Paradigm shifts reconstruct the field from new fundamentals
New paradigms are not cumulative or additive to an existing paradigm—they reconstruct the field afresh.
The transition from a paradigm in crisis to a new one from which a new tradition of normal science can emerge is far from a cumulative process, one achieved by an articulation or extension of the old paradigm. Rather it is a reconstruction of the field from new fundamentals, a reconstruction that changes some of the field’s most elementary theoretical generalizations as well as many of its paradigm methods and applications.[1]
The reconstruction, however, may result in an overlap between the two during the transition (which, for some paradigms may last a long time).
During the transition period there will be a large but never complete overlap between the problems that can be solved by the old and by the new paradigm. But there will also be a decisive difference in the modes of solution. When the transition is complete, the profession will have changed its view of the field, its methods, and its goals.[2]
See also:
- Paradigms can have phenomenal longevity
- New paradigms are incommensurable with previous ones
- Paradigm changes are preceded by awareness and recognition
- Paradigm shifts create a new framework of thinking
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions – Kuhn (1962), ch. 8. ↩︎
Ibid. ↩︎