Postmodernity and Philosophical Assumptions in Research
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You are a member of a research team that relies on a postmodernist lens. The research team is interested in submitting a research proposal to study depression among adolescents. In its first meeting, the team is discussing the following topics:
- Their philosophical assumptions as researchers.
- Their roles as researchers.
- Possible methodologies to study the topic.
However, the members are concerned that their postmodernist perspectives will be controversial, and they want to anticipate any challenges by potential logical positivistic researchers.
Present an evaluation of the research team's position on their philosophical assumptions as researchers, their role as researchers, and potential methodologies for the study of depression among adolescents.
Any cited references should be included (APA format).
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Solution Summary
The solution provides advise in tackling a hypothetical research problem using the postmodernist lens (see above). Advice is provided in how to tackle the problem and a sample evaluation of the position of the research team is also included. This solution is 641 words and four references are listed for further exploration of the topic.
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Dear Student,
The solution below should get you started however. Usually, when explaining the philosophical positions in a proposed research, the presentation must be concise and to the point and must be relevant to the purpose of the research. Your subject matter, teen depression, must be connected to elements of postmodernism in order for you to defend your choice of this perspective as a philosophical tool. What elements of the study will postmodernism guide and influence? Is it an overall stance where the study looks at the social phenomenon from a postmodernist viewpoint or are elements of the study (i.e. teen parental interaction, affect of subcultures) going to be viewed as postmodern elements? After having decided this, before you can defend your postmodern approach, ask yourselves, what kind of method of study is going to be used? It could be quantitative, qualitative and mixed; it's really up to you. How you are going to decide will be dependent on the purpose of the study.
It is not enough that you have a subject of study; you need to decide what to study and what its purpose will be. It can be broad or narrow but since teen depression is a broad area of study, you can have so many choices. You can, for example, decide to study 'Causes of Teen Depression', the main question can be 'What are the main causes of Teen Depression' and its purpose could be 'To understand the main causes of Teen Depression, ascertain patterns for the purpose of early symptom mitigation'. These are only examples but from the above, you can use, for example, the quantitative method. Your group can use publicized materials - studies, articles, blogs, research - on the topic and categorize them accordingly to 'measure' and 'list' the main causes. After having decided on these fundamental elements, design how to go about the research process accordingly - create your research design. I believe that ...
Education
- MPhil/PhD (IP), Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
- MA, Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
- Certificate, Geva Ulpan (via Universita Tel Aviv)
- BA, University of the Philippines
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