Investigating the nature of formal reasoning in chemistry: Testing Lawson's multiple hypothesis theory

Lawson (1992) posited the multiple hypothesis theory to explain the essence of scientific reasoning. According to this theory, the essence of scientific reasoning is “the ability to initiate reasoning with more than one antecedent condition.” The present study tests the assumptions of this theory with high school students in general experience areas and in chemistry. The findings are generally in support of the theory's assumptions. This article also contains a theoretical discussion which points out how the theory needs to be extended before it can justifiably “constitute the core of a viable alternative theory of reasoning.” © 1997 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 34: 1067–1081, 1997.