critical realism (CR)

Definition of Critical Realism

(noun) A theory contending things are real if they produce effects.

Example of Critical Realism

• From the sociological perspective, race is a social construct, but the effect of race on an individual is real because of the impact of racism.
  

Critical Realism Pronunciation

Pronunciation Usage Guide

Syllabification: crit·i·cal re·al·ism

Audio Pronunciation

International Phonetic Alphabet

• American English – /ˈkrɪtɪkəl ˈriəlɪzm/
• British English – /ˈkrɪtɪkəl ˈrɪəlɪzm/

Usage Notes

• Plural: critical realisms
• Abbreviation: CR
• Critical realism was developed by Roy Bhaskar (1944–2014) in A Realist Theory of Science (1975).
• A (noun) critical realist studies the world through a (adjective) critical realistic lens.

Additional Information

• Word origin of “critical” and “realism” – Online Etymology Dictionary: etymonline.com
• Archer, Margaret, Roy Bhaskar, Andrew Collier, Tony Lawson, and Alan Norrie, eds. 1998. Critical Realism: Essential Readings. London: Routledge.
• Frauley, Jon, and Frank Pearce, eds. 2007. Critical Realism and the Social Sciences: Heterodox Elaborations. Toronto: University of Toronto Press.
• Hartwig, Mervyn, ed. 2007. Dictionary of Critical Realism. London: Routledge.

Related Terms

• power
• social constructionism
• theory

Works Consulted

Oxford University Press. (N.d.) Oxford Dictionaries. (https://www.oxforddictionaries.com/).

Wikipedia contributors. (N.d.) Wiktionary, The Free Dictionary. Wikimedia Foundation. (http://en.wiktionary.org).

Cite the Definition of Critical Realism

ASA – American Sociological Association (5th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “critical realism.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Retrieved March 28, 2023 (https://sociologydictionary.org/critical-realism/).

APA – American Psychological Association (6th edition)

critical realism. (2014). In K. Bell (Ed.), Open education sociology dictionary. Retrieved from https://sociologydictionary.org/critical-realism/

Chicago/Turabian: Author-Date – Chicago Manual of Style (16th edition)

Bell, Kenton, ed. 2014. “critical realism.” In Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Accessed March 28, 2023. https://sociologydictionary.org/critical-realism/.

MLA – Modern Language Association (7th edition)

“critical realism.” Open Education Sociology Dictionary. Ed. Kenton Bell. 2014. Web. 28 Mar. 2023. <https://sociologydictionary.org/critical-realism/>.