Kuhn's Paradigm Shift
Updated 2026-08-08
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
Presented by Thomas Kuhn in The Structure of Scientific Revolutions. Normal science works within a paradigm, solving puzzles using shared theories, methods, and standards. As anomalies accumulate that the paradigm cannot accommodate, a crisis develops and a new paradigm replaces the old, which is a change in worldview rather than an accumulation of facts. Kuhn argued that paradigms are incommensurable, so the shift cannot be justified by logic alone.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Name the paradigm: state the shared assumptions your field treats as settled before interpreting anomalies - Collect anomalies: log results the framework cannot explain instead of explaining each one away - Time the shift: watch whether anomalies are multiplying, which signals a crisis rather than a run of bad luck
Anchor fast decisions
Training inside a paradigm teaches which problems count and which methods are legitimate, so anomalies get interpreted in the framework's own terms and dismissed. When the accumulating failures can no longer be absorbed, confidence in the framework erodes and alternatives become viable. Because the new framework redefines the standards themselves, it cannot be chosen by the old criteria alone.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
account_treeGenealogyexpand_more
menu_bookReferencesexpand_more
Source support: Explicit
- en.wikipedia.orghttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Paradigm_shiftverified
PRIVATE NOTES · Only visible to you
SAVED Q&A
ENTRY Q&A · Private saving available
Ask with a clear boundary
thinkingmodels answers from published entry context only.
Your question is sent to thinkingmodels. The answer uses public entry context only.
RELATED MODELS