ABSTRACT
“Paradigm” has become a buzzword used whenever someone wants people to jump on his or her bandwagon. To dismiss the idea of a paradigm simply because it is essentially vague or because it has become popularized is to throw out the good with the bad. Paradigms can provide a helpful way of unifying thinking about a number of seemingly disparate phenomena, and paradigm shifts, a useful way of interpreting change in various disciplines. The term “paradigm” includes or connotes a broad range of ideas regarding conceptual coherence. Closely linked to that act of faith is the notion of entrenchment of the reigning paradigm. The power of having the single word “paradigm” is that it provides conceptual unity, precisely because it calls so much to mind at once. Telling the difference between a paradigm and a theory, or between normal science and revolutionary science, is a matter of interpretation.
