Potencialidades e limitações da teoria do design inteligente em discussões envolvendo a natureza da ciência : uma análise à luz da teoria da ação comunicativa

Abstract

This doctoral research aimed to investigate what limits and possibilities are presented in the understanding of aspects of the Nature of Science, by discussions involving the Intelligent Design Theory, carried out by professors who work in a degree in Natural Sciences and Mathematics. For this, we take as theoretical reference the principles of the Theory of Communicative Action, by the German philosopher Jürgen Habermas. We perform a qualitative research, with an action-research methodology. As main results, we find that the IDT was considered adequate to discuss the virtues and limits of the adoption of methodological naturalism in science. Among the main potentialities attributed to TDI are, in addition to problematizing the range of action of methodological naturalism, raising questions about the role of probability in scientific argumentation and pointing to the need for a permanent questioning stance in science, and theories or methodologies should not be considered unquestionable. Among the main limitations we find that misinterpretations of the content and limitations of the theory in question could generate a banalization of public consistency about the basis of scientific knowledge, as well as a banalization of the importance of the adoption of methodological naturalism for scientific development.