Philosophical Alignments in Social Science Inquiry: A Scoping Review

2021 ◽  
pp. 346-350
Author(s):  
F. B. Tende
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Data Gathering ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Methodological Triangulation ◽  
The Social ◽  
Adequate Understanding ◽  
Multiple Levels ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Fact Finding

This review seeks to understand the implications of empiricism, interpretivism, phenomenology, hermeneutics, pluralism, and solipsism in social science inquiry within social reality, using scoping review method. An in-depth review of the literature was conducted to understand the various philosophical alignments or paradigms applied in social sciences research. The study is aimed at understanding and applying these paradigms with the view of having a deep comprehension of the turbulences plaguing society and proffering solutions to them. From the review, it was discovered that the various philosophical alignments in social science inquiry provide the scientist or researcher with a worldview of the different perspectives and multiple levels of analysis of the social world. Thus, creating a systematic lens from which individuals (at several levels), groups, and organizations are examined to know the; “when”, “how”, and “why” they behave the way and manner that they do. It was concluded that an adequate understanding of these paradigms would better shape the methodology to be adopted in conducting research studies within the social and/or behavioural sciences. This will help determine its objectivity, rigor, or the extent to which scientific methodology is applied within social science researches. Lastly, a combination of these paradigms creates a mixed-method, which demonstrates knowledge validity and objectivity in investigator triangulation (which involves; observation, questionnaire administration, and interview), data triangulation (which encompasses collecting data at different times from different people in different places as a cross-check for validity and to check the interpretation and conclusion arrived at), methodological triangulation (which includes within-method triangulation and between method triangulation: the former entails the application of various techniques within the same method, while the latter applies a combination of research methods), generalization, verification, explanation, and deductions. This will allow for data gathering and/or fact-finding, in search of new knowledge, and subsuming new valid knowledge, enhance research results and findings efficacy.

Rigor, Relevance and Research Paradigms

2011 ◽  
pp. 117-132
Author(s):  
John C. Beachboard
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Review Of The Literature ◽  
Science Field ◽  
The Social ◽  
The World ◽  
Conducting Research ◽  
Research Meeting ◽  
Social Science Field ◽  
Research Frameworks ◽  
Intellectual Journey

A practitioner leaves behind the world of failed multimillion-dollar information systems projects to seek solutions in academe. In making the transition from IS practitioner to IS researcher, the author encounters two fundamental tensions regarding the conduct of social science. The first tension concerns the challenge of conducting research meeting the criteria of scientific rigor while addressing issues relevant to practitioners. The second tension centers on the debate concerning the suitability of positivist and non-positivist approaches to research in the social sciences. A review of the literature discussing these tensions led the author to the observation that the two tensions appear to be related. This insight led to the investigation of multi-paradigmatic research frameworks as a means of reconciling these related tensions. The essay provides a personalized account regarding the author’s motivation for conducting practitioner-oriented research, the intellectual journey made through the literature to acquire tools of the social science field, and his observations concerning the advantages of multi-paradigmatic research in the IS field.

Land Degradation in the Peruvian Amazon: Applying GIS in Human Ecology Research

1996 ◽  
Author(s):  
William M. Loker
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Land Degradation ◽  
Human Ecology ◽  
Agricultural Land ◽  
Agricultural Research ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Complex Problem ◽  
Productive Capacity ◽  
Environmental Consequences ◽  
The Social

Land degradation, a reduction in the productive capacity of land, is a process of increasing concern in the challenge to maintain and enhance global food production. It is an especially critical problem in developing countries faced with the need to increase food availability for growing populations. Billions of dollars are invested in agricultural research and development aimed at increasing the food supply. At the same time, land degradation threatens to reduce production in large areas of agricultural land. While estimates of the magnitude of the problem vary widely (see WCED 1987; WRI/IIED 1988; and Lal and Stewart 1990 for recent reviews), there is a growing consensus that land degradation is a serious and complex problem that merits increased attention from both natural and social scientists. A recent review of this topic by Blaikie and Brookfield (1987) highlights the role of the social sciences in studying land degradation problems. According to these authors, the term “land degradation” refers to a reduction in the actual or potential uses of land due to human activities (1987: 1). The costs of land degradation (“the product of work on degraded lands is less than that on the same land without degradation”) make it a serious social problem for millions of farmers around the world and thus a priority for social science inquiry. A central actor for understanding the causes and consequences of land degradation is the land manager—most often the farmer—who makes the landuse decisions for particular plots of land. Social science has a key role in understanding this process of decision making, including the social and ecological contexts in which decisions are carried out. Anthropology’s emphasis on working with peasants, small farmers, and indigenous people holds out the promise for important empirical and theoretical contributions in understanding land degradation. A human ecology approach that focuses on the adaptive strategies of individuals and groups and the environmental consequences of these behaviors seems particularly well placed to contribute to this topic.

scholarly journals A Citizen’s Claim: Science With and for Society

2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (8-9) ◽  
pp. 943-947 ◽  
Author(s):  
Marta Soler ◽  
Aitor Gómez
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Social Impact ◽  
Social Research ◽  
Social Science Research ◽  
Qualitative Evaluation ◽  
Science Research ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
The Social ◽  
Qualitative Methodologies

Social science research has been attacked by neoliberal thinkers who allege that such research lacks economic objectives. In the face of neoliberal and positivist criteria for evaluating the social impact of social science inquiry, social science researchers are developing qualitative evaluation methodologies through which we can have direct contact with citizens. These qualitative methodologies declare our social responsibility as social researchers in addressing relevant problems, especially those affecting the most vulnerable people. From these qualitative methodologies, the most vulnerable groups are included in the assessment of the social impacts of social research. Some examples of people who have participated in this qualitative evaluation include women, youth, immigrants, and Roma organizations. Participants perceived social science researchers as being far from their social reality, but in this research, they began to overcome their skepticism that social science research can help to solve those problems affecting their everyday lives.

OBJECTIVITY IN SOCIAL SCIENCE

2019 ◽  
Vol 10 (2) ◽  
pp. 243-250
Author(s):  
Muhammad Tasiu Dansabo ◽  
Muhammad Muhammad Bello
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Historical Review ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Scientific Methods ◽  
Structure Of Scientific Revolutions ◽  
Scientific World ◽  
The Social ◽  
Scientific Endeavor

The debate on the scientific status of the Social Sciences and their bid to achieve objectivity in their inquiries is an unending debate within and outside the Social Science family. The positivists are of the opinion that objectivity in Social Science is achievable and that scientific methods can be used in Social Science inquiry, just the same or similar way(s) the natural scientists do their scientific endeavor. To the positivists ‘value-free Social Science’ is possible. This position is however criticized even within the Social Sciences, let alone in the scientific world. All these debates centered on whether or not the Social Scientists are truly scientific in their quest for knowledge. No matter the outcome of the debate what is obvious is that there is a philosophical problem with scientific objectivity in general. Based on a historical review of the development of certain scientific theories, in his book, ‘the Structure of scientific revolutions’, a scientist and a historian Thomas Kuhn raised some philosophical objections to claims of the possibility of scientific understanding being truly objective. Against this backdrop, the paper seeks to unravel the varied theoretical debates on the subject.

Interviewing Salafis

2018 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zoltan Pall ◽  
Mohamed-Ali Adraoui
Keyword(s):  
Social Science ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Practical Experiences ◽  
Conducting Research

In chapter 11, Zoltan Pall and Mohamed-Ali Adraoui provide a snapshot of stories from their practical experiences conducting research on Salafis in Lebanon, Kuwait, and France in order to illustrate how to deal with Salafis as subjects of social science inquiry and to provide broader lessons for future researchers. They discuss the challenges and difficulties they faced while conducting fieldwork that came from the Salafis’ distrust of western researchers. They also elaborate how did they overcome these challenges and difficulties by clearly stating their intentions and embedding themselves to the local societies. The authors also provide insights how local sociopolitical actors might engage with the researchers of Salafism, and share their experiences to deal with them.

MAHMUD A. FAKSH, The Future of Islam in the Middle East: Fundamentalism in Egypt, Algeria, and Saudi Arabia (Westport, Conn.: Praeger, 1997). Pp. 148. $49.95 cloth. MAHMOOD MONSHIPOURI, Islamism, Secularism, and Human Rights in the Middle East (Boulder, Colo.: Lynne Rienner, 1998). Pp. 270. $55.00 cloth.

2001 ◽  
Vol 33 (1) ◽  
pp. 154-156
Author(s):  
QUINTAIN WIKTOROWICZ
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Human Rights ◽  
Saudi Arabia ◽  
Middle East ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Middle Eastern ◽  
Explanatory Power ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Middle Eastern Studies ◽  
The Social

Middle Eastern studies is frequently criticized in the social sciences for being atheoretical and descriptive. While it is effective in elucidating the complexities of societies, a lack of theory tends to isolate Middle Eastern studies from social-science disciplines, because it often lacks applicable frameworks or concepts that can be applied outside the region. A growing group of scholars is attempting to address this concern by integrating strong empirical area expertise and the rigor of social-science inquiry to enhance the explanatory power of research.

scholarly journals Ciência, educação e vedação ao retrocesso social / Science, education and fence to the social retreat

2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel Vaqueiro Menezes Martins ◽  
Clara Cardoso Machado Jaborandy
Keyword(s):  
Science Education ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Social Development ◽  
Critical Analysis ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
Scientific Production ◽  
Social Rights ◽  
The Social ◽  
Social Science Education ◽  
National Investment

Resumo: Apesar das conquistas alcançadas em sede de direitos fundamentais nas últimas décadas, em especial no que se refere a direitos sociais fundamentais, tem-se que, quando em situações de crise, em especial de crise econômica, as demandas que visam à proteção daqueles direitos encontram-se pendentes, especialmente quando voltadas à promoção de desenvolvimento humano e social. Diante desse cenário, e levando em consideração os movimentos no sentido de permitir relativização do princípio constitucional da Vedação ao Retrocesso Social, a presente pesquisa objetiva realizar uma análise acerca do investimento nacional em ciência, pesquisa e produção científica, para, assim, verificar as consequências da atual crise econômica no setor. Para tanto, serão utilizados os dados obtidos com as pesquisas realizadas no projeto de iniciação científica "Princípio da Vedação ao Retrocesso Social: análise crítica de decisões do STF (2015-2016) em tempos de crise”. Ademais, serão utilizadas as técnicas típicas da metodologia de pesquisa indutiva e descritiva. Abstract: In spite of the conquests reached in thirst of basic rights in the last decades, in special in what refers to the basic social rights, it has been that, when in situations of economical crisis, the demands that aim at the protection of those rights still are hanging, specially when one returns to the promotion of human and social development. Before this scenery, and taking into account the movements in the direction of allowing relativização of the constitutional beginning of the Fence to the Social Retreat, the present objective inquiry to carry out an analysis about the national investment in science, inquiry and scientific production, so, to check the consequences of the current economical crisis in the sector. For so much, there will be used the data obtained with the inquiries carried out in the project of scientific initiation "Beginning of the Fence to the Social Retreat: critical analysis of decisions of the STF (2015-2016) in crisis times”. Besides, there will be used the typical techniques of the methodology of inductive and descriptive inquiry.

scholarly journals The Pandemic beyond the Pandemic: A Scoping Review on the Social Relationships between COVID-19 and Antimicrobial Resistance

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (16) ◽  
pp. 8766
Author(s):  
Luisa Toro-Alzate ◽  
Karlijn Hofstraat ◽  
Daniel H. de Vries
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Antimicrobial Resistance ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Health Systems ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Social Engagement ◽  
Social Relationship ◽  
Health Systems Strengthening ◽  
Infection Prevention And Control ◽  
The Social

The social sciences are essential to include in the fight against both public health challenges of antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and COVID-19. In this scoping review, we document what social science knowledge has been published about the social relationship between COVID-19 and AMR and which social science interventions are suggested to address this social relationship. We analysed 23 peer-reviewed articles published between 2019 and 2021. Results emphasize that changes in antibiotic prescription behaviour, misinformation, over-burdened health systems, financial hardship, environmental impact and gaps in governance might increase the improper access and use of antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic, increasing AMR. The identified social sciences transformation strategies include social engagement and sensitisation, misinformation control, health systems strengthening, improved infection prevention and control measures, environmental protection, and better antimicrobial stewardship and infectious diseases governance. The review emphasizes the importance of interdisciplinary research in addressing both AMR and COVID-19.

scholarly journals To Engage Research Critically : A Review of Kerry Howell ’s The Philosophy of Methodology

2015 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allyson Larkin
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Qualitative Research ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Social Theory ◽  
Conceptual Knowledge ◽  
Science Inquiry ◽  
The Social ◽  
Research Demands ◽  
Desk Reference

The turn to philosophical grounding in qualitative research demands a depth of historical and conceptual knowledge that many trained in the social sciences may lack. Kerry Howell ’ s A Philosophy of Methodology is a concise and useful guide to the key developments in Western epistemology then linking philosophical thought to social theory and paradigm of inquiry. For the novice researcher or graduate student, this book is an excellent desk reference, however there are several omissions, including feminism, which renders it a less - than - complete guide to the role of epistemology in social science inquiry.

scholarly journals Scoping review search practices in the social sciences: A scoping review protocol

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Judith Logan ◽  
Jenaya Webb ◽  
Nalini Singh ◽  
Ben Walsh ◽  
Nailisa Tanner ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Social Sciences ◽  
Social Science ◽  
Scoping Review ◽  
Exploratory Research ◽  
Steady Growth ◽  
Qualitative Approaches ◽  
The Social ◽  
Scoping Reviews ◽  
Review Protocol ◽  
Science Disciplines

Scoping reviews are a methods-focused type of literature review, which have become an attractive review type in social science disciplines. Scoping reviews allow researchers to address exploratory research questions and synthesize findings from a variety of study types including both quantitative and qualitative approaches. Although research shows steady growth in the number of scoping reviews being published each year, there are gaps in our understanding of the basic patterns and practices used in scoping reviews in the social science disciplines, in particular. The objective of this scoping review is to explore the disciplinary spread of scoping reviews in the social sciences, the search practices used in these reviews, and the participation of LIS professionals in this type of knowledge synthesis work.

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