Why do some scholars use the term “philosophy of social inquiry” instead of “philosophy of social science”?

Some scholars prefer the term "philosophy of social inquiry" over "philosophy of social science" to avoid the implication that the study of human social behavior must necessarily be scientific in the same manner as the natural sciences.1

Historically, the field has often been dominated by the question of whether social studies can or should mirror the methods of natural science, an approach known as naturalism. Because the label "philosophy of social science" can be interpreted as suggesting that the discipline is exclusively concerned with the social sciences insofar as they are scientific, it may inadvertently bias the field toward naturalism. By using "philosophy of social inquiry" or "philosophy of social studies," practitioners aim to adopt a more neutral designation that acknowledges the open question of how social behavior should be studied, while also reflecting the broad, diverse range of disciplines—such as anthropology, economics, and linguistics—that investigate human life.1