Thought Experiments: The Subjunctive Mood in History

The article considers the issue of using thought experiments in teaching historical disciplines. This concerns the possibility of using the subjunctive mood in history. The purpose of the study is to identify the attitude of the academic community and student community to thought experiment, to justify the need to implement it in the process of teaching historical disciplines in higher education. The objectives of the study are to provide an analysis of the available literature on the research topic; give examples of situations where the experiments are possible; conduct a sociological survey, identifying students’ attitudes towards hypothetical thinking. The research methods used were a sociological survey, interviewing, and method of involved observation. The object of the study is teaching of historical disciplines; the subject of the study is thought experiment conducted in the process of teaching historical disciplines in a higher educational institution. The core issue and logic of thought experimentation are defined. Specific examples are given to show the features of thought experiment application in the history of science and technology. An analysis of the results of a sociological survey of students of higher educational institutions has been carried out, showing that the majority of students have positive attitude towards thought experiment, considering it as a new opportunity for studying human nature in imaginary situations. The professional historians and teachers have a cautious attitude towards the use of historical experiment. As a result of the study, it has been shown that thought experiments are an effective method for creating virtual models of an alternative course of events. Implementing thought experiments makes a significant contribution to the development of pluralistic historical thinking. The novelty of the work lies in the fact that the authors tried to look at thought experiment in the historical sciences for the first time in international historiography, simultaneously from the point of view of students and professional communities, identifying the differences in their approaches.