Legal Definitions - dogma

A dogma refers to a fundamental principle, belief, or set of beliefs that is considered undeniably true and authoritative within a particular system, group, or discipline. These principles are often held with strong conviction and followed steadfastly, sometimes to the exclusion of alternative viewpoints or methods.

Here are some examples to illustrate the concept of dogma:

• Business Strategy: Imagine a long-established manufacturing company whose leadership firmly believes that all product innovation must originate from their internal research and development department. This belief has become an unwritten rule, preventing them from exploring partnerships with external startups or crowdsourcing ideas, even when competitors are successfully leveraging such collaborations. This illustrates dogma because the internal-only innovation approach is a strongly held, authoritative belief within the company, followed steadfastly to the exclusion of other potentially beneficial strategies.

• Educational Philosophy: Consider a university department that insists all doctoral dissertations must adhere to a highly specific qualitative research methodology, dismissing quantitative studies or mixed-methods approaches as less rigorous or valid. This departmental stance has been passed down through generations of faculty, becoming the sole accepted path for advanced research. This demonstrates dogma as the specific research methodology is treated as the definitive and authoritative approach, actively excluding alternative, equally valid methodologies.

• Historical Scientific Belief: For many centuries, the belief that the Earth was flat was a widely accepted dogma in various societies. Despite early philosophical arguments and later empirical observations suggesting a spherical Earth, this flat-earth view was often maintained as an unquestionable truth, sometimes leading to the rejection or persecution of those who proposed alternative models. This shows dogma because the flat-earth view was a strongly held, authoritative belief, followed steadfastly to the exclusion of emerging evidence and alternative scientific theories.