Download The Empiricist Approach

An Overview of Research Paradigm of Three Research Approaches
By: Tri Edy Kesumo R. (0704793)
Introduction
This paper presents an overview of research paradigm of three research approaches taken
mainly from a handbook of ‘study guide’ of Issues and Methods in Research and some
other research books as well as websites to support the theories stated within the guidance
book.
The purpose of this paper is to get in-depth understanding of research paradigm of three
research approaches and to know some theories of research to be able to conduct it well
as a part main project in post graduate school.
The aspects covert in this paper are the theory of research paradigm and two major
research approaches to organizational research and three main approaches of the frame
work around which the unit is organized group research methodologies, they are; the
empiricist approach, the interpretative approach, and the critical approach.
The group research methodologies will be discussed more to obtain a detail description
deal with some theories related to the research methodologies.
Research Paradigm
A paradigm is a basic set of beliefs that guide action. It is deal with the first principles,
or ultimate. They are human construction. They define the worldview of the researcher
as interpretive bricoleur (Denzin & Lincoln, 2005). These beliefs can never be
established in term of their ultimate trutfulness.
Two terms often used to describe the major research approaches to management or
organizational research are quantitative and qualitative. Within management and
organizational studies the quantitative approach is seen as objectives, that is relating to
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phenomenon or conditions independent of individual thought and perceptible to all
observers, and relying on statistics. On the other hand the qualitative approach is seen
as subjective, relating to experience or knowledge as conditioned by personal mental
characteristics or states, and preferring language and description. As (Eric Williams,
1998) states that this approach involves the examination of perceptions in order to gain
an understanding of social and human activities
There are three main approaches of the frame work around which the unit is organized
group research methodologies, they are; the empiricist approach, the interpretative
approach, and the critical approach.
The Empiricist Approach
The empiricist approach emphasizes careful and controlled observation as the basis of
knowledge. The observer is dispassionate and independent of the object of observation.
Knowledge is objective, generalisable and can be used to predict and control future
events.
1. The Empiricist Approach in Context
Empiricism is a broad term which can be taken to mean the position that knowledge is in
some way based upon experience. It can best be taught as a continuum with positivism
occupying its most tough-mind end. Empiricist is not about methods of inquiry; it is
about the logical justification of knowledge claims.
In supporting his/her justification the empiricist researchers were concerned to find out as
much as possible about media audiences, in much the same terms as advertisers today,
they seek information from, number of people, age, sex, social status, occupation, leisure
and so on. By taking information from the sources, they tended to be used to support
studies into the effectiveness of communication, rules for increasing effective campaigns
and so on, http://www.cultsock.ndirect.co.uk/MUHome/cshtml/media/empism.html
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There is a bias assumption, particularly in psychology, that empiricism is the same as
normative. Empiricist research methods are still the most widely-taught to students in the
human sciences. The empiricist approach is the least self-reflective or self critical.
Empiricism: major defining features
Modern empiricist thought is characterized by a spectrum of positions. Firstly in
ontological terms it takes a ‘realist’ rather than ‘relativist’ approach to the nature of
reality, it asserts that in some form reality exists independently of our knowledge of it.
Secondly in epistemological terms, the empiricist view asserts that knowledge is
impersonal and objective and can be transmitted independently of personal experience. In
contrast, an interpretive view would be that knowledge is personal and subjective and
must be experienced in order to be understood (Burrell and Morgan, 1979). Thirdly the
view of human action in the world embraced by an empiricist view is one derived from
the natural sciences where events have causes. It is characterized by philosophical
determinism, where human behavior is viewed as the lawful outcome of antecedent
environmental events (Reber, 1995).
There are varying approaches taken to the nature of theory. Some influential empiricist
writers hold the view that ‘the basic aim of science is theory’. Theory is complex
construction, consisting of sets of related propositions held together by associations,
hypothesized causal relationships and supporting assumptions.
2. Getting Down to Measurement
Levels of research
There are three levels of research, they are; (1) Exploratory research (It is represents in
the understanding of a phenomenon of interest to the researcher, develops an introductory
conceptual framework, clarifies the boundaries of phenomenon), (2) Descriptive research
(It focuses upon ‘how thing are’), and (3) Explanatory research ( It aims to answer ‘Why’
question, to uncover the causal framework underlying a pattern of events.
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Independent and dependent variables
To assess variable(s) in research, we have to be able to identify each variable that we are
going to investigate. The variables can be classified as dependent and independent
variable. The independent variable is the major variable that we are going to investigate
which we believe will affect the other variables. The independent variables are those that
are deliberately manipulated to invoke a change in the dependent variables. It is variable
which is selected, manipulated, and measured by the researcher (Hatch and Farhady,
1982). On the other hand, the dependent variable is the variable which we observe and
measure to determine the effect of the independent variable. Furthermore, The dependent
variables are those that are observed to change in response to the independent variables
(Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dependent_and_independent_variables).
The distinction between dependent and independent variables is crucial in research
design. We should be able to link back to the statement of the hypothesis discussed. The
hypothesis will state the relationship between the variables under study in term of which
is independent variable and which is the dependent variable.
Evaluating measurement: reliability and validity
Two keys criteria of the confidence which can be placed in measurement are reliability
and validity. Reliability can be defined as the extent to which a test produced consistent
results when administered under similar condition (Hatch & Farhady, 1982). In line with
Hatch and Farhady, (Mcmillan & Schumacher, 2001) reliability refers to the consistency
of measurement, the extent to which the scores are similar over different forms of the
same instrument or occasion of data collection. There are two theories of reliability, they
are classical and generalizability which deal with similar concepts but in different ways.
And the validity refers to the extent to which the results of the procedures serve the uses
for which they were intended. As Mcmillan & Schumacher, It refers to the results of the
test not to the test itself. Validity is a judgement of the appropriateness of a measure for
specific inference, decision, consequences, that result from the score that are generated.
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There are three basic types of validity, they are content validity, criterion-related validity,
and construct validity.
Ethical consideration in research
Ethics deal with beliefs about what is right or wrong, proper or improper, good or bad.
There is some degree of disagreement about how to define what is ethically correct in
research.
For all types of research, there are important ethical considerations pertaining to the
reporting of findings to your research colleagues, the treatment of the subjects and
general social; and political consideration. Ethical considerations are generic-informed
consent and protecting participants’ anonymity as well as situation specific (Marshall &
Rossman, 2006).
In many other kinds of social science research, ethical issues are much more to the fore.
Moreover when you are studying peoples’ behavior or asking them questions, not only
the value of the researcher but also the researchers’ responsibilities to those studied have
to be faced.
3. Choosing a Research Design: Options for Data Collection
Research design
There are some research designs of the most common in the human science field;
a. Survey research, which involves of collecting information from a sample about a
population, generally by using a structured or semi-structured questionnaire or
Well-designed interviews with clinicians, patients, and family caregivers can provide
illuminating data.
b. Case study research, it involves an in-depth study of a single or restricted number of
cases, using a variety of data gathering method. It is a case study of what you called a
case, in a case, you don not have anything else to call it (Nunan cited in Jaeger, 1988).
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Like any other observational study, the aim was to gather first-hand information about
social processes in a naturally occurring context.
There are three types of case study (Silverman cited in Stake, 2000), they are;
1. the intrinsic case study, no attempt is made to generalize beyond the single case or
even to build theory.
2. the instrumental case study, in which a case is examined mainly to provide insight
into an issue or to revise a generalization. Although the case selected is studied in
depth, the main focus is something else.
3. the collective case study, where a number of cases are studied in order to
investigate some general phenomenon.
c. Experimental and quasi-experimental research, which involves the control and
manipulation of an independent variable. The experimental research is the best
approach for determining causal effect of an isolated, single variable or something
(McMillan & Schumacher, 2001). This is because of the potential for a high degree of
control of variables and the power of manipulation of variables.
Furthermore (McMillan & Schumacher) defines some steps in defining a research
problem, they are;
1. search the literature and state clear hypothesis. It is essential research be guided by
research hypothesis that that state the expected result.
2. select subject from a defined population and depend on the specific design used. A
sample experimental study involve two groups, one called experimental or
treatment group and the other referred to a control or comparison group.
d. Ex post facto research, refers to the study which investigate possible cause and effect
relationship by observing an existing condition or state of affairs and searching back in
time for plausible casual factors. Moreover, (Cohen & Manion (1994) cited in
Kerlibger (1970)) has defined ex post facto research as that in which the independent
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variables have already occurred and in which the researcher starts with the observation
of dependent variable(s).
It investigates the antecedents of an event which has already happened. It is used to
study potential causal relationships after a presumed cause has occurred. In ex post
research subjects are selected on the basis of the group they were in at one time; there is
probably no random assignment of subjects to different group, and there is no active
manipulation of the independent variable.
In judging the adequacy of the ex post facto research it will be helpful to keep the
following questions in mind. The questions are organized to focus your attention on the
most important criteria in designing and evaluating this type of research.
1. Was the primary purpose of the study to investigate cause-and-effect relationship?
2. Have the presumed cause-and-effect conditions already occurred?
3. Was there manipulation of the independent variable?
4. Were group being compared already different with respect to the independent
variable?
5. Were potential extraneous variables recognized and considered as plausible rival
hypotheses?
6. Were causal statements regarding he results made tenuously?
7. Were treats to external validity addressed in the conclusions?
e. Analysis of data bases and records, which uses information collected by organizations
which can land itself to a variety of descriptive and explanatory research strategies. It is
a process of bringing order, structure, and interpretation to a mass of collected data is
messy, ambiguous, time-consuming, creative, and fascinating. It does not proceed in a
linear fashion (Marshall & Rossman, 2006).
This section of the research proposal should describe initial decision about data analysis
and should convince the reader that the researcher’s knowledge of qualitative analysis
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encompasses data organization, theme development and interpretation, and report
writing.
Data gathering technique
There are three techniques in gathering data;
1. Questionnaire, it is used to learn about the distribution of characteristics, attitude, or
beliefs. In deciding to survey a group of people, researchers make one critical assumption
that the characteristic or belief can be described or measured accurately through selfreporting. In using questionnaire, the researchers rely totally on the honesty and accuracy
of participants’ responses.
The structure of questionnaire is most often associated with empiricist survey research
and it is the most common data-gathering techniques in human science.
2. Interview, Closed item interviews usually can be analyzed using quantitative
techniques. Semi-structured, open ended and the instrument cognitive testing technique
requires qualitative techniques. Semi-structured interviews ask questions which suggest
short answers, but the instrument does not provide a set of choices of answers.
Sometimes semi-structured interviews can be pre-coded and entered into quantitative
databases. If not, content analysis is the preferred technique for understanding your
data. Winters, 1997 is an example of research using semi-structured interviews.
Open-ended interviews invite long answers. Pre-coding loses the rich detail in the data.
Open-ended interviews always require qualitative analysis techniques. (For a summary
table of data analysis techniques click here). Any recent edition of Social Research
Update is always a good source of interview techniques
The important aspects of good interviews are:

To sample the correct population;

To ask questions that give you the specific data you need;
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
To ask questions which the respondents understand as having the same meaning
as you (the researcher) understand in these questions;

To have well-trained and appropriate interviewers; and

To conduct the interviews at a time and place where both the interviewer and the
respondent can concentrate.
3. Observation, in gathering information the observational method relies on a
researcher’s seeing and sharing things and recording these observations, rather than
relying on subjects’ self-report responses to questions or statements.
The primary advantages of using observational methods are that the researcher does not
need to worry about the limitations of self report bias, social desirability, or response set,
and the information is not limited to what can be recalled accurately by the subjects.
Observational research is expensive and difficult to conduct reliability for complex
behavior. And the first step in developing and observational study is to define in precise
terms what will be observed.
There are five types in defining the behavior to be observed, they are;
1. Duration recording
2. Frequency-count recording
3. Interval recording
4. Continuous observation
5. Time sampling
4. Data Presentation and Analysis
The outcome of quantitative analysis is numbers. Data is presented in term of figure.
Once data have been presented descriptively the further option remains of data analysis
by statistical methods. These are discussed in term of the major ’families’ of statistical
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analysis, the kinds of data to which they can be applied and the kinds of questions they
can answer.
Data analysis is an ongoing cyclical process integrated into all phases of qualitative
research. Qualitative analysis is a relatively systematic process of selecting, categorizing,
comparing, synthesizing, and interpreting to provide explanations of the single
phenomenon of interest. Qualitative data analyses very widely because of the different
research foci, purpose, data collection strategies, and mode of qualitative inquiry.
The Interpretive Approach
The interpretative approach emphasizes on social interaction as the basis for knowledge.
The researcher uses her/his skills as a social actor to understand the objective world of
others, especially the meaning which exist for them and the beliefs which they hold.
Knowledge is subjective, constructed by mutual negotiation and specific to the situation
under investigation.
Humans act intentionally. It is held that there is a crucial difference in describing human
behavior and in understanding human action. Furthermore, if human behaviors are to be
effectively understood they must be recognized as international and thus what the people
believe themselves to be doing must be a part of researching what is happening.
According to (Mary Jeanne, 2004), there are nine purposes approach to interpretive
planning, they are;
1. Identify strategic objectives for area of interest .
2. Perform an interpretive resource inventory.
3. Formulate interpretive objectives .
4. Define interpretive framework including significance statements, themes, subthemes, story lines, and sense of place
5. Define visitor profiles .
6. Later determine planned visitor experiences
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7. Choose sites or venues to lay out the interpretive strategy .
8. Define interpretive programming
9. Define operational elements of planning .
1. The Nature of the Interpretive Approach
In human science the interpretive approach places a priority on searching for, uncovering,
interpreting and illuminating the meaning of what is happening, being done, being
understood or being interpreted by the participants in the social activities being studied.
Qualitative research has the following characteristics (Burgess, 1985); the researcher
works in a natural setting, studies may be designed and redesigned, the research is
concerned with social processes and with meaning, data collection and data analysis
occur simultaneously.
2. Data Definition and Gathering
Phenomenology
The phenomenology seeks to define the basic nature of the sign we interpret (Joniak cited
in Lindolf, 1995). And it focuses on the way that humans interact with the world of
phenomena, empirical objects and events to which they give meaning. Phenomenology is
then the study of the meaning of these phenomena to those people being studied.
Culture is immersed in affect the context in which an agent creates meaning about the
sign. The creation of meaning by the agent is a mental activity which depends on a
‘primitive phenomenology’ (Denzin, 1994)
Ethnomethodology
The field of ethnomethodology grew out the seeds of phenomenology (Denzin, 1995).
Both ethnomethodology and phenomenology are built on the principles of eidetic science.
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Ethnomethodology focuses on the ‘rules’ that the people sharing a culture use in running
their social interaction. It has a purpose to increase the understanding of taken for grated
or implicit practices in a society (Field and Morse, 1985).
Symbolic interactionism
This interpretative research focuses on the ways that people interact through using
symbols to carry their meaning, interpret others’ and try to control the patterns of the
interactions.
Symbolic interactionism eamines the creation of meaning through interaction with
symbols. Semiotics takes that examination to the level of science. It provides a se of
assumptions and concept that permit systematic analysis of symbolic system (Denzin,
1994). Like symbolic interactionism and the qualitative paradigm, semiotics embrances
the view that meaning is not inherent in any sign or text.
3.Data Analysis
Qualitative data analysis is primarily an inductive process of organizing the data into
categories and identifying pattern among the categories. As McMillan &Schumacher
(2001) states that most categories and pattern emerge from the data, rather than being
imposed on the data prior to data collection.
The following are keys ideas and practices relating to two position on interpreting data
analysis; categorization and codification and portrayal/narrative.
Categorization and codification

Very analytic

Purpose to help in generation of hypotheses, theories and explanations

Reports in form of coded analytic grounded theories
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Categorization is important that the categorizing of data is not only based on decisions
about their meaning but also that these meanings shall be given them by the participants.
Portrayal or narrative.

Very descriptive

Propose to provoke vicarious experience

Report in form of contextualized stories
The portrayal of interpretive information gained prominence in the context of evaluation
research.
The essential differences between the coded analysis of the interpretive data
And a descriptive portrayal is in the primacy given to the intentions and audiences of
interpretive research.
4.Conclusions, Ethics and ‘The Real Thing’
Conclusions
There are twelve ‘tactics for generating meaning’ from field work data Miles and
Huberman (1984).
1. Counting
2. Noting pattern, themes
3. Seeing plausibility
4. Clustering
5. Making metaphors
6. Splitting variables
7. Subsuming particulars into the general
8. Factoring
9. Noting relations between variables
10. Finding intervening variables
11. Building a logical chain of evidence
12. Making conceptual/theoretical coherence
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And also there are twelve ‘tactics for testing or confirming findings’.
1. Checking for representative ness
2. Checking for research effects
3. Triangulating
4. Weighting the evidence
5. Making contrast/comparisons
6. Checking the meaning of ‘outliers’
7. Using extreme cases
8. Ruling out spurious relations
9. Replicating a finding
10. Checking out rival explanations
11. Looking for negative evidence
12. Getting feedback from informants
Ethics
Ethics are considered to deal with beliefs about what is right or wrong, proper or
improper, good or bad. There is some degree of agreement about how to define what is
ethically correct in research. The conclusion and implications to be drawn from a study
are largely grounded in the moral and political beliefs of the researcher (Silverman,
2005). In many other kinds of social science research, ethical issues are much more to the
fore.
There are three ways of formulating research problem (Silverman, 2005).
1. Decide what is the purpose of research.
2. Examine which individuals or groups might be interested by the research topic.
3. Consider what are the implications for these parties of framing research.
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The Critical Approach
The critical approach shares the assumptions of interpretive approach but adds a further
element. Knowledge is problematic and capable of systematic distortion. It can never be
value-free but always represents the interest of some group in the society and has the
potential to be either oppressive or emencipatory.
Critical Theory has a narrow and a broad meaning in philosophy and in the history of the
social sciences. A “critical” theory may be distinguished from a “traditional” theory
according to a specific practical purpose: a theory is critical to the extent that it seeks
human emancipation, “to liberate human beings from the circumstances that enslave
them” (Horkheimer in James Bohman, 2005). Because such theories aim to explain and
transform all the circumstances that enslave human beings, many “critical theories” in the
broader sense have been developed. They have emerged in connection with the many
social movements that identify varied dimensions of the domination of human beings in
modern societies.
In qualitative research, Critical approach employ probing and data gathering techniques
developed over the course of having facilitated thousands of discussion sessions. Their
broad experience and well-honed moderating skills allow us to flesh out the details and
provide clients with answers to their most challenging business questions and problems.
According to Mary Ellen & Fitz Gerald (2008), Critical approach encompasses both
traditional, as well as more innovative, non-traditional methodologies in the area of
qualitative research, including:

Traditional Focus Groups

Non traditional data gathering

In-depth interviewing
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1. The Evaluation of Research as Praxis
Neither of the conventional research paradigms is sufficiently critical nor appropriately
directed ideologically to ameliorate or to liberate. The social and political function of the
critical research approach is emancipatory. Critical research is designed to involve and
inform people about the strategic actions necessary to promote their emancipation from
forms of life which perpetuate irrationality, social justice and exploitation in all its forms.
Unlike its more conventional contemporaries, the critical research approach is openly
ideological, socially critical, overtly political, and emancipatory in orientation. It provides
the means by which practitioners can participate in explaining and challenging sources of
domination and exploitation that are institutionalized and legitimated by policy.
2. Contesting the Foundations of Research- as- praxis
The concept of research as emancipatory praxis is not uncontested. It is a critical theory
foundation of emancipatory praxis, raising as it has quite penetrating critique of positivist
and interpretive research methodologies, is not itself beyond criticism.
It is the rejection of positivism, or the ‘positivist restriction of the idea of science’, that
has been prominent in the theoretical foundations of critical social science since its
foundation in the 1920s. It is the dominance of positivist thought which is prominently
critiqued in the critical literature.
Lakomski provides a challenging critique of this apparent superiority of critical social
science which focuses on the ground at which the notion of cognitive interests is based. It
is a serious questioning of the validity of the epistemological basis of critical theory and
weather there is a second rationale for making an epistemological distinction between
paradigms of specific inquiry.
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3. Designs and Methods of Critical Research
Key features of a critical praxis research methodology are participatory, critical reflective
on self understandings and politically emancipatory.
A prerequisite to emancipatory praxis research is for democratic structure and
relationships to be in place in a particular organization, institutions or social collective.
Some appropriate strategic action in promoting democratic structure are mobilization,
motivation, politicization.
Facilitated praxis is introduced by Comstock as a form of democratic and critical
research. It promotes a view of democracy in research which is at variance with that of
emancipatory praxis. It describes a critical research design which requires the ‘guidance’
of an expert researcher to enlighten her/his ‘subject’ as to the irrationally and injustice of
their social situations.
4. A Feminist Approach to Critical Research
Feminism involves an active desire to change women’s position in society and is a social
movement which works towards these changes. The logical extension of this is that
feminist research can never be conducted by men, because they are bereft of a feminist
consciousness. This prevents them from viewing reality in the way women do.
There are four orientations to feminist research.
1. Radical feminism, which hold the gender exploitation is the original and the most
profound form of exploitation and is the archetype of all operation.
2. Socialist feminism, which views gender, racial and class operation as varying but
related manifestations of capitalist economic exploitation.
3. Liberal feminism, maintains that barriers to women liberation can be eliminated
without changing the capitalist structure and those change can occur within ‘the
system’ through reform and education.
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4. Cultural feminism, which is separatist position that maintains that women cannot
achieve liberation in a patriarchial culture; liberation can occur only within a
matrifocal culture.
Conclusion
From the above explanation, it is clear that there are some approaches that can be used to
do research. The approach that we are going to used will depend on the topic issue which
we plan to study, the objective of our study, and the suitableness of the approach with our
study, whether it is accord with the empiricist, the interpretive or the critical approach.
The empiricist is about the logical justification of knowledge claims. It can be seen from
its characterization (realist, impersonal and objective, and natural science). Some
empiricist writers hold the view that the basic aim of science is theory.
The interpretivists emphasize research on social interaction as the basis for knowledge.
Knowledge is subjective, constructed by mutual negotiation and specific to the situation
under investigation.
The criticalists believe that knowledge is problematic and capable of systematic
distortion. Critical approach encompasses both traditional, as well as more innovative,
non-traditional methodologies in the area of qualitative research,
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