Methodology and Epistemology

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Theme 3, asks you to demonstrate your understanding of the relationship between epistemology, methodology and research findings in social science. You should choose one social theme only: either Cri... me & Deviance (discussed in week 7) or Poverty (discussed in week 8) You should illustrate your work with at least two examples taken from academic research (look at research papers from Academic Journals by using StarPlus). You should aim to offer an example from each epistemological approach (i.e.: a Positivist approach and an Interpretevist approach). Your discussion must focus on the following: 1. How methodology links to epistemology. Explain how and why epistemology influences research approaches and methods in Crime and Deviance or Poverty in Social Sciences research. 2. How a Positivist (objective) perspective would influence a researcher’s choice of methodological approach and research methods. Use your example of research using a positivist perspective to illustrate this discussion, 3. How an Interpretivist (subjective) perspective would influence a researcher’s choice of methodological approach and research methods. Use your example of research using an interpretivist perspective to illustrate this discussion. 4. In your conclusion consider whether there has to be a clear distinction between epistemologies (and the resulting methodologies). What advantages would mixed method strategies have in research and what would be the disadvantages [Show More]

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