Objectivist Studies: Research

The Objectivist Center was founded on the proposition that Objectivism is an open system, one that needs to develop and grow. Ayn Rand was a brilliant, insightful thinker who laid out the key elements of a revolutionary new philosophic system. But, to judge by Rand's philosophic writing alone, as David Kelley points out in The Contested Legacy of Ayn Rand, "By historical standards, we have no more (though no less) than the foundation and outline of a system." (p. 76) The purpose of the Center's research activities is to deepen and extend that system. We deepen it by promoting careful scholarly research on technical questions and by thinking through every aspect of the philosophy on independent, first-hand terms. We extend it by applying Objectivist ideas and methods to cultural situations, practical problems, and aspects of life that Ayn Rand did not fully address.

Research Activities The Logical Structure of Objectivism Objectivist Studies Monographs Advanced Seminar in Objectivist Studies

The Objectivist Center's research activities include:

The Logical Structure of Objectivism
This book, still in progress, is a new survey of Objectivism at the systematic level. It uses simple argument-diagramming techniques to highlight the essential inferences of the system, the links between them, and the role that evidence plays in supporting every element of the system. It addresses many of the scholarly debates that have grown up around Ayn Rand's system and it offers new interpretations and integrations of key points in the philosophy. A draft from 1999 is available online.

Objectivist Studies Monographs
These multi-disciplinary scholarly studies develop and debate Objectivist ideas. Held to high standards of intellectual quality and academic integrity, they consider Objectivism's relation to scholarship in philosophy and allied fields such as psychology.

Advanced Seminar in Objectivist Studies
The Advanced Seminar discusses scholarly papers on topics in Objectivism and seeks to integrate the Objectivist approach to philosophical problems with academic standards of clarity. Papers are available online from past seminars. Note that these are drafts, and many of these papers have been revised for later publication.