Tick TOK : Acing Human Sciences in TOK

Ruby Sturt

Hey everyone, welcome back to IBDP Business Management – The Success Podcast! I'm Ruby, as always, joined by my partner-in-business-nerd-crime, Eric. Today we're diving into a slightly different pool: the Human Sciences bit in Theory of Knowledge. So Eric, let's just get this out of the way — what exactly counts as a 'Human Science' in TOK, and how on earth does business management end up lumped in with stuff like psychology and economics?

Eric Marquette

Fantastic question, Ruby. Human Sciences in TOK basically covers all the academic fields that try to understand, predict, or explain human behavior. That means we're talking psychology, economics, anthropology… and, absolutely, business management. It's fascinating because the focus is very much on people, culture, and context—whereas natural sciences, you know, chemistry or physics, tend to deal with phenomena that behave the same way every time, regardless of who’s looking. Human Sciences? Well, humans are much messier. Predicting them is a lot more, uh, creative. Wouldn't you say?

Ruby Sturt

Creative is a nice word for it! There’s, like, always some weird left-turn no one expects. And I mean, you get subjectivity taking front and center. Like, when two psychologists analyze the same piece of behavior, they’ll often interpret it differently depending on their own beliefs, the context, and even, I dunno, what they had for breakfast that day. That’s a far cry from test tubes and control groups. In business too — half the time managers are making educated guesses more than following scientific laws! It’s more, well, human.

Eric Marquette

Absolutely, and the unpredictability is half the fun. Like, here’s a favourite example of mine—the case of Starbucks’ ‘Unicorn Frappuccino.’ Management rolled it out as a quirky limited edition, mainly just a bit of colour and sugar, and suddenly it went absolutely viral. I mean, queues around the block. Marketers’ theories struggled to explain it, because you can’t always predict how collective emotion or internet culture will affect consumer behaviour. The models are helpful, but sometimes the real world throws you a magical unicorn, if you like.

Ruby Sturt

Ha! That’s brilliant. And it just goes to show, when we talk about Human Sciences in TOK, especially through the lens of business, we’re grappling with all this wonderful, unpredictable messiness of real people. It’s not just formulas—there’s emotion, subjectivity, and good ol’ social media chaos thrown in. Alright, so let’s flip from the big abstract stuff to what this looks like in business management. Eric, let’s dive into the tools and case studies—because I know that’s your jam.

Eric Marquette

Indeed it is! So, one of the key things in Business Management as a Human Science is that we use conceptual frameworks—like the Ansoff Matrix or SWOT analysis—not just to crunch numbers but to try and map people’s motivations, attitudes, and decisions. Take the Ansoff Matrix: it helps businesses decide between market penetration, market development, product development, or diversification. But even with this lovely four-box matrix, the ‘best’ choice isn’t always clear, is it? Because, again, it all comes down to how unpredictable people act—competitors, consumers, even the folks making the decision themselves.

Ruby Sturt

A hundred percent! And honestly, the first time I ever did a SWOT analysis—this was in uni, working with this group of, like, five people—I swear we spent an hour debating if “strong brand personality” was a strength or an opportunity. Like, we all looked at the same info, and still came out with five totally different lists! It was kind of a nightmare, but also, I learned that subjectivity is basically baked into these tools. Even something with a clear structure is only as ‘objective’ as the people using it, right?

Eric Marquette

Exactly, and that’s what makes these tools so interesting within Human Sciences—they’re systematic, but also heavily influenced by personal interpretation and cultural context. Take Apple’s global strategy as a case study: Apple regularly adapts its marketing and even product features to local sensibilities—think different payment options in China, or privacy features highlighted in Europe. They’re using tools like SWOT or Ansoff, but ultimately, understanding what motivates customers in Shanghai versus Paris is far more of a human science than a mathematical equation.

Ruby Sturt

And the cultural bit’s huge. Like with Apple, if you look at how they launch the iPhone in different regions, there’s so much tweaking to local values—colours, security settings, even which celebrities they choose! None of that fits neatly in a grid, but it totally shapes what works. Plus, with all these tools we learn in business management, it’s kinda cool thinking that we aren’t just crunching numbers. We’re trying to get inside people’s heads, right?

Eric Marquette

Spot on, Ruby. The real power of these frameworks comes from blending the systematic approach with a deep understanding of human motivations, and that’s where Business Management shines as a Human Science. Shall we get into the TOK questions, then? That’s where things get, well, a bit philosophical.

Ruby Sturt

Let’s do it! This is where business gets juicy. So, TOK is all about asking, “How do we actually know what we know?” In Human Sciences, that’s never a straightforward answer. What’s considered a ‘fact’ in business? Market research? Customer surveys? Even those are loaded with assumptions and, honestly, a bucketload of bias—both unconscious and... very conscious.

Eric Marquette

Precisely. Bias creeps in everywhere—who selects the data, how it's measured, the incentives involved. Then there's ethics. A big one in business management lately is data privacy—think social media marketing. On the one hand, businesses use increasingly sophisticated data to target consumers, but it raises the question: how much should people be tracked just so we can sell them stuff? Where do you draw the ethical line?

Ruby Sturt

And sometimes, even major companies get it wrong. You see scandals or public backlash—like, uh, I always forget who it was, maybe it was that shoe company, or was it a retailer? Anyway, they got caught using people’s personal info in a way that freaked customers out. Suddenly, everyone’s debating: do the benefits of data for innovation outweigh the risks to privacy? Not an easy answer, especially when money, reputation, and actual people’s lives are all in the mix.

Eric Marquette

Exactly, and that’s where good TOK questions come in for business students. For example: “To what extent can business decisions ever be truly objective?” That’s a brilliant starting point—because, honestly, you’ll rarely, if ever, find an answer without some human perspective or value judgement. Another is: “How does bias influence what we see as ‘success’ in business?” Might sound simple, but you could discuss it for hours.

Ruby Sturt

Yeah, and these are killer for classroom debates too. You might throw out, “Does ethical responsibility always outweigh profit maximization?” or “Is every business model inherently political?” You’re never gonna get everyone to agree, but that’s the fun of it—you realise how much depends on where you’re standing, and who’s asking the question.

Eric Marquette

And that’s the beauty of Human Sciences in TOK, isn’t it? There’s no single right answer—just richer understanding from questioning, digging, and sometimes, disagreeing. Ruby, I reckon we could keep chatting for hours, but we should probably wrap up this episode, before we fall down another rabbit hole!

Ruby Sturt

Yeah, before we descend into a full-on philosophy seminar! Alright, thanks for listening, folks. Next episode, we’ll be dusting off our favourite business tools again, so make sure you tune in. Cheers, Eric!

Eric Marquette

Thank you, Ruby! Always a pleasure. Take care everyone, and until next time, keep questioning. Goodbye!