Metapseudoscience

The study of why something is considered pseudoscience—not whether it actually is, but the social, historical, and rhetorical processes by which the pseudoscience label is applied. Metapseudoscience examines boundary work between science and non‑science, the power dynamics of scientific institutions, and the shifting criteria of demarcation. It asks: who gets to call something pseudoscience? What interests does that label serve? How have past “pseudosciences” (e.g., continental drift, germ theory denial) been reclassified? It is a reflexive, critical field within metascience.

Example: “Her metapseudoscience research showed that the label ‘pseudoscience’ was applied to acupuncture for decades, based largely on cultural bias rather than systematic evaluation of evidence.”

by Dumu The Void April 5, 2026