# Philosophy and Analysis By:: [[Ross Jackson]] 2022-10-25 Philosophy is frequently marginalized as being esoteric. Having an awareness of certain philosophical concepts is beneficial to applied analytics. Three concepts, in particular, are worthy of exploration: _ontology_, _epistemology_, and _axiology_. Collectively these provide essential context for thinking about analysis and organizational decision-making. Ontology is focused on determining what is real. There is a great deal of [[research]] and discussion related to organizational culture. Is organizational cultural real or is it simply a construct of human imagination? Is the reality of organizational culture the same as sales data? Giving thought to ontological concerns is important to analysis as it holds the potential to inform what types of things one will attempt to measure. Determining how to measure those things brings one to epistemology. Epistemology deals with how knowledge is established. How do we know what we profess to know? What does it mean to know something? As has been discussed in previous blogs, what gets measured gets done and what can’t be measured can’t be managed. In applied analytics, measurement is linked to epistemology. Knowledge is based on measurement. More stringently, knowledge claims to be considered objective must be verifiable and repeatable. But organizations don’t spend time measuring all things which lend themselves to measurement. Rather, organizations focus attention on a subset of things that they think are important. This is influenced by axiological considerations. Axiology is a theory of value. What is important? What is the relative hierarchy or competing values? Such determinations are axiological. Individuals and organizations will hold different axiological [[assessments]] and these, in turn, will influence strategic goals and actions. Many organizations value profit. Some value social responsibility. Many values potentially come into play. Authenticity, creativity, and solidarity could be considered axiologically. Analyses likely hold implicit axiological positions since these are seldom addressed explicitly by those in positions of power within organizations. There is a common warning that it isn’t what we don’t know that hurts us, but rather what we think we know that isn’t true. It is easy to conflate philosophy with philosophers and conclude that since Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Nietzsche, Sartre, and Foucault have little to contribute to discussions of applied analytics that philosophy isn’t important to the analysis. Philosophy is not a list of philosophers. Philosophy is the systematic study of reality, knowledge, value, and existence. Within that area of study, ontology, epistemology, and axiology bring focus to concepts that are essential for analysis. Focusing on analytic techniques without cognizance of these philosophical concerns is like using a typewriter without any awareness of language. #### Related Items [[Analytics]] [[Philosophy]] [[Axiology]] [[Ontology]] [[Epistemology]] [[Knowledge]] [[Strategy]] [[Decision-making]]