Is it futile to do empirical research?

In this paper I discuss Gergen's social constructionist views on the relati on between theory and observation. My conclusions are: 1) Though theories m ay not be data driven, there are objective land not just cultural) constrai nts on how reality can be described. There are, moreover, some beings who d ictate their own descriptions. Those beings are persons. 2) Empirical meani ng is an essential aspect of any scientific theory. Scientific theories are not tales about imaginary, fictional beings. Scientific theories refer to phenomena in the real world. Such phenomena are not social constructions. 3 ) Data determine how valid a theory is, and why some theories are better th an others.