Armchair theory or armchair philosophy is an approach to providing new developments in a field that does not involve analysis of empirical (real-world) data. The term is typically pejorative, implying such scholarship is weak, frivolous, and disconnected from reality.See, for example, , who defines armchair anthropology.
Armchair scholarship is often contrasted with the scientific method, which involves the active investigation of nature through data collection or testing and developing rigorous mathematical models. Anthropologist Bronisław Malinowski was a major critic whose views are often summarized in the saying "[come] off the verandah", encouraging fieldwork and participant observation.
See also A priori and a posteriori Logical truth Meta-analysis Thought experiment
Notes
References
External links Discussion of On the Politics of Accounting Disclosure and Measurement: An Analysis of Economic Incentives, Dale Morse, Journal of Accounting Research, Vol. 19, Studies on Standardization of Accounting Practices: An Assessment of Alternative Institutional Arrangements (1981), pp. 36–42, Planning Theory, In Defense of Armchair Theorizing, Seymour J. Mandelbaum,