Discussion Question

Now that you have experienced some of the nuance in definition for the various terminology that grounds research, in this Discussion, you will align the philosophies of science with research approaches.

To prepare for this Discussion:

• Review the following terms in The SAGE Encyclopedia of Social Science Research Methods:
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  • Constructivism
  • Critical Theory
  • Empiricism
  • Interpretivism
  • Positivism
• Review the definition of philosophy of science and the web site on positivism and postpositivism in the Learning Resources.
  
• Consider how positivism and postpositivism relate to empiricism, interpretivism, and critical theory.
  
• Review page 4 in the course text Research Design where Creswell briefly describes each of the three research approaches--qualitative, quantitative, mixed methods. Based on these descriptions
  
• Review Table 1.4 on page 17 in the course text, Research Design, being attentive to the first row where Creswell has aligned certain philosophies of science with each of the three research approaches.
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  • Qualitative approaches-constructivist
  • Quantitative approaches-postpositivist
  • Mixed Methods approaches-pragmatic
    
• To what extent do you agree with Creswell's alignment of these philosophies with these approaches? How flexible is such alignment? For example, can a qualitative approach ever be postpositivist?
  
• With which approaches would you align empiricism, interpretivism, and critical theory. For example, does empiricism align with a quantitative approach, a qualitative approach, a mixed methods approach, or more than one approach? How would you support your choices of alignment?
  
  

With these thoughts in mind:

Post by Day 4, your position on Creswell’s alignment of philosophical worldviews with quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research approaches. Justify your position with support from the Learning Resources. Then, describe how the philosophical worldview you hold may influence your choice of approach for your research. Be specific and provide support from the Learning Resources.

Be sure to support your postings and responses with specific references to the reading(s) and/or media segment(s) and use APA format.