Paradigms, Theory & Methodology in Knowledge Development PDF

SOC2151H Paradigms, theory & methodology in knowledge development Overview of Chapter 2 Babbie et al., pp. 32-54 (B&R: pp. 28-53) “paradigms, theory and research” - students can ignore the details of the various social science paradigms Babbie et al. discuss (they each f...

SOC2151H Paradigms, theory & methodology in knowledge development Overview of Chapter 2 Babbie et al., pp. 32-54 (B&R: pp. 28-53) “paradigms, theory and research” - students can ignore the details of the various social science paradigms Babbie et al. discuss (they each fit under one of the three main paradigms emphasized in this lecture: positivism, interactivist/constructivist and the critical paradigm); read the chapter pages on theory, and on deductive and inductive theory construction; Review pp., 21-22 from Chapt 1 (B&R pp. 23-24) on deductive and inductive theory; Particularly focus on the different ‘ways of knowing’… in Siddiqi et al., (2017), Smylie et al., (2024), Shaburdin et al., (2022)*, and Akalin (2024) – have a quick look at each of these, but only up to ‘Findings’ at this point. Their different approaches to research reflect the knowledge paradigms in which they are situated… Sept 17, 2024  Two different ‘ways of knowing’…access to health care and health among racialized, immigrant & new Canadians Siddiqi, A., Shahidi, F.V., Ramraj, C., Williams, D.R. (2017). Associations between race, discrimination and risk for chronic disease in a population-based sample from Canada. Soc Sci Medicine 194: 135-141. Shaburdin, Z.M., Bourke, L., Mitchell, O., Newman, T. (2022). ‘It’s a cultural thing’: excuses used by health professionals on providing inclusive care. Health Sociology Review 31(1): 1-15.  What is a research paradigm? …is a worldview; a belief; a general perspective on how to view the world and how we can know it… Loading… …is the fundamental model or frame of reference we use to organize our observations and reasoning…(Babbie et al., p. 32) a paradigm encompasses theories, methodologies, and methods for conducting research…  Paradigms and theory : Theory: is a formal explanation of phenomenon or related set of phenomena… Where a paradigm offers a way of looking at the world, theories help us to answer questions about why things are as they are… theories seek to explain what we see…  Re: Paradigms, theory and… Methodology: the rules and procedures about how research is to be conducted Methodology pertains to the empirical activities of Loading… research – data collection, management and analysis…the rules or procedures for conducting an empirical study, as well as the specific tools for data collection (‘methods’) to be used …. A study’s methodology and methods are determined by the paradigm in which the research question is situated…  What is a research paradigm? Three broad categories: instrumental or positivist paradigm Interactivist/constructivist paradigm critical paradigm  The instrumental or positivist paradigm Belief that the objective ‘facts’ about some aspect of society are discoverable and knowable… Belief that, in controlled environments, the “rules” or regularities of that aspect of society will be discernible*…; Belief that what exists (and what is real) is that which can be observed…and can be observed in the same way by everyone  The instrumental or positivist paradigm knowledge development from an instrumentalist paradigm involves: Control of the object of research* Use and documentation of precise procedures …ensuring capacity for replication of procedures (for ‘verification’ ) Objectivity in procedures and interpretation of findings; researcher assumes an objective ‘value neutral’ position vis-à-vis research ‘subjects’ Instrumentalism (positivism), theory, methodology & method Involves… *a deductive approach for theory testing *methodology/method=standardized data collection protocol, i.e. standardized survey ‘instrument’ or standardized experimental design  Deductive theory in positivist-oriented social science research Reliance on deductive reasoning in theory development involves asserting a pattern that may be logically or theoretically expected; to testing (through observation/data collection) whether that pattern actually is observed in data….  Deductive theory in positivist-oriented social science research Reliance on deductive reasoning in theory development involves asserting a pattern that may be logically or theoretically expected; to testing whether that pattern actually occurs…. Loading… I.e., Siddiqi et al., (2017) investigated in a national sample of Canadians the extent of (a) racial differences in experiences of discrimination and (b) the association between discrimination and chronic conditions and their major risk factors, theorizing that: a) racial status (independent variable) → heightened experience of discrimination (dependent variable) b) discrimination (independent variable) → experience of various chronic health conditions/health risks (dependent variables)  The interactivist/constructivist paradigm researcher belief that knowledge is obtained by subjective engagement with others in human environments. What exists (and what is real) is that which people believe to be real;  Interactivist paradigm and assumptions about subjectivity/objectivity in knowledge development: Assumption that …knowledge is constructed through interaction and context and within specific histories/spaces/places; that all our experiences are subjective; What is “real” is perceptual - taking various perspectives on a phenomenon i.e. will reveal its complexity… Recognition of the centrality of the researchers’ values in driving research; that, therefore, what becomes known is partial, relative, relational; and value-laden (researcher does not assume an ‘objective’ position in the research process)… Interactivist paradigm: inductive theorizing Reliance on inductive reasoning in theory development: involves moving from a set of particular observations to the discovery of a pattern that represents some degree of order among those observations.  Interactivist paradigm: inductive theorizing Inductive reasoning in theory development: involves moving from a set of particular observations to the discovery of a pattern that represents some degree of order among those observations. I.e., Shaburdin et al., (2022) undertook semi-structured interviews to to capture health professionals’ perspectives on working in rural mainstream health services, ways to improve inclusion in health care broadly, challenges of providing inclusive care, and issues surrounding engaging groups of service users which the specific service struggles to engage.  The critical paradigm: A belief or standpoint in which it is acknowledged that what is real is more than just what is experienced or perceived (not necessarily discernible through interactivist empirical research); that what we experience in the social world does not necessarily reveal the mechanisms that influence that experience or perception..*  The critical paradigm: Acknowledges that researchers who abandon their objectivity in favour of adopting participants’ subjective viewpoints - may lose the possibility of seeing and understanding the phenomenon within frames of reference unavailable to those ‘others’… Focus on the frames of reference that produce particular beliefs/perceptions/experiences…  The critical paradigm: “critical”=makes problematic the assumed or taken-for- granted, especially that which is assumed to be “natural” – destabilize assumptions…explicate interests in competing definitions or explanations of a phenomenon* examines social conditions of individuals’ experiences and perceptions…assuming that social “facts” and experiences are produced by those with power to control knowledge production  The critical paradigm: Critical scholars ask how predominant definitions or explanations influence our own assumptions…and create our perceptions, expectations, etc. Who produces those predominant definitions? Critical scholars focus on power of some over others, social control, interest groups…to promote and envision possibilities for social change, transformation and re- distribution of power…  The critical paradigm: I.e. Marx’s theory of social class conflict (conflict paradigm). Marx focused on class struggle within historically specific economy; methodology of ‘institutional ethnography’ is situated under the critical paradigm…(example to be briefly examined later in the course)  Example: understanding inequalities in health & health care Review: in which paradigms are Siddiqi et al., (2017) and Shaburdin, et al., (2022) situated…? Where is theory (explanation) found in each study? what can be known and what cannot be known about barriers to access to health care or health for racialized or immigrant persons in each study setting, on the basis of the research approach in each article? What do the studies let us (readers) ‘see’ and ‘know’ about this phenomenon? What is missing?  Key terms/concepts paradigm – general *instrumental/positivist paradigm *interactivist paradigm *critical paradigm theory methodology (& methods - ‘tools’ for data collection)