RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
HMPYC80
CH 1-8 TEXTBOOK
SUMMARY
Perfectionist Notes
PRIVATE TUTOR FOR HONOURS IN PSYCHOLOGY - UNISA
helping you achieve your best results
TEXTBOOK USED:
Fouché, C. B., Strydom, H., & Roestenburg, W. J. H. (2021). Research at grass roots: For the social sciences and
human service professions (5th Edition).
, Chapter 1
Research and Professional Practice:
This chapter (1) aims to discuss the professional practice by putting focus on the four
themes: Philosophical foundations of professions, professional practice, professional and
research ethics and diversity of professional practice.
1. Introduction
Philosophy is defined as: the study of how knowledge, reality and our existence as
human beings evoke questions about who we are, what we know and how we
experience the world around us.
If philosophy can be regarded as a general worldview, then a paradigm is framework
through which we make sense of that world.
A paradigm, therefore establishes the boundaries’ of understanding and practice, along
with subsequent ethics accompanying those boundaries.
2. Philosophical foundations of professions:
Philosophy is a guiding code for society/professions which helps to illuminate aspects of
thinking in human existence.
Applied philosophy is important as it is foundational in the expression of “a philosophy of ….”.
Philosophy is the vehicle through which we interpret and perceive phenomena around us →
this is what becomes a paradigm. Paradigms establish the boundaries of understanding and
practice as well as the ethics accompanying these boundaries. The respective elements and
underlying beliefs or principles of these philosophical paradigms inform the chosen
approaches and methods researchers use.
2.1. paradigm
There are many philosophies and counter philosophies. Philosophy is by nature
multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary; it is underpinned by a
particular paradigm.
2
, e.g. absolutists see the world as an univocal set of ideas understood and accepted from one
powerful source which is almost never questioned.
Paradigms as a concept are contested and described in many wats by different authors. A
paradigm denotes a certain way of doing something, a disciplinary matrix or practices which
define a scientific discipline at a point in time. Paradigms are therefore constructs which
represent an archetype of how professionals achieve what they set out to do at a particular
point in time, and describes what is acceptable in a community or practice. Paradigms change
when practitioners in the community deem it needed to do so, this is referred to as a
paradigm shift.
Paradigms are a way of viewing and interpreting our research material, we need to decide
which paradigm, have a solid grasp of the nature of the selected paradigm, use it to select and
justify their chosen methods and articulate this clearly in the research proposal and or report.
There are three approaches available to professionals: qualitative, quantitative and mixed
methods which is the most viable as it is placed in a pragmatic paradigm.
Professions relate to a vocation/occupation etc. the word can be traced to Latin roots which
mean to declare publicly. This public declaration is aimed to inform others of the parameters,
processes and requirements of the profession, as well as other relevant information which is
beneficial to society.
Generally, pragmatism is linked to the Weberian philosophy which underpins the methods of
professions. It focuses on the structure which shapes human action/agency. Weber’s
discussion led him to believe there is a need to train professionals in the service of humanity.
Other philosophical approaches like functionalism, interactionalism, Marxism and
foucaldianism do not adequately clarify the notion of professions in this context.
Weberianism and neo-webarianism will inform the philosophical foundations for
understanding professions generally and in relation to research.
Paradigms are informed by corresponding beliefs which help us understand how and why
paradigms are followed within a specific discipline of research practice. Representations of
these basic beliefs of principles differ and are set out in the corresponding ontology and
epistemology of the research paradigm.
Researchers initially adopt a particular stance based on theory worldviews towards the
nature of knowledge, this implicitly guides their approach to research. Methodology and the
choice of data collection methods and analysis techniques.
3
, 2.2 Ontology:
This is the philosophical study of the nature of reality → the nature of things. Context is
important for ontological descriptions and should express a professional stance in
relation to the nature of things or how reality is interpreted in the profession.
Ontological stances are also expressed philosophically, professions need to declare
their professional ontological stances to let society see how they understand reality.
This can be understood as the characterisation of the representation of entities and
relations between clients and professionals. This knowledge will aid in decision making
processes in any services or research of a profession.
Ontological dimensions of social research refer to the researcher’s view on the nature
of reality. The ontological lens a researcher uses will influence the study.
Objectivism: based on the belief there is an external reality that can be studied
objectively or value free. It refers to the ability to know things as they are, this is
possible is specific and controlled methods are employed as these methods place a
necessary check on subjectivity and restrain personal judgement and emotions. It plays
a key role in enabling researchers to understand the meaning people give to
phenomena in an objective manner. The qualitative researcher could never be an
objectivist, this work is not neutral or distanced.
Interpretivism evolved from the reaction to the objectivist view. The subject matter of
social sciences is different from natural sciences fundamentally, as such social reality
should be viewed and interpreted by the individual according to their ideological
position. Knowers and known are interdependent, social sciences essentially
subjective, reality is multifaceted, a single phenomenon has many interpretations.
Interpretivist researchers do not find knowledge they construct it, reality can never be
fully understood, and we need to rely on multiple methods to construct as much of
reality as possible. It aims to give us an understanding which appreciates the
subjective meaning of social interaction. Thus, reality should be interpreted through
the meaning research participants give to their lifeworld. Values play important roles in
analysis and interpretation of research. Interpretivists also maintain humans are
constantly engaging in the process of making sense of their worlds, interpreting,
creating, giving meaning to, defining, justifying and rationalising their actions. This is
related to hermeneutics, a theory of interpretation and meaning making which
originated in the 19th century. Interpretivist researchers can only find meaning by
developing deep understandings of transcribed words/texts and seeking connections
between their parts.
4
HMPYC80
CH 1-8 TEXTBOOK
SUMMARY
Perfectionist Notes
PRIVATE TUTOR FOR HONOURS IN PSYCHOLOGY - UNISA
helping you achieve your best results
TEXTBOOK USED:
Fouché, C. B., Strydom, H., & Roestenburg, W. J. H. (2021). Research at grass roots: For the social sciences and
human service professions (5th Edition).
, Chapter 1
Research and Professional Practice:
This chapter (1) aims to discuss the professional practice by putting focus on the four
themes: Philosophical foundations of professions, professional practice, professional and
research ethics and diversity of professional practice.
1. Introduction
Philosophy is defined as: the study of how knowledge, reality and our existence as
human beings evoke questions about who we are, what we know and how we
experience the world around us.
If philosophy can be regarded as a general worldview, then a paradigm is framework
through which we make sense of that world.
A paradigm, therefore establishes the boundaries’ of understanding and practice, along
with subsequent ethics accompanying those boundaries.
2. Philosophical foundations of professions:
Philosophy is a guiding code for society/professions which helps to illuminate aspects of
thinking in human existence.
Applied philosophy is important as it is foundational in the expression of “a philosophy of ….”.
Philosophy is the vehicle through which we interpret and perceive phenomena around us →
this is what becomes a paradigm. Paradigms establish the boundaries of understanding and
practice as well as the ethics accompanying these boundaries. The respective elements and
underlying beliefs or principles of these philosophical paradigms inform the chosen
approaches and methods researchers use.
2.1. paradigm
There are many philosophies and counter philosophies. Philosophy is by nature
multidisciplinary, interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary; it is underpinned by a
particular paradigm.
2
, e.g. absolutists see the world as an univocal set of ideas understood and accepted from one
powerful source which is almost never questioned.
Paradigms as a concept are contested and described in many wats by different authors. A
paradigm denotes a certain way of doing something, a disciplinary matrix or practices which
define a scientific discipline at a point in time. Paradigms are therefore constructs which
represent an archetype of how professionals achieve what they set out to do at a particular
point in time, and describes what is acceptable in a community or practice. Paradigms change
when practitioners in the community deem it needed to do so, this is referred to as a
paradigm shift.
Paradigms are a way of viewing and interpreting our research material, we need to decide
which paradigm, have a solid grasp of the nature of the selected paradigm, use it to select and
justify their chosen methods and articulate this clearly in the research proposal and or report.
There are three approaches available to professionals: qualitative, quantitative and mixed
methods which is the most viable as it is placed in a pragmatic paradigm.
Professions relate to a vocation/occupation etc. the word can be traced to Latin roots which
mean to declare publicly. This public declaration is aimed to inform others of the parameters,
processes and requirements of the profession, as well as other relevant information which is
beneficial to society.
Generally, pragmatism is linked to the Weberian philosophy which underpins the methods of
professions. It focuses on the structure which shapes human action/agency. Weber’s
discussion led him to believe there is a need to train professionals in the service of humanity.
Other philosophical approaches like functionalism, interactionalism, Marxism and
foucaldianism do not adequately clarify the notion of professions in this context.
Weberianism and neo-webarianism will inform the philosophical foundations for
understanding professions generally and in relation to research.
Paradigms are informed by corresponding beliefs which help us understand how and why
paradigms are followed within a specific discipline of research practice. Representations of
these basic beliefs of principles differ and are set out in the corresponding ontology and
epistemology of the research paradigm.
Researchers initially adopt a particular stance based on theory worldviews towards the
nature of knowledge, this implicitly guides their approach to research. Methodology and the
choice of data collection methods and analysis techniques.
3
, 2.2 Ontology:
This is the philosophical study of the nature of reality → the nature of things. Context is
important for ontological descriptions and should express a professional stance in
relation to the nature of things or how reality is interpreted in the profession.
Ontological stances are also expressed philosophically, professions need to declare
their professional ontological stances to let society see how they understand reality.
This can be understood as the characterisation of the representation of entities and
relations between clients and professionals. This knowledge will aid in decision making
processes in any services or research of a profession.
Ontological dimensions of social research refer to the researcher’s view on the nature
of reality. The ontological lens a researcher uses will influence the study.
Objectivism: based on the belief there is an external reality that can be studied
objectively or value free. It refers to the ability to know things as they are, this is
possible is specific and controlled methods are employed as these methods place a
necessary check on subjectivity and restrain personal judgement and emotions. It plays
a key role in enabling researchers to understand the meaning people give to
phenomena in an objective manner. The qualitative researcher could never be an
objectivist, this work is not neutral or distanced.
Interpretivism evolved from the reaction to the objectivist view. The subject matter of
social sciences is different from natural sciences fundamentally, as such social reality
should be viewed and interpreted by the individual according to their ideological
position. Knowers and known are interdependent, social sciences essentially
subjective, reality is multifaceted, a single phenomenon has many interpretations.
Interpretivist researchers do not find knowledge they construct it, reality can never be
fully understood, and we need to rely on multiple methods to construct as much of
reality as possible. It aims to give us an understanding which appreciates the
subjective meaning of social interaction. Thus, reality should be interpreted through
the meaning research participants give to their lifeworld. Values play important roles in
analysis and interpretation of research. Interpretivists also maintain humans are
constantly engaging in the process of making sense of their worlds, interpreting,
creating, giving meaning to, defining, justifying and rationalising their actions. This is
related to hermeneutics, a theory of interpretation and meaning making which
originated in the 19th century. Interpretivist researchers can only find meaning by
developing deep understandings of transcribed words/texts and seeking connections
between their parts.
4
