Assignment #2- Philosophy of Chiropractic

Angelica Lebar
CP 1102: Dr. Hammerich
Sept 21st
Learning about the philosophy of chiropractic is essential to understanding its
importance in the lives of people because chiropractic has such an enriched past and a
convoluted journey. This is indicative of chiropractics interwoven meanings and
knowledge-based theories that have been stirred and debated over the centuries.
Nonetheless, chiropractic is a professional field and one of integrity and dignity and in
order to appreciate the benefits the profession has to offer one needs to start at the
beginning. This is where philosophy comes into play. Literally, the meaning of
philosophy is love of wisdom and this is how chiropractic was born; out of the pursuit
for knowledge. The most important distinction to draw upon is traditional/conservative
chiropractic philosophy vs. classical philosophy. Traditional chiropractic philosophy was
rooted in dogmatic, rigid, uncompromising principles that complimented the era (1). B.J.
Palmer piloted the more traditional method, which involved unchanging ideas, whose
truths werent subjected to empirical tests (1). Unfortunately, the problem with this
philosophy was that it was not open to change and conversely harmful to patients with
problems. If a doctor is so close-minded to change and new ideas and testable
hypotheses, then this will inevitably be translated into close-mindedness for the patient
and if this happens then the patients problem persistently manifests. In addition,
personal bias was interjected into chiropractic practice and a more formal name for this is
a priori principles (2); simply knowing something by use of the mind. Applying to
practice, treating patients based off personal hunches and beliefs of the mind is
detrimental and counter-effective. Already, one can appreciate why we study philosophy
in chiropractic; to value what it has become today and the reasons behind it. Fortunately,
chiropractic has become flexible, changing or open to change, holistic, less dogmatic,
empirical and testable. Everything about chiropractic today is more open to change and
alternative solutions and the focus has become the patient. Chiropractic today is largely
based of classical philosophy, which encourages a never-ending process of inquiry and

discovery. Chiropractic today tests its treatment theories and they collaborate with other
professionals to acquire new theories and knowledge bases. Chiropractors focus more on
the patient and what suits their needs as opposed to basing the treatment off their own
dogmatic, rigid ideas of wellness. In fact, it is arguable that chiropractic as a professional
field as hardly a fixed, unchanging entity; instead, it still finds itself offering conflicting
epistemologies (knowledge principles) without reaching a consensus. This is
demonstrated through visits to different chiropractors; one chiropractor does activator, the
other does soft tissue etc., and there is no right or wrong method. This is the sign of true
knowledge inquiry, which continues to enable the field of chiropractic to prosper and
grow. Now, interestingly enough, there are mixed feelings towards the classical approach
in chiropractic and how it can view the patient too much as a machine (3). The study of
classical philosophy has seen a divergence between the views of the body as a machine
and the body as a vitalistic entity (3 p. 53). Perhaps, the worry here is that by performing
too much scientific inquiry, that we lose meaning of the patient as a person. For
myself, I strive to find the happy medium between scientific inquiry and vitalism/holism;
that is, embracing scientific research and discussion in order to find effective treatment
for the patient yet still preserving the patients uniqueness and dignity. In fact, I want to
include my future patients in the knowledge based inquiry, I want the patients to ask
questions of their own and feed off my own questions and rationales. I want the doctorpatient relationship to be symbiotic meaning that we rely on each other for support and
answers. This, for me, is the greatest philosophy of chiropractic one could ask for; one
that is symbiotic (relatable), holistic (inclusive) and educational (scientific inquiry). We
are far from reaching this good balance, however, with the right mindset and people in
the field, we will get closer and closer.

Reference Page
Weiant CW. Chiropractic philosophy: The misnomer that plagues the profession.
Arch Calif Chiropr Assoc 1981; 5(1): 25-22.
Donahue J.D.D. Palmer and the metaphysical movement in the nineteenth century.
Chiropr Hist 1987; 7(2):22-27.
Russell E. Process versus outcome: challenges of the chiropractic wellness paradigm.
J Chiropr Human. 2009: 16, 50-53.