<P> Positivism is elsewhere defined as the belief that all true knowledge is scientific, and that all things are ultimately measurable . Positivism is closely related to reductionism, in that both involve the belief that "entities of one kind...are reducible to entities of another," such as societies to configurations of individuals, or mental events to neural phenomena . It also involves the contention that "processes are reducible to physiological, physical or chemical events," and even that "social processes are reducible to relationships between and actions of individuals," or that "biological organisms are reducible to physical systems ." </P> <P> While most social scientists today are not explicit about their epistemological commitments, articles in top American sociology and political science journals generally follow a positivist logic of argument . It can be thus argued that "natural science and social science (research articles) can therefore be regarded with a good deal of confidence as members of the same genre". </P> <P> Historically, positivism has been criticized for its reductionism, i.e., for contending that all "processes are reducible to physiological, physical or chemical events," "social processes are reducible to relationships between and actions of individuals," and that "biological organisms are reducible to physical systems ." </P> <P> Max Horkheimer criticized the classic formulation of positivism on two grounds . First, he claimed that it falsely represented human social action . The first criticism argued that positivism systematically failed to appreciate the extent to which the so - called social facts it yielded did not exist' out there', in the objective world, but were themselves a product of socially and historically mediated human consciousness . Positivism ignored the role of the' observer' in the constitution of social reality and thereby failed to consider the historical and social conditions affecting the representation of social ideas . Positivism falsely represented the object of study by reifying social reality as existing objectively and independently and labour actually produced those conditions . Secondly, he argued, representation of social reality produced by positivism was inherently and artificially conservative, helping to support the status quo, rather than challenging it . This character may also explain the popularity of positivism in certain political circles . Horkheimer argued, in contrast, that critical theory possessed a reflexive element lacking in the positivistic traditional theory . </P>

Which of the following statements is correct regarding the positivist foundations of human rights