The Crisis of Truth: From Relativism to Scientism

Contemporary Western culture appears to be in the grip of two seemingly contradictory forces. One pushes the culture towards relativism, the view that there are no absolutes, whether in science, religion, morality, or anywhere else. The other pushes towards an uncompromising affirmation of this or that absolute truth, be it in the form of religious fundamentalism, new atheism, or scientism.

The objective is to identify and evaluate how these two seemingly contradictory forces (relativism and absolutism in the form of scientism) influence and challenge political, scientific and religious modes of thinking, and to explore the grounds for developing an intermediate position between these two extremes. One source of relativistic thought is, undeniably, the apparently insoluble moral, political and religious conflicts that emerge in pluralistic societies. Different spokespersons for relativism will be identified, analysed and their impact on late-modern society evaluated.

Participating researchers: Bengt Gustafsson, Mikael Stenmark, Ulf Zackariasson