zombie theory

English

Noun

zombie theory (plural zombie theories)

1. (sciences) A scientific theory that has been disproved, or for which attempts to prove it have failed, but which continues to be presented as a viable theory.
   • 2016, George Ritzer, The Wiley-Blackwell Companion to Sociology, page 105:

     The best example of a zombie theory is the one-time giant of American sociological theory, structural functionalism.

   • 2017, John P. Dugan, Leadership Theory: Cultivating Critical Perspectives, page 140:

     Sometimes, even when the very author of the theory argues that it has reached its threshold, the zombie theory keeps stumbling around as more than a historical reference point.

See also

• philosophical zombie