week 3

What is Research?

What is accepted as research by the majority, is data that can be proven and replicated. The epistemological apprach to research deals with its legitimacy and credibility; to the nature of knowledge and how it relates to truth, beliefs and justicication.

I agree with that research must lead to the understanding of truth, its beginings and origins as well as that of the problems it faces through the research.

Personally, I believe that reseach does not have to be positivistic or scientific to be real, to be have credibility. Most people believe that they need scientific proof, in order to trust a research. I believe that qualitative research is as valid as quantitative research.
What can be useful for some, mightnot be useful for others and vice versa.
While someclassmates argued that qualitative research has no validity or purpose, I disagree.
Qualitative research does not necessarily have to discover something new, It can have an outcome that suports
an idea already established.

In order to prove a point, one necessarily does not have to come up with new discoveries. One can support already stated data or ideas to prove a point. To some people this mught lead to thinking that the researcher can manipulate the research in order to prove a point. Positivistic researchers can criticize this type of research. Yet, scientific reseach is also manipulated. Environment, materials, chemicals are all prepared for a specific perfect state inorder to conduct the experiments or research. So in a way their criticism can be hipocritical.

As long as reserch is legitimate, the motivation is clear and teh intended audience is in perspective, I believe that research is valuable.As long as everyone understands the paradigms and where thet are positioned it is okay. People like to see more generalized results yet I believe that research does not always have to be generalized or replicable to be valid.