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A Balanced Epistemological Orientation for the Social Sciences
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2020
Summary
A Balanced Epistemological Orientation for the Social Sciences challenges social researchers to rethink the epistemological assumptions grounding their work. It reviews the strengths and weaknesses of four salient epistemological orientations in the field – positivism, relativism, interpretivism, and intersubjectivism – to identify the characteristics of a theoretically-informed epistemology for social science. Relying on such an epistemology means seeking a deeper understanding of the social world without losing sight of the constructed nature of one’s conceptual frames. It involves adopting a reflexive position with regard to the norms and traditions in one’s area of specialization and in the field as a whole. Epistemologically-balanced social research is neither the dispassionate gathering of factual information, nor the elaboration of universal assessments formed on the basis of armchair speculation. It involves engaging in inquiry in an independent manner and being aware of the perspectival character of the claims being made in the attempt to shed new light on social phenomena. The caliber of social science can be elevated when researchers recognize the symbolic nature of their work and the significance of their conclusions in the larger social order.
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Bibliographic data
Copyright year
2020
ISBN-Print
978-1-7936-3144-2
ISBN-Online
978-1-7936-3145-9
Publisher
Lexington, Lanham
Language
English
Pages
134
Product type
Book Titles
Table of contents
ChapterPages
Dedication No access
Contents No access
Introduction No access Pages 1 - 6
Chapter 1 Positivism No access Pages 7 - 22
Chapter 2 Relativism No access Pages 23 - 50
Chapter 3 Interpretivism No access Pages 51 - 78
Chapter 4 Intersubjectivism No access Pages 79 - 104
Chapter 5 A Balanced Epistemological Orientation for the Social Sciences No access Pages 105 - 120
