⊿ Point. {R} Glossary. ◢ Keyword: C. ◥ University. {q} PhD. {tr} Training. ⚫ UK. ↂ EndNote. ☝️ [BS] Heigham. Verificationism. Philosophical doctrine Verificationism was a central thesis of logical positivism, a movement in analytic philosophy that emerged in the 1920s by philosophers who sought to unify philosophy and science under a common naturalistic theory of knowledge.[2] The verifiability criterion underwent various revisions throughout the 1920s to 1950s. However, by the 1960s, it was deemed to be irreparably untenable.[3] Its abandonment would eventually precipitate the collapse of the broader logical positivist movement.[4] The roots of verificationism may be traced to at least the 19th century, in philosophical principles that aim to ground scientific theory in verifiable experience, such as C.S.
Logical positivists within the Vienna Circle recognized quickly that the verifiability criterion was too stringent. In Language, Truth and Logic, published that year, A. J. Ayer distinguished between strong and weak verification. Other philosophers also voiced their own criticisms of verificationism: