Abstract

Popper's account of situational explanations is contrasted with the models of Dray and Hempel. Popper's Rationality Principle has the unusual feature of positing causal connections between objective ideas (world 3) and human behaviour (world 1).Popper's methodological policy concerning the Rationality Principle seems to be in direct conflict with his general theory of scientific method. However, I argue that Popper has underestimated the empirical content and criticizability of the Rationality Principle.