1 What is Positivism? Flashcards
methodology
a way of obtaining knowledge thru a set of principles and instructions that guide research from questioning to presenting findings; tells you how to think about a topic and how to generate knowledge on it
positivism
current dominant methodology in social sciences; follows empiricist ontology and epistemology
ontology
the study of what is reality
empiricist ontology
ppl and the reality they perceive are separate from each other; what you observe is what is real, which is made possible due to the separation between the observation and the object
epistemology
the study of knowing
empiricist epistemology
knowledge is derived from observation of the real world; observation and measurement are the primary ways to obtain knowledge about the topics that interest us; since the nature of reality is that you observe and understand it, we generate knowledge thru observation and measuring of such
characteristics of positivist methodology
- empiricism
- determinism
- objectivity/neutral observation
- certainty
- correspondence theory of truth
- replication
empiricism
knowledge about reality is obtained thru observations
determinism
everything that you observe has a cause and that you can figure out this cause with a lot of precision
objectivity/neutral observation
the observer is objective and neutral to limit their effects on the object and to limit biases
certainty
we can be certain about what we observe
correspondence theory of truth
measurements of observations faithfully reflect reality; any measurement corresponds to the truth
replication
if an experiment is conducted in the same manner and circumstances as the original, then the same results, observations, and conclusions should be made; when findings are replicated, this strengthens the initial claim
scientific method
for positivists, it can be applied to understand society and social phenomena
positivism and the scientific method
- identification of a question
- formulation of a hypothesis based on the research question
- decision on procedure to test hypothesis
- performance of the test of the hypothesis
- derive conclusion about the hypothesis from the test
- report conclusion
interpretivism
catch-all term for a group of methodologies that operate on the view that ‘reality doesn’t exist independent of individuals and that also knowledge is socially constructed’; emerged as a critique of positivism
what interpretivists argue
- observations are filtered thru individual experiences, circumstances, and contexts, which means that since observers are diff, then observations will be diff
- advises researchers to interpret social reality in light of their own lived experiences
- precise and objective observation of social reality is impossible
the interpretivist critique of positivism (why society isn’t like a rotting apple)
- rejects empiricism
- sees determinism as reductionist
- questions objectivity/neutral observation
- skeptical of certainty/correspondence theory of truth
- unsure of need for replication
rejects empiricism
you cannot separate the researcher from the object of research
sees determinism as reductionist
not everything in society boils down to a simple cause and effect relationship; assuming that there’s a singular cause would be too reductionist since society is complex and social phenomena happen simultaneously
questions objectivity/neutral observation
researchers aren’t neutral, as their observations are affected by their experiences; they should thus foreground their bias and consciously interpret their object of study thru this lens since interpretivism embraces subjectivity
skeptical of certainty/correspondence theory of truth
exact measurement of the object is impossible, so research is more about defensible knowledge claims that are always quite uncertain; things are more abstract which means that truth isn’t bound by concrete measurements and objective observations
unsure of need for replication
it’s acceptable and desirable for researchers to examine the same thing and come to completely diff conclusions bc. this allows for a diversity of ideas about the social reality; a lack of replicability allows a multiplicity of interpretations, thus contributing to wider knowledge and enhanced discourse
political science
the positivist approach to politics
