地理学的实证主义方法论——评《地理学中的解释》

一门科学的独立性,除了取决于其特定研究对象——即研究什么——外,还必须依赖其方法论——即如何研究。各门科学在发展过程中无不关注这两个方面的深入和提高,地理学也不例外。

THE POSITIVIST METHODOLOGY IN GEO GRAPHY --REVIEW OF D.HARVEY(1969),EXPLANATION IN GEOGRAPHY

The publication of David Harvey's Explanation in geography symbolized the successes of the so called quantitative revolution in geography. This book has commomly and correctly been seen as a milestone in geographical thought. However, it was still strange for most Chinese geographers. In order to avoid the detours experienced by the quantitative movement in overseas geography, and in order to promote the theoretical construction of Chinese geography, it is necessary to introduce the book to Chinese geographers.This article analyses the philosophical and methodological context of Explanation in geography, describes its main contents and frameworks, evaluates its contributions to geographical methodology and criticizes a few of its shortcomings and mistakes.