Running head: EPISTEMOLOGY
Epistemology
Olivia Greene
Liberty University
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ESPISTEMOLOGY
Defining Epistemology
The word epistemology is taken from the Greek and which means episteme logos
knowledge and reason. Epistemology is the study of nature, origin and human knowledge and the
limits therein. (Stroll & Martinich, 2019). So, in short terms, the study of epistemology is the
study of reality, and human perceptions of reality. Although the term reality may seem cut and
dry, it actually is not. One individual’s perception makes up their reality, and perceptions differ
from person to person. Every individual has perceptions and a reality in which they live their life,
but it will not be the same for most individuals.
Categories of Perception and Reality
Even though there are different perceptions and different realities for different people,
there are three categories that most of these individual perceptions fall into. The first category is
the naïve realists. The naïve realists are on one extreme end of the scale, believing that
perception and reality have a point-blank correlation. Then comes the category on the other
extreme end of the scale and that is the category of the antirealist. The antirealist believes that
there is not necessarily a correlation between reality and perception. That an individual’s reality
is based on their personal biased and the bias of their influencers. The last category is the middle
man, known as the critical realist. The critical realist acknowledges that some of the perceptions
of an individual will be based on the biases of themselves, it will not be completely based on
biased, like the antirealists. The reality of the word, what is and is not, will have a major effect of
the perceptions of the critical realists. (Entwistle, 2010).
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ESPISTEMOLOGY
Personal Stance
I tend to fall most closely into the critical realist perspective. I believe a lot of my
thinking may be based on my nurture, my influence, and my own personal biases. I have
automatic thinking responses to certain situations or thoughts. Sometimes I am so set in my own
biases that I do not even realize that I have not logically thought through a problem, and that, at
some point is bound to lead to some incorrect responses and thinking in my life. Even if several
people’s perspectives are different, there is an ultimate reality. Some things are truth, and some
things are not. There are facts of life, that cannot be avoided. But that does not make knowing
these truths any easier, and it does not make changing one’s perspectives any easier.
With any belief system, or perception of reality, there should be a method as to figure out
why an individual thinks the way they do. There are several different ways, experience being one
of those ways. But experience can be a tricky way, because experience can be objective to every
person. Not everyone who goes through an experience will feel the same thing as another person
who goes through a similar experience. Another way to test your perception or reality, is through
empiricism. But our ultimate structure of truth is the scriptures. God tells His people that all of
the Bible is inspired by Him, and therefore truthful, because God is truth. Without God, there
would be no reality, no perceptions, and no knowledge at all. We know this firstly, because God
created the earth in Genesis 1:1 and later in the scriptures in John’s Gospel book 1, it speaks
about how the Word became flesh and the Word being God. (New International Version).
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ESPISTEMOLOGY
Reference
Entwistle, D. N. (2010). Integrative Approaches to Psychology and Christianity. Eugene,
OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Stroll, A., & Martinich, A. P. (2019). epistemology. In (p. 1). Encyclopedia Britannica
Retrieved from https://www.britannica.com/topic/epistemology#
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