Science, Mechanisms and Evidence

Ignacio Gimenez*

Received: January 17, 2020;   Published: January 28, 2020

DOI: 10.32474/RRHOAJ.2020.04.000194

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Abstract

A good way to explain what we observe is through the description of the mechanisms that generate it. This perspective, generally called mechanistic philosophy or “mechanicism”, provides tools to arrive at explanations of phenomena of a very diverse nature, from protein synthesis to social processes. The very concept of mechanism can be analyzed in terms of its constituent entities and activities. One of the best-known definitions of mechanism within this philosophical framework is the following: a mechanism is entities and activities organized in such a way that they produce regular changes from initial conditions to final conditions Machamer, Darden and Craver.

Introduction| Mechanisms in Neuroscience| Seeing Medicine Through Mechanisms: The Case of Evidence-Based Medicine| Using Mechanisms to Improve Clinical Trials Design| Mechanisms as An External Source of Clinical Evidence| When Mechanisms Speaks About Causality| Conclusion| References|