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CHAPTER 2: The Importance of Theory
CHAPTER OUTLINE
INTRODUCTION
INQUIRY
PARADIGMS IN THE SOCIAL SCIENCES [LO1]
Positivist
Paradigm
Interpretative
Paradigm
Critical
Paradigm
Pragmatic
Paradigm
THEORETICAL
FRAMEWORKS AND THEORIES [LO2]
THE
ROLE OF THEORY IN RESEARCH
Deductive
Forms of Reasoning [LO3]
Testing
Hypotheses Derived from Theories
Inductive
Forms of Reasoning
The
Role of Theory in Quantitative and Qualitative Research
FORMULATING
RESEARCH QUESTIONS [LO4]
Locating
a Topic of Interest
Framing
an Interest into a Social Research Question
THE
IMPORTANCE OF A LITERATURE REVIEW [LO5]
LOCATING
RELEVANT LITERATURE [LO6]
Searching
for Books
Searching
for Periodicals
CHAPTER
SUMMARY
RESEARCH
REFLECTION
LEARNING
THROUGH PRACTICE
RESEARCH
RESOURCES
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
LO1 Outline the main assumptions of positivist,
interpretive, critical, and pragmatic paradigms.
LO2 Define and differentiate between theoretical
frameworks and theories.
LO3 Distinguish between deductive and inductive
reasoning and explain how the role of theory differs in qualitative and
quantitative research.
LO4 Formulate social research questions.
LO5 Explain the importance of a literature
review.
LO6 Locate appropriate literature and evaluate
sources of information found on the Internet.
CHAPTER SUMMARY
Paradigms
shape our views of social science research.
The positivist paradigm emphasizes objectivity and the importance of
discovering truth through the use of empirical methods. The interpretive
paradigm stresses the importance of subjective understanding and discovering
meaning as it exists for the people experiencing it. The critical paradigm
focuses on the role of power in the creation of knowledge. The pragmatic paradigm begins with a research
problem and determines a course of action for studying it based on what seems
most appropriate given that particular research problem. Theoretical frameworks are perspectives based
on core assumptions that provide a foundation for examining the social world at
a particular level. For example, theoretical frameworks at the macro level tend
to focus on broader social forces; whereas, those at the micro level stress
individual experiences. Theories develop from theoretical perspectives and
include propositions that are intended to explain a fact or phenomenon of
interest. Deductive reasoning is a
top-down theory-driven approach that concludes with generalizations based on
research findings. Inductive reasoning is a bottom-up approach that begins with
observations and characteristically ends with theory construction. Inductive
approaches to reasoning guide qualitative research processes; whereas,
deductive approaches guide the stages of quantitative research. Theory tends to
be the initial point for quantitative research; whereas, it is interspersed
throughout and emphasized more in the advanced stages of qualitative
research. Based on a general area of
interest and a vigilant literature review, a researcher ultimately shapes a
research interest into a social research question, which is a question about
the social world that is answered through the collection and analysis of data.
For example, a researcher might begin with an interest in gender that develops
into an examination of the effects of body size on income for male and female
workers. A literature review is the
starting point for formulating valuable social research questions. A literature
review helps to identify what is previously known about and still needs to be
done in an area of interest. A literature review also points out debates and
issues in an area of interest along with the most relevant concepts and means
for going about studying the issue in more depth. Appropriate literature sources include
periodicals, books, and government documents, most of which can be accessed
online via the library at the post-secondary institution. The quality of information
gleaned from Internet websites should be evaluated prior to using that
information as a primary source in a literature review. Evaluating information
on the Internet usually takes the form of asking questions that center on the
authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, coverage, and general ease of use
of the website and information located at that website. For instance, in
assessing objectivity, you can ask: “Is the information provided as a public
service?”
LECTURE IDEAS/EXAMPLES
Literature
Review
Use the question prompts located at http://www.writing.utoronto.ca/advice/specific-types-of-writing/literature-review – which are listed below – to get
students to practice asking questions like these about a book or article they
will include in a paper (not necessarily for your course):
1. “Has the author formulated a
problem/issue?”
2. “Is it clearly defined? Is its
significance (scope, severity, relevance) clearly established?”
3. “Could the problem have been
approached more effectively from another perspective?”
4. “What is the author’s research orientation
(e.g., interpretive, critical science, combination)?”
5. “What is the author’s theoretical
framework (e.g., psychological, developmental, feminist)?”
6. “What is the relationship between
the theoretical and research perspectives?”
7. “Has the author evaluated the
literature relevant to the problem/issue? Does the author include literature
taking positions she or he does not agree with?”
8. “In a research study, how good
are the basic components of the study design (e.g., population, intervention,
outcome)? How accurate and valid are the measurements? Is the analysis of the
data accurate and relevant to the research question? Are the conclusions
validly based upon the data and analysis?”
9. “In material written for a
popular readership, does the author use appeals to emotion, one-sided examples,
or rhetorically-charged language and tone? Is there an objective basis to the
reasoning, or is the author merely ‘proving’ what he or she already believes?”
10. “How does the author structure
the argument? Can you ‘deconstruct’ the flow of the argument to see whether or
where it breaks down logically (e.g., in establishing cause-effect
relationships)?”
11. “In what ways does this book or
article contribute to our understanding of the problem under study, and in what
ways is it useful for practice? What are the strengths and limitations?”
12. “How does this book or article
relate to the specific thesis or question I am developing?”
This
guide is the first of three looking at the purpose and process of conducting a literature review: http://www.reading.ac.uk/web/FILES/sta/A5_Literature_Reviews_1_Starting.pdf.
It includes advice on writing a literature review; what is a literature
review; how to get started; and searching for sources. It is in pdf format and is designed to be
printed double-sided on A4 paper, then folded to make an A5 leaflet.
Students
might find the following website – http://www.rlf.org.uk/fellowshipscheme/writing/literaturereviews/index.cfm – a useful
contribution to the following topics:
1.
What is a literature review?
2.
Why write a literature review?
3.
Key points to remember.
4.
The structure of a literature review.
5.
How to do a literature search.
Ask
students to list questions a Literature review should
answer. Then, have students visit http://www.smu.ca/administration/library/litrev.html for a list of such questions. Compare and contrast the website list with
the students’ list.
Paradigms
For an
excellent discussion of various sociological paradigms and examples of each, go
to http://cnx.org/content/m33962/latest/.
The examples are user-friendly.
To get
your students excited about the people behind the theories, you might draw on
the following websites:
3. Charles Horton Cooley: http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/charles-horton-cooley-1864-1929
See also http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/charles-horton-cooley-1864-1929/charles-horton-cooley-powerpoint-study-aids-and-video-clip for PowerPoint,
Study Aids, and Video Clip
See http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/w-e-b-dubois-1868-1963/w-e-b-dubois-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
See http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/emile-durkheim-1858-1917/emile-durkheim-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
See http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/karl-marx-1818-1883/karl-marx-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
See http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/george-herbert-mead-1863-1931/george-herbert-mead-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
See http://www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/georg-simmel-1858-1918/georg-simmel-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
See www.bolenderinitiatives.com/sociology/max-weber-1864-1920/max-weber-powerpoint-and-study-aids for PowerPoint and
Study Aids
Karl Marx
With your students
watch as Karl Marx – the puppet – visits Occupy Wall Street at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hFrKhBiervM.
He interviews protesters while Adam Smith sets up the First Occupied
Bank. Mexican artist Pedro Reyes shot
the video series entitled, “Baby Marx.” In terms of the discussion in Chapter 2,
discuss what Marx might have thought of Occupy Wall Street. Since your students may be unfamiliar with
the movement, offer them an overview first.
Grounded
Theory
The
Pandit article entitled, “The Creation of Theory,” located at http://www.nova.edu/ssss/QR/QR2-4/pandit.html is an
interesting text to use as a working example of grounded theory. According to http://www2.widener.edu/~aad0002/714grounded.html:
Pandit
demonstrates how technical literature is reviewed to refine research questions
and to develop concepts and assumptions. He shows how theoretically important
cases were selected so that substantive information about the setting and its travails
would be accessible. He describes the development of a database through the use
of multiple sources of data and multiple methods of data collection, arguing
that this will ground his study in a network of information and ultimately will
improve both accuracy and construct validity. Pandit further describes how he
allows data analysis and data collection to be overlapping. In this way
emergent themes and patterns can be permitted to refine definitions of concepts
and new questions can be pursued. Pandit illustrates how open, selective and
axial coding are all used to integrate data and develop connections between
patterns and themes. Finally he describes how saturation determines the end of
data analysis … Pandit returns to his original propositions and compares them
with two conceptual frameworks. One is the framework that emerges from the data
after data analysis. The other is the framework suggested by the literature. He
concludes his study by demonstrated how his original propositions concur and deviate
in some way with data and with theory. This allows him to describe how his
original thinking must be revised (compared to emergent themes in data) and how
the literature and theory need to be rethought (http://www2.widener.edu/~aad0002/714grounded.html).
Hypothesis
Generating
For variations on this lesson plan, whereby students
generate a hypothesis, visit http://www.webpages.uidaho.edu/psyc320/lessons/lesson02/lesson2-2-1_activity.htm.
Deductive
Reasoning
Deductive
reasoning is using logic to move from generalisations to a more concrete and
specific conclusions. Inductive reason, on the other hand, employs logic to
move from specifics to generalisations. Many fields of study rely upon deductive
reasoning; consequently, it is imperative that students learn to develop this
method of critical thinking. ,
an eHow Contributor (http://www.ehow.com/info_12015563_fun-activities-using-deductive-reasoning.html), recommends that educators use
entertaining activities to teach and practice deductive reasoning. The following are a version of the activities
Farley suggests. These in-class
activities teach students how deductive reasoning works, by moving from general
statements of fact to a precise conclusions.
These activities also encourage students to become acquainted; thus,
serving as an ice-breaker early in the course.
1. Guess Who: Divide
the class into groups. Explain to
students that they will play a
variety of the board game Guess Who,
which requires deductive reasoning. Distribute to students a full roster of the
class. Read aloud clues, such as the following: This student has blond hair.
This student wears a nose ring. This student was born on 10 February. Also, use
clues based on amusing facts and trivia regarding students, such as students’’ favourite
books, favourite television shows, their non-human animal companions, and/or
foreign countries visited.
2.
Murder Mystery: Together, the entire class will piece together clues presented
by the instructor and draw conclusions about a murder. Present to students different clues that are established
facts upon which to decipher the mystery. For example, offer clues about the
murder weapon, items found at the scene of the crime, and information concerning
probable suspects. To make this activity more stimulating, include extraneous
clues to function as ‘red herrings.’
3.
Literary Analysis: Deductive reasoning, while generally employed in
logic-based disciplines such as science and mathematics, is also used to
critically think about literary texts. To establish how deductive reasoning is
applied to fiction, read aloud a chapter from a book. Then, based on the
details and plot presented, ask students to make deductive conclusions about
characters or themes. As a case in point, ask students if a character has moral
or immoral intents. Students must refer
to specific passages to support their claims.
4.
Logical Syllogisms: To practice deductive thinking skills, invite student volunteers to
complete logical syllogisms. Explain to the class that a logical syllogism is
an argument that is dependent on two premises to infer (i.e. deduce) a
conclusion. For example, eHow
Contributor (http://www.ehow.com/info_12015563_fun-activities-using-deductive-reasoning.html),
offers
the following logical syllogism: “Tigers are cats. All cats have four legs.
Therefore, tigers have four legs.” Ask students
to generate premises based on humorous scenarios or fascinating facts that will
engross them in the lesson.
CLASSROOM ACTIVITIES
Practicing
deductive reasoning is fun, takes only a few minutes, and you can use most
anything to create a practice activity. At first, you should talk through the
activity while you are presenting it. Here are some examples:
Activity 1: Choose four
students to stand at the front of the classroom. Choose
precise attributes when choosing students.
Examples: two students should be taller females; one tall female student
should have red hair and the other black hair; the two other students should be
male and female. Next, make the
following prompts and, after each prompt, ask the class if they are sure of the
answer.
1. The student I am thinking of is
female. (Students cannot be certain of a final response at this point because
three of the four students are female.
Students can only exclude the male at this point.)
2. The student I am thinking of is
tall. (At this time, students can exclude the shorter female, but are still unsure
of the absolute answer.)
3. The student I am thinking of has red
hair. (Students can use all of the clues to provide the right answer.)
Activity 2: Place a loonie, quarter, nickel, and dime in the
center of a circle of students. The
instructor will make the following prompts:
1. The coin I am thinking of is
silver in color.
2. The coin I am thinking of is not
the largest in size.
3. The coin I am thinking of is
bigger than a dime in size, but smaller than a quarter.
Answer:
The nickel
Activity 3: To answer the discussion questions that follow, students
must first read, “Transforming the political agenda? Gender differences in bill
sponsorship on women’s issues,” located at http://www.iwpr.org/pdf/transforming%20agenda%2010-00.pdf
1. Is this research study in the positivistic tradition? Justify your answer.
1. Is this research study in the positivistic tradition? Justify your answer.
2. Categorise the research steps
the researchers followed.
3. What is the research question?
4. Is the research question suited
to a qualitative or quantitative research approach? Justify your answer.
DISCUSSION TOPICS
1.
A literature review is a piece of discursive
prose. Explain.
2. Describe
the commonalities and dissimilarities between a research article and a
non-research article.
3. Discuss
the issues you need to take into consideration before critiquing a research
article.
4.
Why
is it necessary to review the literature when doing a research study?
5.
Describe
in detail what a literature review is and how it is beneficial when completing
social scientific studies.
6.
Discuss
where and how to search the literature. Provide a social scientific example
during the course of the discussion.
7.
Discuss
what constitutes a well-written abstract.
8.
Discuss
how to amass and manage the information you find when completing a literature
review. Provide a social scientific example during the course of the
discussion.
9.
Discuss
how to develop a theoretical framework when completing a literature review.
10.
Discuss
standards that a good literature review will uphold.
11.
Discuss
why one must locate existing knowledge in their topic area when one wants to
complete a social scientific research study.
12.
Discuss
how to find existing sources of knowledge in a topic area of your choice. Provide a social scientific example during
the course of the discussion.
13.
What
are journal articles?
14.
What
are peer-reviewed journals?
15.
How
does one go about critically evaluating social scientific evidence?
16.
Discuss
why all empirical evidence is not
made equal.
17.
Discuss
the benefits and drawbacks of the positivistic research approach to knowledge
generation.
18.
Four
key paradigms are outlined in Chapter 2. Discuss each. Which of the four is
most appealing to you? Explain.
19.
Positivist,
interpretive, critical, and pragmatic paradigms all offer a broad worldview
from which theoretical frameworks emerge. Discuss the connection between
paradigms and theoretical frameworks.
20.
Palys
and Atchison (2014) – as cited in Chapter 2 – state: “[G]ood theory is not
imposed; rather, it emerges from direct observation and contact with people in
context.” Discuss.
21.
A
chief criticism of the positivist paradigm concerns the separation of the
researcher from what is being researched. The expectation that a researcher can
observe without allowing values, or interests, to interfere is arguably
impossible. Where do you stand on the
issue? Be sure to cite Chapter 2 in your
answer.
22.
One
of the criticisms of the interpretive paradigm (also called constructivism) is
that it does not allow for
generalisations. Your task is to argue that the details and efforts involved in
interpretive inquiry permit researchers to gain insights and perspectives that
may not come to light under the positivist paradigm.
23.
In
a nutshell, the critical paradigm focuses on eliminating injustice in
society. Critical researchers aim to
transform society to address inequality, in relation to ethnicity, race, gender,
sexual orientation, and disability, for example. Similar to interpretivist researchers,
critical researchers recognise that research is not value-free. They go further, however, in arguing that the
goal of the research is to actively challenge interpretations and values in
order to bring about change. Do you
think social scientists should take on the dual role of researcher and activist? Why or why not?
24.
In
1845 the young Karl Marx wrote, “The philosophers have only interpreted the world. The point, however, is to change it.” Using the conflict paradigm as your starting
point, explain what Marx means.
25.
Compare
and contrast the pragmatic paradigm with positivism and the interpretive paradigm.
26.
Within
the discipline of sociology, the functionalist, conflict, interactionist,
feminist, and postmodern frameworks provide different lenses from which sociologists
view society. Which theory or theorises
come closest to your view of the world?
27.
The
functionalist framework is rooted in positivism in its focus on observables in
the form of “social facts” and “universal truths.” What “social facts” or “universal truths”
arise from sociological research?
28. According to Joe R. Feagin and Hernán Vera, the authors of Liberation
Sociology (Westview Press), the goal of liberation Sociology is not
merely to study and understand the social world, but ultimately to shape a more
just world. As
they suggest, “questioning and researching hierarchies of class, gender, and
racial power are at the heart of a sociology of liberation and
emancipation. The point of liberation
sociology is not just to research the social world but to change it in the
direction of democracy and social justice” (2001:11; ix;1). Sociologists working in this tradition take sides
with, and the perspective of the oppressed, employing sociological insights and
findings as tools for their liberation. Liberation sociology is better
understood, therefore, as a perspective on, rather than a topic of,
sociological inquiry. Research that adopts this perspective characteristically
involves: questioning social hierarchies, identifying sources of oppression, facing
challenges in communities, looking beneath the surface and probing underlying
assumptions, and taking an overt moral stance.
The task of the student is to locate an example of a Canadian social
scientist working in this tradition and come to class prepared to discuss the
individual and her/work. For example,
American-born sociologist, William K. Carroll’s (The University of Victoria)
research focus, for some years, has been on mapping the structure of the transnational
capitalist class, using social network analysis. This work falls within
the tradition of ‘power-structure research.’ For liberation sociology, the
contribution is one of providing a detailed analysis that shows how
concentrated corporate power is, worldwide, and thereby raises issues of
inequity and lack of democracy. He published a book on this in 2010 (The Making of a Transnational Capitalist
Class, Zed Books), and he has an essay in Socialist Register 2014 entitled, “Whither the transnational
capitalist class?”
29.
“Alternative
Policy Groups and Global Civil Society” is a collaborative research project
involving scholar/activists based in Canada, France, the United States, South
Africa, and Japan. It is funded by the
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) (2011-14). The project concerns the role that transnational alternative policy groups play in
producing knowledge for democratizing kinds of social change. Data include transcripts from more than 100
in-depth interviews with activist-intellectuals whose work powers these sites
of counter-hegemony. Based on this
information alone, students will determine the paradigm on which the research
is based along with the theoretical
frameworks most likely informing the collaborative research project.
30.
Compare
and contrast deductive and inductive logic. Describe explicit research issues
that are applicable to each. Explain
why.
31.
Grounded
theory is an inductive approach in the extreme.
Explain.
32.
As
inductive theory, grounded theory makes no distinction between theory and
design. Explain.
33.
Compare
and contrast grounded theory and ethnographic interviewing. How are they
similar in their assumptions about how people think and what the goals of
research are? How are they different?
34.
Compare
and contrast content analysis and grounded theory. Be sure to consider
similarities and differences in purposes, categories of data, procedures,
epistemology, and relationship to quantitative approaches.
35.
Describe
in detail and critically assess the grounded theory methodology.
36.
The
practises of grounded theory vary from those of conventional social science
research. A literature review is needed. Nevertheless, it is not used to discover
a theoretical model, ready made in the work of other researchers that will be
used to make design choices. Discuss
then how you would go about doing such a literature review. Is it really that different from the more characteristic
literature review?
37.
There
are numerous ways to structure a literature review. Two common ways are
chronologically and thematically. Which
would you prefer? Does circumstance
matter? Explain.
38.
Literature
reviews can have different types of audiences.
Discuss how this ‘fact’ influences how literature reviews are conducted
(e.g. literature reviews are characteristically written as a chapter for a
thesis or dissertation; hence, the readership will want to know in what manner
the research is significant and original).
39.
Challenge
the notion that scientists can be as objective as the positivist ideal proposes.
40.
Joe
R. Feagin and Hernán Vera (2008:23) address the notion of objectivity in their book
Liberation Sociology, stating:
Mainstream sociology is often
committed, albeit in disguised ways, to vested interests in the established
hierarchies. The noncommittal attitude of much sociology today—usually
formulated as scientific detachment, objectivity, or value freedom—is often a
cover-up for the dominant group interests actually being served by the research
so labeled. Sociology, like other intellectual endeavors, is part of the political,
social, and psychological status quo.
Discuss Feagin and Vera’s
claims as a criticism of positivism.
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