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Birth and Education
Helen Elizabeth Longino was born on 13 July, 1944.
She attended Barnard College earning a BA in English Literature (1966) and went on to earn a MA in Philosophy from Johns Hopkins University (1967). In 1973, she was awarded a PhD from the University of Sussex. -
Women's Liberation Movement
Helen Longino was active in the women's liberation movement from the 1960's thru the 1980's. In addition to the movement which resulted in awareness for women's and human rights, Helen was instrumental in developing women's study programs at educational institutions. -
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Professional Career
Taught at the University of California, San Diego (1973–1975),
Mills College (1975–1990), Rice University (1990–1995), and the University of Minnesota (1995–2005)
Stanford University Clarence Irving Lewis Professor of Philosophy in 2008 and served as chair of the philosophy department from 2008 to 2011 -
Science of Social Knowledge
In her first book, Science as a Social Knowledge, she argued for the relevance of Social Values.
Was awarded the Best Book in Feminist Philosophy Prize for 2014 by the Women's Caucus of the Philosophy of Science Association
Longino, H. E. (1990). Science as social knowledge: values and objectivity in scientific inquiry. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. -
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Published Works
Helen Longino has written three books and contributed to several other works. She has also been published in several peer reviewed journals. -
Values in Science
While at the University of Minnesota she wrote "How Values Can Be Good For Science." They note that there is no consensus about which values are scientific and which are not, and argue that some values, like honesty, are both scientific and moral. Some also argue that employing moral values in scientific inquiries can result in positive contributions to science (e.g., Anderson, 2004; Douglas, 2009; Longino, 2004 ). -
Fate of Knowledge
In the Fate of Knowledge, Helen critiqued science and battled sociology in science.
This book received the Robert K. Merton Professional Award for best book from the Section for Science, Knowledge, and Technology of the American Sociological Association
Longino, H. E. (2001). The fate of knowledge Helen E. Longino. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. -
5 Scientific Approaches
Her book, Studying Human Behavior: How Scientists Investigate Aggression and Sexuality (2013), Longino examines five scientific approaches to human behavior.
1. quantitative behavioral genetics
2. molecular behavioral genetics
3. developmental psychology
4. neurophysiology and anatomy
5. social/environmental methods
Longino, H. E. (2013). Studying Human Behavior: How Scientists Investigate Aggression and Sexuality. University of Chicago Press. -
Studying Human Behavior
Diving into the complexities of human behavior, Helen Longino concludes that we all bring different experiences and approaches to studying the science of human behavior. She makes conclusions on this behavioral research in scientific, social, clinical, and political spheres. -
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Associations and Organizations
Served as the President of the Philosophy of Science Association (2013-2014)
First Vice President of Division of logic, methodology and Philosophy of Science and Technology of the International Union of History and Philosophy of Science (2016 - 2019) -
Research Contribution to Philosophy
Helen Longino's research is working to develop a new approach to the role of values and socio-political context in science from a feminist perspective. She argues that socio-political values are centrally important and that properly acknowledging their importance enhances rather than detracts from scientific objectivity.
