,RSE4801 Assignment 5 (COMPLETE ANSWERS) Semester 2 2025
- DUE 3 November 2025 ;100% trusted ,comprehensive and
complete reliable solution with clear explanation
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Definitions: Ontology, Epistemology, Axiology, Methodology, and
Methods
3. Philosophical Positions and Method Mapping
3.1 Positivism / Post-Positivism
3.2 Interpretivism / Constructivism
3.3 Critical / Transformative
3.4 Pragmatism / Mixed Methods
4. Linking Aims to Worldview to Method (Worked Examples)
5. Quality, Ethics, and Reflexivity
6. Conclusion
References
Introduction
Research methods are rarely neutral choices; they flow from the
researcher’s aims and from underlying philosophical commitments about
what counts as knowledge. This essay argues that a researcher’s
philosophical assumptions their ontology (what exists), epistemology
(how we know), and axiology (what we value) fundamentally shape
methodological orientation and concrete method selection, while also
allowing for defensible pragmatic departures when research aims require
methodological pluralism. I show this argument in four steps. First, I
clarify key philosophical terms and link each to the kinds of methods
they render appropriate. Second, I map four major worldviews
(positivism/post-positivism, interpretivism/constructivism,
critical/transformative, and pragmatism) to typical methodologies and
, methods. Third, I demonstrate the logic “aim → worldview → method”
through three worked examples (quantitative, qualitative, and
transformative/mixed). Finally, I discuss issues of quality, ethics,
reflexivity and limitations, showing how criteria for rigour differ by
worldview and why explicit justification of choices is essential.
Throughout, the core claim is that methodological choices must be
traceable to research aims and philosophical commitments; when
departures from a purist stance occur (for example, mixing methods),
they must be justified by the study’s aims and epistemic needs. This
structure both answers the assignment prompt and provides markers
concrete evidence of methodological coherence and reflexivity
(Creswell, 2014; Neuman, 2014).
Section 1 — Key definitions and their methodological links (≈ 240
words)
Ontology concerns the nature of reality — whether there is a single,
objective reality (realism) or multiple, socially constructed realities
(relativism). Ontological commitments affect whether a study seeks
generalizable laws or context-bound meanings. Epistemology addresses
how we can know that reality: whether knowledge is discovered through
objective measurement, or co-constructed through interactions between
researcher and participants. A researcher who treats knowledge as
objective will prefer methods that minimize subjectivity (e.g.,
standardized measurement); a researcher who sees knowledge as
constructed will choose interpretive methods (e.g., interviews) that
foreground meaning (Neuman, 2014).
Axiology refers to the role of values in research — what questions are
legitimate, what harms are unacceptable, and whose knowledge counts.
Axiological commitments shape choices about participant involvement,
ethical safeguards, and reflexivity. Methodology is the overarching
strategy that links philosophical assumptions to practice (for example,
case study, experimental design, or participatory action research).
- DUE 3 November 2025 ;100% trusted ,comprehensive and
complete reliable solution with clear explanation
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Definitions: Ontology, Epistemology, Axiology, Methodology, and
Methods
3. Philosophical Positions and Method Mapping
3.1 Positivism / Post-Positivism
3.2 Interpretivism / Constructivism
3.3 Critical / Transformative
3.4 Pragmatism / Mixed Methods
4. Linking Aims to Worldview to Method (Worked Examples)
5. Quality, Ethics, and Reflexivity
6. Conclusion
References
Introduction
Research methods are rarely neutral choices; they flow from the
researcher’s aims and from underlying philosophical commitments about
what counts as knowledge. This essay argues that a researcher’s
philosophical assumptions their ontology (what exists), epistemology
(how we know), and axiology (what we value) fundamentally shape
methodological orientation and concrete method selection, while also
allowing for defensible pragmatic departures when research aims require
methodological pluralism. I show this argument in four steps. First, I
clarify key philosophical terms and link each to the kinds of methods
they render appropriate. Second, I map four major worldviews
(positivism/post-positivism, interpretivism/constructivism,
critical/transformative, and pragmatism) to typical methodologies and
, methods. Third, I demonstrate the logic “aim → worldview → method”
through three worked examples (quantitative, qualitative, and
transformative/mixed). Finally, I discuss issues of quality, ethics,
reflexivity and limitations, showing how criteria for rigour differ by
worldview and why explicit justification of choices is essential.
Throughout, the core claim is that methodological choices must be
traceable to research aims and philosophical commitments; when
departures from a purist stance occur (for example, mixing methods),
they must be justified by the study’s aims and epistemic needs. This
structure both answers the assignment prompt and provides markers
concrete evidence of methodological coherence and reflexivity
(Creswell, 2014; Neuman, 2014).
Section 1 — Key definitions and their methodological links (≈ 240
words)
Ontology concerns the nature of reality — whether there is a single,
objective reality (realism) or multiple, socially constructed realities
(relativism). Ontological commitments affect whether a study seeks
generalizable laws or context-bound meanings. Epistemology addresses
how we can know that reality: whether knowledge is discovered through
objective measurement, or co-constructed through interactions between
researcher and participants. A researcher who treats knowledge as
objective will prefer methods that minimize subjectivity (e.g.,
standardized measurement); a researcher who sees knowledge as
constructed will choose interpretive methods (e.g., interviews) that
foreground meaning (Neuman, 2014).
Axiology refers to the role of values in research — what questions are
legitimate, what harms are unacceptable, and whose knowledge counts.
Axiological commitments shape choices about participant involvement,
ethical safeguards, and reflexivity. Methodology is the overarching
strategy that links philosophical assumptions to practice (for example,
case study, experimental design, or participatory action research).
