Table 1 below, serves as model to articulate ‘the what, why and how of’ research; and the importance of ‘alignment of ontology, epistemology and methodology’, say Berman and Smyth (2015: 130). It relates to my post titled ‘Research Paradigm’ (9 March 2010, supplemented 19 September 2010). I've not posted in this blog for a while, but felt this post may add value.
Berman and Smyth (2015: 130) explain that “what is to be researched, the ontology, or the reality of the context of the research problem, needs to be clear and bounded in order to establish a solid foundation for shared meaning and conceptual validity”. They elaborate that “the prompts for this [ontological] dimension of research focus on describing the context of the research and the key concepts and relationships between those concepts that exist in that context”. These are ‘connected with the epistemological basis of research’, say Berman and Smyth (2015: 130). The research methodology, based on such higher order conceptualisation, would ‘direct the nature of data collection methods’. This model, they indicate, encourage researchers beyond mere recognition of a research problem, towards theorising a solution.
Berman, J., & Smyth, R. (2015). Conceptual frameworks in the doctoral research process: A pedagogical model. Innovations in Education and Teaching International, 52(2), 125–136.
Comments