TOK Essay Title May 2025

TOK Essay Title 1: Do historians and human scientists have an ethical obligation to follow the directive: “do not ignore contradictory evidence”? Discuss with reference to history and the human sciences.

Considering contradictory evidence allows historians and human scientists to include multiple perspectives in their analysis. This inclusivity is essential for creating a more holistically nuanced understanding of the subject matter through claims and counter claims.

By actively considering contradictory evidence, historians and human scientists work to minimize bias of selective evident support and remove misinformation, which is essential for maintaining the integrity of their disciplines. The ethical obligation of counting on contradictory evidence is rooted for certainty in verifiable knowledge on human experiences; thereby opening up a critical reflection for a knower in the TOK essay title 1 to reconsider twhat makes a strong knowledge.

In history, the interpretation of events relies heavily on evidence from various sources to prevent the dissemination of skewed narratives. For instance, the historiography of colonialism is inclusive in its way by accommodating all those perspectives which were earlier marginalized. Parallelly, the example of American Genocide has ignored counter evidence by dismissing historical injustice and the ongoing trauma for the descendants of the victims.

In human sciences, rigorous testing of falsifiable theories ensure the credibility and validity of the findings. An example in economics where counter evidence was ignored is the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, where financial regulators dismissed early warning signs and evidence of the housing bubble and risky lending practices.