Introduction

Author(s):  
Peter Ling ◽  
Lorraine Ling

The title of this book refers to both methods and paradigms in education research. Both are addressed, but this book is distinguished from others in that the research paradigm, rather than choice of research method, is placed front of stage. The related field of study is education. The study of education intertwines with a range of disciplines in the social sciences so the research issues arising have implications beyond the education context. The research paradigms addressed in this book include the traditional positivist and post-positivist—here labelled neo-positivist—paradigms. The interpretivist, transformative and pragmatic research paradigms, which have also been nominated in existing literature, are included. A novel supercomplexity paradigm has been added here in acknowledgement of the “supercomplex” environment (Barnett, 2000a) in which education research now operates. Following chapters explore issues relating to the design, implementation and critique of education research in the light of this understanding of research paradigms.

Author(s):  
Katina Pollock ◽  
David Cameron Hauseman

This chapter, like the others in this book, is designed as a resource for instructors and students studying education research methods. It provides an example of how one research team worked through social, political, economic, and research issues to problematize and eventually utilize observations as a data collection method to study principals' work. The contribution of this chapter lies in the area of research method, specifically the use of and the structuring of observation, rather than in the area of research paradigms. Nevertheless, given the charter of the book, the opportunity is taken to reflect on the research paradigm that applies and its implications. The chapter is about the study of principals' work and compares two different observation approaches.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ilara Parente Pinheiro Teodoro ◽  
Vitória de Cássia Félix Rebouças ◽  
Sally Elizabeth Thorne ◽  
Naanda Kaana Matos de Souza ◽  
Lídia Samantha Alves de Brito ◽  
...  

Abstract Objective: To present a theoretical reflection about the origin and the assumptions of the "Interpretive Description" method, and to discuss its applicability in Nursing and Health research. Method: Theoretical-reflective study, based on articles and books published by proponent of this approach, as well as scientific articles in which the authors reported having used this method in their studies. Results: It was evidenced that the "Interpretive Description" arose from the need to generate a better understanding of clinical practices in Nursing. This approach has its roots in the methodological traditions of the Social Sciences, although it differs from them in terms of its excessive rigidity and essentially theoretical objectives. The proposed method has been applied in several studies either in Nursing as other areas of Health. Conclusion: The "Interpretive Description" is considered a feasible approach for the production of knowledge in Applied Sciences such as Nursing.


2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (2) ◽  
pp. 175
Author(s):  
Jean François Y Deluchey

Resumo: Neste artigo, busco refletir as potencialidades e dificuldades metodológicas relativas ao uso do “dispositivo” como ferramenta de investigação nas ciências sociais e sociais aplicadas. Sugiro pensar a relação entre dispositivos normativos e sujeitos de direito, a partir da analítica do poder de Michel Foucault, para quem o poder existe como feixe de relações dissimétricas coordenadas por estratégias que impactam os sujeitos em suas dimensões inter e intraindividuais. Para tanto, o uso do dispositivo – em especial no caso do dispositivo normativo – apresenta-se como importante ferramenta metodológica, na medida em que funciona como grade de análise das relações de poder, de identificação das estratégias e de seus efeitos nos sujeitos. Nas conclusões, observo que a identificação da estratégia de um dispositivo deve perpassar pela análise da lógica das relações que o compõem, para, em um segundo momento, ver de que forma e em que medida esta estratégia impacta as formas de vida dos atores que compõem o nosso campo de estudo.Abstract: In this article, I try to interrogate the potentialities and methodological difficulties related to the use of the "dispositive" as a tool for research in the social sciences and applied social. I suggest to think the relation between normative dispositives and subjects to law from the Michel Foucault´s analytics of power, philosopher for whom the power exists as a beam of dissymmetrical relations coordinated by strategies that impact the subjects in their dimensions inter and intraindividuals. The use of the dispositives – especially of the normative ones - presents itself as an important methodological tool, to the extent that works as analytic framework of power relations, identification of strategies and their effects on the subjects. Finally, I observe that the identification of a dispositive strategy should pass by analysis of the logic of relations that compose it, for, in a second moment, see how and to what extent this strategy impacts the ways of life of the actors that compose our field of study. 


2016 ◽  
Vol 5 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaus Solberg Søilen

Is the field of Competitive Intelligence (CI) or Intelligence Studies (IS) a proper scientific field of study? The empirical investigation found that academic and professional within CI and IS could not agree upon what dimensions, topics or content are handled by their own area of interest that is not covered by other areas of study. In fact, most topics listed as special for CI and IS are covered by other established scientific journals. Most topics are covered by other disciplines. The data also showed that the same group could not list any analysis that is not used by other areas of study. It shows that a majority of the analyses the respondents think are unique to their study come from the area of strategy and military intelligence. However, this does not mean that CI and IS does not have its own place or niche as a study and discipline. It is suggested here, but further investigation is encouraged, that CI and IS brings a number of unique dimension to the social sciences.


Author(s):  
Anthony Scime ◽  
Gregg R. Murray ◽  
Wan Huang ◽  
Carol Brownstein-Evans

Immense public resources are expended to collect large stores of social data, but often these data are under-examined thereby missing potential opportunities to shed light on some of society’s pressing problems. This chapter proposes and demonstrates data mining in general and an iterative attribute-elimination process in particular as important analytical tools to exploit more fully these important data from the social sciences. We use an iterative domain-expert and data mining process to identify attributes that are useful for addressing distinct and nontrivial research issues in social science—presidential vote choice and living arrangement outcomes for maltreated children—using the American National Election Studies (ANES) from political science and the National Survey on Child and Adolescent Well-Being (NSCAW) from social work. We conclude that data mining is useful for more fully exploiting important but under-evaluated data collections for the purpose of addressing some important questions in the social sciences.


Author(s):  
Lorraine Ling ◽  
Peter Ling

Authors of the chapters of this book have reflected on education research undertakings and research paradigms applicable to their work. Their writing is revisited here as it links education research in practice to underpinning understandings of the nature of the aspect of the world investigated, the drivers of the research and the contributions to knowledge that emerge. Instances that fit within or move between established research paradigms are addressed first. The case for a new research paradigm—the supercomplexity paradigm—is then rehearsed and contributions of chapter authors to that concept and its application summarized. While research reviewed in the chapters covers the full array of paradigms, the endeavors portrayed are linked by the act of research itself. In this endeavor, whatever the education research topic, approach and methods employed, being clear about the research paradigm that applies helps in ensuring the research exercise is coherent and the outcomes appropriate and defensible.


Author(s):  
Sandra Halperin ◽  
Oliver Heath

This chapter discusses the principles of ethnography and participant observation: what they are, how (if) they became standardized as a research method, what form of evidence they constitute, and what place they occupy in the study of Politics. Participant observation has emerged as a popular research tool across the social sciences. In particular, political ethnographies are now widely carried out in a wide variety of contexts, from the study of political institutions and organizations to the investigation of social movements and informal networks, such as terrorist groups and drugs cartels. Political ethnography is also becoming a research method of choice in the field of International Relations. The chapter examines the strengths of ethnographic fieldwork, focusing on issues relating to sampling, access, key informants, and collecting observational data. It also addresses the weaknesses of ethnography, especially issues of subjectivity, reliability, and generalizability.


2021 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-15
Author(s):  
Abdul Nafi Himat ◽  
Habib Rahman Nazari

The aim of this study is to investigate the students’ purposes of using Facebook at Mirwais Khan Nika Zabul Institute of Higher Education, Qalat, Zabul province, Afghanistan. In this research, the quantitative research method was employed, and the data was collected from 115 students through a designed questionnaire. In addition, the respondents were selected through random sample. Additionally, the data was analyzed by implementing IBM 24 version of Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), and found out the frequency and percentage of the items as well reported in a table. Moreover, the findings of this research reveal that learners use Facebook for several goals such as for socializing in order to be socialized in a society, getting social information, read news and for educational purposes, but they did not practice Facebook for the aims to pass their time, and share photos with their friends on the Facebook.  JEL Classification Codes: A19, B10, B25, C10, C53


Communication ◽  
2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kim Hoffman ◽  
Javier Ponce-Terashima

Focus groups are a research method using multi-person interviews to generate qualitative data from participants’ interaction. The purpose is to induce conversation between participants to answer questions relevant to the study goals. In contrast to one-on-one interviews that are also widely used in qualitative research, the source of the data is in the “interaction” between participants, including similarities and differences between their experiences, opinions, and perceptions. This helps researchers understand not just what the participants think about a topic, but also why they think that way. Focus groups can cover a wide range of topics that are skillfully “moderated” by the researcher. The earliest known focus groups can be traced to Bogardus in 1926 and Robert Merton and Paul Lazarsfeld in 1941 but did not take hold as a qualitative method in the social sciences for another twenty-five years. Since then, a significant body of knowledge has been created; since the late 20th century, more than twenty-five thousand peer-reviewed, published articles using focus groups have been published. This article will focus on uses within the realm of published scholarly research although focus groups are routinely used within the field of market and consumer research, and additional gray literature may be found in other sources.


2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (09) ◽  
pp. 474-477
Author(s):  
Ian Mc Coog, Ed.D.

In the philosophical tradition, phenomenology is a means by which random, raw phenomena are categorized into what can be called human experience. Phenomenology is a school of thought within ontology which focuses on the nature of existence. Edmund Husserls view of phenomenology proposed that to understand the world, one should examine the lens through which he/she experiences the world as opposed to attempting to examine the world itself. The application of this idea first expanded to the discipline of psychology by researchers such as Amedeo Giorgi and Clark Moustakas and more recently has been more widely applied to the social sciences as a whole.Possessing an understanding of the philosophy and psychology traditions behind phenomenology greatly increases a researchers ability to implement it as a qualitative research method.


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