)

Understanding the dynamics of dissent and heresy in medicine can be aided by use of suitable frameworks. The dynamics of the search for truth vary considerably depending on whether the search is competitive or cooperative and on whether truth is assumed to be unitary or plural. Insights about dissent and heresy in medicine can be gained by making comparisons to politics and religion. To explain adherence to either orthodoxy or a challenging view, partisans use a standard set of explanations; social scientists use these plus others, especially symmetrical analyses. There is a wide array of methods by which orthodoxy maintains …