Methodology and methodology of scientific research
Methods of the empirical level of research
Quantitative and qualitative methods of scientific research
Special (private scientific) research methods in the field of library, information and documentation activities
Literature
1. The concept of the method, methodology and methodology of scientific research
The organization and conduct of scientific research is impossible without relying on scientific methodology, without the use of appropriate methods. When building a methodological base for scientific research, it is necessary to clarify the basic concepts (method, technique, methodology, etc.).
) The method is understood as a specific method of research, construction and substantiation of a system of knowledge about the subject, which includes various research methods.
Another definition can be given: a research method is a method of study based on a certain conceptual apparatus and rules that correspond to the characteristics of the subject of research, the purpose and nature of the tasks being solved.
Already studied phenomena, processes, patterns serve as samples, models for the subsequent study of other phenomena and processes. Therefore, in scientific research, not only the result is important, but also the path to it, the method of cognition, the chain of inferences leading to the conclusion.
) Methodology - a fixed set of methods of practical activity leading to a predetermined result; concretization of the method, bringing it to the instruction, algorithm, a clear description of the mode of existence.
) Methodology is a system of basic principles, methods, techniques, methods and means of scientific research. The methodology of scientific research involves the ability to properly organize scientific activities using effective methods of work, rules and logical conclusions.
) Methodological approach - a group of methods that have a common basis.
) The methodological principle is the fundamental rule, position, normative coordinate of the methodological paradigm.
) The methodological paradigm is a set of fundamental scientific principles, principles and main methodological approaches adopted in the scientific community within the framework of an established scientific tradition in a certain period of time. Ensures the continuity of the development of science and scientific creativity.
There are many types of methods of scientific knowledge. What methods to use for research is determined by the scientist, based on his own experience and the experience of his predecessors and colleagues. But the decisive criterion for determining the necessary methods is the subject of research.
Types of methods are distinguished by:
· degrees of generality (general scientific and special or particular scientific);
· level of abstraction (empirical and theoretical);
· the nature of the functions performed (quantitative and qualitative).
Let us characterize the main groups of scientific research methods.
General scientific research methods
General scientific research methods are based on such general principles of scientific thinking as induction, deduction, analysis, synthesis, abstraction, idealization, concretization, analogy, comparison, identification, generalization, extrapolation, etc.
Induction is a mental operation based on the logic of generalizing private facts; conclusion, reasoning from "private to general"; inference from facts to some general hypothesis.
Deduction is a mental operation that involves the development of reasoning from general patterns to particular facts (“from the general to the particular”).
Analysis is a theoretical research method that involves such a mental operation in which the process or phenomenon under study is divided into components for their special and in-depth independent study.
Synthesis is a mental operation, during which a complete picture is restored from the identified elements and facts.
Abstraction is a mental distraction from a number of non-essential features (properties, relationships) of an object while highlighting other features that are of interest to the researcher when solving a specific problem.
Idealization is one of the types of abstraction. The concepts formed as a result of idealization do not exist in reality in a specific form, but are only thought with approximate analogues (images).
Concretization is a process opposite to abstraction, it involves finding a holistic, interconnected, multilateral object.
Analogy - similarity, similarity of various objects, phenomena or concepts in any properties, features or relationships.
Comparison is a method that involves comparing objects in order to identify their similarities and differences, common and special.
Identification - the identification of the object under study with some sample, model, archetype.
Generalization is one of the important mental operations, as a result of which relatively stable properties of objects and their relations are singled out and fixed.
Extrapolation is the spread of trends and patterns found in one area to another area.
3. Methods of the empirical level of the study
The methods of the empirical level of research include: observation, description, survey, questioning, interviewing, conversation, experiment, monitoring, method of expert assessments, etc.
Observation is the most informative research method that allows you to see from the outside the processes and phenomena under study that are available for perception. Its essence lies in the fact that the object under study should be in normal, natural conditions and should not be affected by the observer.
Description - a method based on fixing information obtained as a result of observation.
A survey is a research method used to collect primary verbal information containing mass judgments of the studied individuals, their subjective assessments, opinions, and motives for activity. This is the main way to identify public opinion. There are two main types of surveys - questionnaires and interviews.
A questionnaire is a remote survey in which all respondents are offered a system of questions with or without possible answers in an identical printed form.
Interviewing is a face-to-face oral survey based on a developed list of questions.
Conversation is an empirical method that involves personal contact with the respondent.
Experiment is a general empirical method of research, which is based on strict control over the objects under study under controlled conditions. The experiment involves intervention in the natural conditions of the existence of objects and phenomena or the reproduction of certain aspects of them in specially created conditions.
Monitoring is a constant supervision, regular tracking of research results.
The method of expert assessments is a method of obtaining information about an object with the help of specialists - experts in a particular field. The opinion of a specialist (or a team of specialists) should be based on professional, scientific and practical experience. There are individual and collective expert assessments.
Methods of the theoretical level of research
The group of methods of the theoretical level of research includes: modeling, systematization, classification, formalization, ascent from the abstract to the concrete, axiomatic, historical, dialectical, activity, systemic, structural-functional and other methods.
Modeling is a theoretical research method involving the construction of a model (substitute) of real objects. A model is a mental or materially realized system that replaces another system with which it is in a state of similarity. The modeling method makes it possible to obtain information about various properties of the studied phenomena on the basis of experiments with models.
Systematization is a mental activity in the process of which the studied objects are organized into a certain system based on the chosen principle. The most important type of systematization is classification.
Classification is a theoretical method based on the ordering of the studied objects, facts, phenomena and their distribution into groups based on the establishment of similarities and differences between them (for example, the classification of animals, plants, chemical elements).
Formalization is a description of the content characteristics of an object and the processes occurring in it based on the creation of a generalized sign model (for example, using mathematical or logical symbols).
The ascent from the abstract to the concrete is a general form of the movement of scientific knowledge, the law of reflecting reality in thinking. A method according to which the process of cognition is divided into two relatively independent stages. At the first stage, there is a transition from sensory-concrete cognition of the object to its abstract definitions. A single object is divided, described with the help of many concepts and judgments, turning into a set of abstractions fixed by thinking. The second stage of the process of cognition is the ascent from the abstract to the concrete. Its essence lies in the movement of thought from the abstract definitions of the object to the concrete in cognition. At this stage, the original integrity of the object is restored, it is reproduced in thinking in all its concreteness and versatility.
Axiomatic method - a method of constructing a scientific theory, in which some statements (axioms) are accepted without proof and then used to obtain the rest of the knowledge according to certain logical rules.
In studies related to the study of the history of the development of the object under study, historical methods are widely used: historical-genetic, historical-comparative, historical-typological.
Historical-genetic method - a method that allows you to reveal the sequence of the historical development of the object under study (from its origins to the current state), to show cause-and-effect relationships and patterns of its historical movement.
Historical-comparative (or comparative-historical) method - a method in which a comparative analysis of historical phenomena is carried out, their similarities and differences, general and special, are revealed. (See Comparison method).
The historical-typological method is a method aimed at dividing (ordering) a set of objects or phenomena into qualitatively defined types (classes) based on their common essential features.
The dialectical method (dialectical methodology) is a method (methodology) of cognition of reality, the main principles of which are the recognition of development in all its infinite diversity and the universal connection of everything with everything. The main dialectical laws: the transition of quantitative changes into qualitative ones and vice versa; unity and struggle of opposites; denial of denial.
The activity method (activity methodology) is a widely used method (methodology), in which the object is comprehensively studied as a specific area of social (human) activity. At the same time, this type of activity is differentiated into parts, components (subject, object, processes, means, result, etc.) and types, varieties, distinguished according to various criteria.
System method (system methodology) - a method (methodology) that allows you to explore an object not as a set of disparate and isolated objects and phenomena, but as a systemic, holistic formation, that is, a complex of interrelated and interacting elements. The entry of these elements into the system gives them new, integrative qualities that are not inherent in them in their original, separate existence.
The structural-functional method consists in dividing the object under study into its constituent structural parts and identifying the internal connection, conditionality, the relationship between them, as well as determining their functions.
5. Quantitative and qualitative methods of scientific research
Quantitative methods are methods for analyzing phenomena and processes based on quantitative indicators. The most commonly used quantitative methods are statistical, bibliometric, content analysis, scientometric.
Statistical - a set of interrelated methods aimed at collecting, measuring and analyzing massive quantitative data. With the help of statistical methods, mass objects and phenomena are studied in order to obtain quantitative characteristics and identify general patterns by eliminating random features of individual single observations.
Bibliometric - a group of quantitative methods that study the structure, dynamics and relationships of various phenomena in the field of library, information and documentation activities. The composition of bibliometric methods includes the method of counting the number of publications, the method of analyzing literature citation (“citation index”), thesaurus, content analysis, etc. With the help of bibliometric methods, the dynamics of the development of documentary flows (by their types, types, topics, author composition) is studied. etc.); dynamics of indicators of use and negotiability of documents; the processes of citation of publications are studied; productive types of publications and the most developed thematic areas are identified; the degree of provision of certain areas of scientific research with fundamental works; the core of specialized publications is determined, according to which the acquisition of library collections is carried out in the future.
Content analysis is one of the bibliometric methods, which also has independent significance. It is used to study significant arrays of documents: printed works, normative-official, reporting and other documentation. The essence of the method lies in the fact that in the texts of documents certain semantic units (“observation units”) are distinguished, which can be the authors and titles of works, type of publication, release date, etc. A careful calculation of the identified units and the frequency of their use, with the obligatory consideration of the assessments that are given to them in the texts, makes it possible to identify development trends of various phenomena: the informational interest of various user groups in certain types, types, genres of documents, the level of information culture, the effectiveness of methods of working with consumers of documentary information, etc.
Scientometric methods are closely related to bibliometric methods and are used for the same purposes. However, the specificity of scientometrics lies in quantitative studies of the structure and dynamics of arrays and flows, not of all types of documentary information, but only of scientific information.
Qualitative research methods are methods aimed at obtaining such “qualitative data” that allow revealing the significance of certain social phenomena through an analysis of the structure and dynamics of public opinion. Qualitative methods, in particular, make it possible to explore the underlying mechanisms of the process of the influence of mass communication on individual consciousness and to see the patterns of perception of social information. Qualitative methods are most often used in sociological and marketing research.
The main methods of qualitative research include: in-depth interviews, expert interviews, focus group discussions (interviews), observation, experiment. Let's consider the main ones.
The most well-known and frequently used qualitative method is conducting an in-depth interview. In its process, questions are used, the answer to which is not supposed to be an unambiguous “yes” or “no”, but a detailed answer. An in-depth interview is an informal, free conversation conducted by the interviewer according to a predetermined plan and based on the use of techniques that encourage respondents to lengthy and detailed discussions on a range of issues of interest to the researcher. During the interview, the respondent's personal opinion, his/her beliefs, motivations and values are examined.
An expert interview is one of the varieties of an in-depth interview, its main feature is the status and competence of the respondent, who is an experienced participant in the problem under study. Experts are specialists who know the specific aspects of the phenomenon under study. In expert interviews, it is not so much the respondent himself that is important, but his expert knowledge in a particular area. In most cases, expert interviews are conducted with representatives of the executive and legislative authorities, scientists, employees of universities and research organizations, employees of non-governmental, private expert or consulting structures, members of expert councils, company executives, etc.
Focus group discussions (interviews) are one of the qualitative research methods. A focus group is a group of respondents (no more than 10-15 people) united to study a wide range of reactions, opinions and assessments regarding the phenomenon under study. The essence of the method lies in the fact that the attention of the participants is focused on the topic or object under study (government programs, socio-political problems, socio-economic situations, communication processes, goods, services, advertising). A focus group discussion or interview is aimed at determining the attitude of participants to a particular problem, obtaining information about their personal experience, priorities, perception of the object of study, drawing up a “portrait” of a particular social group. Focus group interviews are conducted in a free form according to a previously developed scenario. The participants are not familiar with the content of the script, it is known only to the moderator (leader), under whose leadership the discussion is taking place. The organization of the discussion in a relaxed atmosphere contributes to the activation of associative links in the minds of the participants. During focus group discussions, respondents communicate not only with the moderator, but also with each other, which is a source of information that often cannot be obtained in an individual interview.
The main difference between qualitative and quantitative methods is that in the first case, data are collected from a relatively small group of respondents and are not analyzed using statistics, while when using quantitative methods, a large group of people is studied, and the data is further analyzed using statistical methods. . However, quantitative and qualitative methods are not competitors, but rather two tools that complement each other. Qualitative methods make it possible to understand the essence of the problem, to formulate tasks and a conceptual apparatus for subsequent quantitative research.
6. Special (private scientific) methods of scientific research in the field of library, information and documentation activities
In addition to the listed groups of methods, there are also special methods of individual sciences (private scientific) - mathematical, political science, economic, sociological, psychological, pedagogical, cultural, linguistic, semiotic, etc.
The following special (private-scientific) library methods are widely used in library research: analysis of reader forms, bibliographic inquiry journals, reader surveys, sociological and quantitative methods for studying collections and readers, methods of library statistics, and others. Common research methods are also the source study method (the method of studying historical documentary sources of library subjects: archival materials, unpublished manuscripts, library reports for different periods of time, memoirs and diaries of librarians) and the bibliographic method (the method of bibliographic “folding” of information: bibliographic analysis, descriptions, classification of documents, etc.).
In scientific research on document management, special (private scientific) methods are also widely used: source study, archaeographic, analytical and synthetic processing of documents, etc. These methods are actively used by students in their graduation studies.
An indispensable method of research is the source study method - a method of studying historical documentary sources: archival and unpublished materials, reports of institutions, official regulatory and regulatory documentation, etc. Using this method, the following is carried out: determining the authenticity of the source (external or textual criticism), ascertaining the reliability information contained in it (internal criticism), establishing the time, place of creation of the source, analysis of its content, formal and qualitative characteristics, etc.
The archaeographic method is very close to the source study method. It is used in studies that require in-depth work with handwritten, written sources: identifying and collecting historical documentary monuments, developing methods for their publication, developing rules for the scientific-critical publication of sources, etc.
Methods of analytical and synthetic processing of documents - a group of methods by which information analysis, description, summarizing, systematization, classification, codification of documents, etc. are carried out.
Ultimately, the choice of method is dictated by many factors, the most important of which are: the correspondence of the method's capabilities to solving research problems, heuristics (the quality that provides the most optimal result), simplicity and accessibility for the researcher. In order to comprehensively study the subject in scientific (including diploma) research, as a rule, a complex of various methods is used.
library empirical private scientific documentation
Literature
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2. Goneev A.D. Fundamentals of correctional pedagogy / Ed. V.A. Slastenin. - M.: Academy, 2007.
History of Pedagogy and Education. From the origin of education in primitive society to the end of the twentieth century: / Ed. acad. RAO A.I. Piskunov. - M.: TC "Sphere", 2008.
Kraevsky V.V. Methodology of pedagogy: a new stage: Proc. allowance for students of higher education. textbook institutions / V.V. Kraevsky, E.V. Berezhnova. - M.: Academy, 2009.
Mizherikov V.A. Introduction to pedagogical activity / V.A. Mizherikov, T.A. Yuzefavicius. - M.: Rospedagency, 2009.
Mudrik A.V. Social Pedagogy: Proc. for students ped. universities / A.V. Mudrik / Ed. V.A. Slastenin. - M.: Academy, 2007.
Orlov A.A. Introduction to pedagogical activity: Workshop: Textbook.-method. settlement / A.A. Orlov, A.S. Agafonov. Ed. A.A. Orlov. - M.: Academy, 2007.
Pedagogy: Proc. allowance for students. higher ped. textbook institutions / Ed. P.I. piddly. - M.: Ped. Society of Russia, 2009.
Pedagogical Encyclopedic Dictionary / Ch. ed. B.M. Bim-Bad. - M., 2007.
Pedagogical technologies: Textbook for students of pedagogical specialties / Ed. V.S. Kukushina. - M.: ICC "Mart"; Rostov n / a: ICC "Mart", 2008.
Pityukov V.Yu. Fundamentals of pedagogical technology. Teaching aid. - M .: Publishing house "Gnome and D", 2007.
Robotova A.S. Introduction to pedagogical activity / Robotova A.S., Leontieva T.V., Shaposhnikova I.G. etc. - M.: Academy, 2009. - 208 p.
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The methodology and methods of scientific research are aimed at the knowledge of objective reality. At the same time, they represent a specific sequence of operations, techniques, and actions. They differ depending on what the objects under study contain. It should be borne in mind that in this case, the methodology is nothing more than the application of general theories, principles aimed at solving the problems of a particular science, research tasks.
At present, sciences have a fairly large number of methods of scientific research. The classification of scientific research methods is carried out on various grounds.
Methodology and are classified by scientific fields: biological, mathematical, socio-economic, medical, legal, etc.
In accordance with the level of knowledge, methods of theoretical, empirical, metatheoretical levels are differentiated.
There are methods for quantitative and qualitative processing of the obtained data, for example, factorial, correlation, or presentation in the form of graphs, tables, charts, histograms, etc.
The classification of scientific research methods according to the nature of the researcher's actions contains four groups:
1) empirical, including self-observation and observation; experimental and psychodiagnostic, containing questionnaires, testing, conversation, interviewing and sociometry; praximetric methods - cyclography, chronometry, professiographic description and evaluation of works; biographical, based on the analysis of facts, testimonies, events, dates of a person's life and the modeling method;
2) organizational methods: complex, longitudinal, comparative;
3) interpretive methods, in particular, the structural and genetic method;
4) methods of qualitative and quantitative analysis.
However, the methodology and methods of scientific research is traditionally carried out based on the level of scientific knowledge - empirical or theoretical. At the same time, research methods are distinguished accordingly.
Methodology and directly depend on the degree of generality and scope. In accordance with these, methods are distinguished:
1) philosophical (universal), which operate at any stage of knowledge and in all sciences;
2) general scientific, applied in natural, humanitarian and technical sciences;
3) private, used for the study of related sciences;
4) special, applicable to a specific area of scientific knowledge.
What are the methods of scientific research in psychology in particular? The main methods include experiment and observation, and the auxiliary methods include analysis of the results of activities and communication. How to determine which methods of scientific research in psychology should be rationally applied? The decision in each case is made individually. It all depends on the object and objectives of the study. It should be noted that, as a rule, not one specific method is used, but several methods in combination. Moreover, each of the methods mutually controls and complements each other.
By observation is meant a method consisting in a purposeful, systematic and deliberate perception and fixation of manifestations of behavior in order to obtain conclusions about the mental, subjective phenomena of the observed.
Experiment - differs from observation in that it is carried out within the framework of a specially created research situation with active intervention in it with systematic manipulation of variable factors and registration of the resulting changes in the behavior of the subject.
Questionnaire conversations are associated with the collection of verbal testimonies of the subjects and their subsequent analysis.
MINISTRY OF EDUCATION AND SCIENCE OF UKRAINE
TAVRICHESKY NATIONAL UNIVERSITY them. IN AND. VERNADSKY
Faculty of Economics
Department of Finance
Extramural
Discipline: "Methods of scientific research"
on the topic: "The concept of the method and methodology of scientific research"
Simferopol, 2009
1. The essence of scientific knowledge. The concept of research method and scientific method
2. The concept of methodology
3. Philosophical and general scientific methods of scientific research
4. Private and special methods of scientific research
List of sources used
The essence of scientific knowledge. The concept of research method and scientific method
Science is the same area of professional human activity, like any other - pedagogical, industrial, etc. The only specific quality of science is that if in other branches of human activity the knowledge obtained by science is used, then science is the area of activity where the main goal is to obtain scientific knowledge itself.
The science and is defined as a sphere of human activity, the function of which is the development and theoretical systematization of objective knowledge about reality.
Science as a phenomenon is an extremely multifaceted phenomenon. In any case, speaking of science, it is necessary to keep in mind at least three of its main aspects, in each case clearly distinguishing what is at stake:
science as a social institution (a community of scientists, a set of scientific institutions and scientific service structures);
science as a result (scientific knowledge);
science as a process (scientific activity).
"The unity of all science," wrote Karl Pearson in his Grammar of Science, "is only in its method, and not in its material." Generally speaking, the scientific method is a continuous process of testing, changing and developing ideas and theories in accordance with the available evidence. To a certain extent, the scientific method is simply an extension of the ordinary rational approach based on common sense.
The direction of scientific research, of course, to a large extent depends on the range of interests of individual scientists and their curiosity, but various social factors are no less important. The availability of money and scientific equipment, the atmosphere conducive to scientific research, the needs of society - all this to a large extent determines what problems need to be addressed and what - not. All these questions go beyond the discussion of the scientific method as such.
The scientific method is the main and most powerful means of rational knowledge. However, it is only a means to an end. And goals are not chosen on a rational basis.
Considering in detail the application of the scientific method in any situation, a number of clearly distinguishable and interrelated stages can be distinguished. The first stage is the stage of observations, which can be called "natural-historical". At this stage, there is simply an accumulation of a huge mass of heterogeneous material, the nature of which mainly depends on the random interests of one or several researchers; part of it is based on accurate measurements, and the other part is only sketchy descriptive data. Then an attempt is made to systematize the available facts and, perhaps, to obtain some systematic description of the entire body of data.
People are accustomed to equate the concepts of "knowledge" and "science", so that they do not think of any other knowledge than scientific. What is its essence and features? The essence of the scientific method can be explained quite simply: this method allows you to get such knowledge about the phenomena that you can check, save and transfer to another. It follows from this that science does not study all kinds of phenomena in general, but only those of them that are repeated. Its main task is to find the laws according to which these phenomena proceed.
At different times, science has achieved this goal in different ways. The ancient Greeks carefully observed the phenomena and then, with the help of speculation, tried to penetrate into the harmony of nature by the power of the intellect, relying only on the sensory data accumulated in memory. During the Renaissance, it became obvious that the goal could not be achieved only with the help of the five senses - it was necessary to invent devices that are nothing more than a continuation and deepening of our senses. At the same time, two questions immediately arose: how much can one trust the readings of the instruments and how to save the information obtained with their help. The second problem was soon solved by the invention of the printing press and by the consistent application of mathematics to the natural sciences. It turned out to be much more difficult to resolve the first question - about the reliability of knowledge obtained with the help of instruments. In essence, it has not been finally resolved so far, and the whole history of the scientific method is the history of the constant deepening and modification of this issue. Pretty soon, scientists realized that the readings of the instruments, as a rule, can be trusted, that is, they reflect something real in nature that exists independently of the instruments. Over time, knowledge improves and allows scientists to correctly predict the more subtle phenomena of nature.
The facts and concepts of science may seem random, if only because they were established at random times by random people and often under random circumstances. But taken together, they form a single natural system in which the number of connections is so large that it is impossible to replace a single link in it without affecting all the others. Under the pressure of new facts, this system is constantly changing and being refined, but never loses its integrity and original completeness. Taken as a whole, the system of scientific concepts is the product of a long evolution: over the course of many years, the old links in it were replaced by new, more advanced ones, and completely new concepts always arose taking into account and on the basis of the former ones.
Science (in the current sense of the word) has existed for no more than 300-400 years. In such an insignificant period of time, it completely changed the way of life of civilized peoples, their attitude to the world, their way of thinking and even moral categories. Modern science is developing at a very fast pace, at present the volume of scientific knowledge is doubling every 10-15 years. About 90% of all scientists who have ever lived on Earth are our contemporaries. The whole world around us shows what progress humanity has made. It was science that was the main reason for such a rapidly flowing scientific and technological revolution, the transition to a post-industrial society, the widespread introduction of information technologies, the emergence of a “new economy”, for which the laws of classical economic theory do not apply, the beginning of the transfer of human knowledge into an electronic form, so convenient for storage, systematization, search and processing, and many others. All this convincingly proves that the main form of human knowledge - science today is becoming more and more significant and essential part of reality. However, science would not be so productive if it did not have such a developed system of methods, principles and imperatives of knowledge inherent in it. It is the correctly chosen method, along with the talent of a scientist, that helps him to understand the deep connection of phenomena, reveal their essence, discover laws and patterns. The number of methods that science develops to understand reality is constantly increasing. Their exact number is perhaps difficult to determine. After all, there are about 15,000 sciences in the world, and each of them has its own specific methods and subject of research. At the same time, all these methods are in dialectical connection with general scientific methods, which they usually contain in various combinations and with the general, dialectical method. This circumstance is one of the reasons that determine the importance of having philosophical knowledge in any scientist. After all, it is philosophy as the science “about the most general laws of the existence and development of the world” that studies the trends and ways of developing scientific knowledge, its structure and research methods, considering them through the prism of its categories, laws and principles. In addition to everything, philosophy endows the scientist with that universal method, without which it is impossible to do without in any field of scientific knowledge.
The main features of scientific knowledge are:
1. The main task of scientific knowledge is to discover the objective laws of reality - natural, social (social), the laws of knowledge itself, thinking, etc. individual - general and on this basis carries out the prediction of various phenomena and events. Scientific knowledge strives to reveal the necessary, objective connections that are fixed as objective laws. If this is not the case, then there is no science, because the very concept of scientificity presupposes the discovery of laws, a deepening into the essence of the phenomena being studied.
2. The immediate goal and highest value of scientific knowledge is objective truth, comprehended primarily by rational means and methods, but, of course, not without the participation of living contemplation. Hence, a characteristic feature of scientific knowledge is objectivity, the elimination, if possible, of subjectivistic moments in many cases in order to realize the "purity" of considering one's subject. Even Einstein wrote: "What we call science has as its exclusive task to firmly establish what is." Its task is to give a true reflection of the processes, an objective picture of what is. At the same time, it must be borne in mind that the activity of the subject is the most important condition and prerequisite for scientific knowledge. The latter is impossible without a constructive-critical attitude to reality, excluding inertia, dogmatism, and apologetics.
3. Science, to a greater extent than other forms of knowledge, is focused on being embodied in practice, being a “guide to action” in changing the surrounding reality and managing real processes. The vital meaning of scientific research can be expressed by the formula: "To know in order to foresee, to foresee in order to practically act" - not only in the present, but also in the future. The whole progress of scientific knowledge is connected with the increase in the power and range of scientific foresight. It is foresight that makes it possible to control processes and manage them. Scientific knowledge opens up the possibility of not only foreseeing the future, but also its conscious formation. “The orientation of science to the study of objects that can be included in activity (either actually or potentially, as possible objects of its future development), and their study as obeying the objective laws of functioning and development, is one of the most important features of scientific knowledge. This feature distinguishes it from other forms of human cognitive activity. An essential feature of modern science is that it has become such a force that predetermines practice. Many modern manufacturing processes were born in scientific laboratories. Thus, modern science not only serves the needs of production, but also increasingly acts as a prerequisite for the technical revolution. Great discoveries over the past decades in the leading fields of knowledge have led to a scientific and technological revolution that has embraced all elements of the production process: comprehensive automation and mechanization, the development of new types of energy, raw materials and materials, penetration into the microcosm and space. As a result, the prerequisites for the gigantic development of the productive forces of society were formed.
4. Scientific knowledge in epistemological terms is a complex contradictory process of reproduction of knowledge that forms an integral developing system of concepts, theories, hypotheses, laws and other ideal forms fixed in a language - natural or - more characteristically - artificial (mathematical symbolism, chemical formulas, etc.). .P.). Scientific knowledge does not simply fix its elements, but continuously reproduces them on its own basis, forms them in accordance with its own norms and principles. In the development of scientific knowledge, revolutionary periods alternate, the so-called scientific revolutions, which lead to a change in theories and principles, and evolutionary, calm periods, during which knowledge is deepened and detailed. The process of continuous self-renewal by science of its conceptual arsenal is an important indicator of scientific character.
5. In the process of scientific knowledge, such specific material means as instruments, tools, and other so-called "scientific equipment" are used, which are often very complex and expensive (synchrophasotrons, radio telescopes, rocket and space technology, etc.). In addition, science, to a greater extent than other forms of cognition, is characterized by the use of such ideal (spiritual) means and methods for the study of its objects and itself as modern logic, mathematical methods, dialectics, systemic, hypothetical-deductive and other general scientific methods. and methods (see more on this below).
6. Scientific knowledge is characterized by strict evidence, the validity of the results obtained, the reliability of the conclusions. At the same time, there are many hypotheses, conjectures, assumptions, probabilistic judgments, etc. That is why the logical and methodological training of researchers, their philosophical culture, the constant improvement of their thinking, the ability to correctly apply its laws and principles are of paramount importance here.
The concept of method (from the Greek word "methodos" - the path to something) means a set of techniques and operations for the practical and theoretical development of reality.
The method equips a person with a system of principles, requirements, rules, guided by which he can achieve the intended goal. Possession of the method means for a person the knowledge of how, in what sequence to perform certain actions to solve certain problems, and the ability to apply this knowledge in practice.
The method (in one form or another) is reduced to a set of certain rules, techniques, methods, norms of cognition and action. It is a system of prescriptions, principles, requirements that guide the subject in solving a specific problem, achieving a certain result in a given field of activity. It disciplines the search for truth, allows (if correct) to save time and effort, to move towards the goal in the shortest way. The main function of the method is the regulation of cognitive and other forms of activity. Research methods are divided into empirical (empirical - literally - perceived through the senses) and theoretical.
Regarding research methods, the following circumstance should be noted. In the literature on epistemology and methodology, there is a kind of double division, a division of scientific methods, in particular, theoretical methods, everywhere. Thus, the dialectical method, theory (when it acts as a method - see below), the identification and resolution of contradictions, the construction of hypotheses, etc. It is customary to call them, without explaining why (at least, the authors of such explanations could not be found in the literature), methods of cognition. And such methods as analysis and synthesis, comparison, abstraction and concretization, etc., that is, the main mental operations, are methods of theoretical research.
A similar division takes place with empirical research methods. So, V.I. Zagvyazinsky divides empirical research methods into two groups:
1. Working, private methods. These include: the study of literature, documents and results of activities; observation; survey (oral and written); method of expert assessments, testing.
2. Complex, general methods, which are based on the use of one or more private methods: survey; monitoring; study and generalization of experience; experimental work; experiment.
There are certain approaches to the classification of the research method (Fig. 1.).
Rice. 1 - Approaches to the classification of the research method
The methods of the empirical level include observation, description, comparison, counting, measurement, questionnaire, interview, testing, experiment, modeling, etc. The methods of the theoretical level include axiomatic, hypothetical, formalization, abstraction, general logical methods (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy), etc. The methods of the metatheoretical level are dialectical, metaphysical, hermeneutic, etc. Some scientists refer to this level the method of system analysis and others include it among the general logical methods.
Depending on the scope and degree of generality, methods are distinguished (Fig. 2.).
Rice. 2 - Classification of the research method depending on the scope
a) general methods relate to any subject of nature, any science. These are various forms of the dialectical method, which makes it possible to link together all aspects of the process of cognition, all its stages, for example, the method of ascent from the abstract to the concrete, etc.
b) Special methods do not concern its subject as a whole, but only one of its aspects (phenomena, essence, quantitative side, structural connections) or a certain method of research: analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction. Special methods are: observation, experiment, comparison and, as a special case, measurement.
c) Private methods are special methods that operate either only within a particular industry, or outside the industry where they originated. Thus, the methods of physics led to the creation of astrophysics, crystal physics, geophysics, chemical physics and physical chemistry, and biophysics. The spread of chemical methods led to the creation of crystal chemistry, geochemistry, biochemistry and biogeochemistry. Often a complex of interrelated particular methods is applied to the study of one subject, for example, molecular biology simultaneously uses the methods of physics, mathematics, chemistry, and cybernetics in their interconnection.
In the course of progress, methods can move from a lower category to a higher one: particular - turn into special, special - into general.
There is a whole field of knowledge that is specifically concerned with the study of methods and which is usually called methodology. Methodology literally means "the doctrine of methods" (because this term comes from two Greek words: "methodos" - method and "logos" - teaching). Each science uses different methods, which depend on the nature of the problems solved in it. However, the peculiarity of scientific methods lies in the fact that they are relatively independent of the type of problems, but they are dependent on the level and depth of scientific research, which is manifested primarily in their role in research processes.
The method of scientific research is a way of knowing objective reality. The method is a certain sequence of actions, techniques, operations.
From the considered concept of method, it is necessary to delimit the concepts of technology, procedure and methodology of scientific research.
Under the research technique is understood a set of special techniques for using a particular method, and under the research procedure - a certain sequence of actions, a method of organizing research.
Methodology is a set of methods and techniques of cognition. For example, the methodology of criminological research is understood as a system of methods, techniques, means of collecting, processing, analyzing and evaluating information about crime, its causes and conditions, the personality of the offender and other criminological phenomena.
2. The concept and essence of the methodology
Any scientific research is carried out by certain methods and methods, according to certain rules. The doctrine of the system of these techniques, methods and rules is called methodology. However, the concept of "methodology" in the literature is used in two meanings:
1) a set of methods used in any field of activity (science, politics, etc.);
2) the doctrine of the scientific method of cognition.
Consider modern general definitions of methodology (Table 1).
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"Methodology (from "method" and "logy") - the doctrine of the structure, logical organization, methods and means of activity" |
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“Methodology is a system of principles and methods for organizing and constructing theoretical and practical activities, as well as the doctrine of this system” |
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"The doctrine of the methods of activity (method and "logos" - teaching)" |
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“Methodology - 1) a set of research methods used in any science; 2) the doctrine of the method of cognition and transformation of the world " |
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“The concept of “methodology” has two main meanings: a system of certain methods and techniques used in a particular field of activity (science, politics, art, etc.); the doctrine of this system, the general theory of the method, the theory in action" |
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“The main goal of the methodology of science is the study of those methods, means and techniques by which new knowledge in science is acquired and substantiated. But, in addition to this main task, methodology also studies the structure of scientific knowledge in general, the place and role of various forms of cognition in it, and methods for analyzing and building various systems of scientific knowledge. |
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"Methodology is a discipline about the general principles and forms of organization of thinking and activity" |
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General approach to solving problems of a particular class |
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V.V. Kraevsky) |
Methodology as a way, means of communication between science and practice |
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ON THE. Masyukov, groups of specialists began to form, calling themselves "methodologists", and their scientific direction of "systemic activity" methodology. These groups of methodologists (O.S. Anisimov, Yu.V. Gromyko, P.G. Shchedrovitsky, etc.) began to conduct "organizational and activity games" with teams of workers, first in the field of education, then agriculture, with political scientists, etc. .d., aimed at comprehending innovative activity, which brought them quite wide popularity. In parallel with this, the publications of scientists began to appear in the press, devoted to the analysis and scientific substantiation of innovative activity - in education, in engineering, in economics, etc. . In recent years, the term “methodology” has spread among programmers in a completely new “sound”. By methodology, programmers began to understand one or another type of strategy, that is, one or another general method for creating computer programs. So, along with the methodology of research activities, a new direction began to form - the methodology of practical activity. Methodology is the doctrine of the organization of activities. Such a definition unambiguously determines the subject of the methodology - the organization of activities. It is necessary to consider the content of the concept of "organization". In accordance with the definition given in, organization - 1) internal order, consistency in the interaction of more or less differentiated and autonomous parts of the whole, due to its structure; 2) a set of processes or actions leading to the formation and improvement of relationships between parts of the whole; 3) an association of people who jointly implement a certain program or goal and act on the basis of certain procedures and rules. Note that not every activity needs organization, the application of methodology. As you know, human activity can be divided into reproductive and productive activities (see, for example,). Reproductive activity is a cast, a copy from the activity of another person, or a copy of one's own activity, mastered in previous experience. Productive activity aimed at obtaining an objectively new or subjectively new result. In the case of productive activity, it becomes necessary to organize it, that is, it becomes necessary to apply the methodology. Based on the classification of activities according to the target orientation: game-learning-work, then we can talk about the following focus of the methodology: Game activity methodologies Methodologies of educational activity; Methodology of labor, professional activity. Thus, the methodology considers the organization of activity (activity is a purposeful activity of a person). To organize an activity means to streamline it into an integral system with clearly defined characteristics, a logical structure and the process of its implementation - a temporal structure (the authors proceed from a pair of categories of dialectics "historical (temporal) and logical"). The logical structure includes the following components: subject, object, object, forms, means, methods of activity, its result. External in relation to this structure are the following characteristics of activity: features, principles, conditions, norms. The methodology structure diagram contains the following major components (Fig. 5).
General scheme of the structure of the methodology Rice. 5 - General outline of the structure of the methodology Such an understanding and construction of methodology allows us to generalize from a unified position and in a single logic the various approaches and interpretations of the concept of “methodology” available in the literature and its use in a wide variety of activities. Each science has its own methodology. Ultimately, both lawyers and philosophers under the methodology of scientific research understand the doctrine of the methods (method) of cognition, i.e. about the system of principles, rules, methods and techniques intended for the successful solution of cognitive tasks. Accordingly, the methodology of legal science can be defined as the doctrine of the methods of research of state-legal phenomena. There are the following levels of methodology (Table 2.). Table 2 - Basic level methodologies 3. Philosophical and general scientific methods of scientific research Among the universal (philosophical) methods, the most famous are dialectical and metaphysical. When studying objects and phenomena, dialectics recommends proceeding from the following principles (Fig. 6.).
Rice. 6 - Compliance with the principles of dialectics in scientific research All general scientific methods in scientific research should be divided into three groups (Fig. 7).
Rice. 7 - Classification of general scientific methods of scientific research General logical methods are analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy. We present a detailed description of the general logical research methods in Table 3. Table 3 - Characteristics of general logical research methods
The methods of the theoretical level include axiomatic, hypothetical, formalization, abstraction, generalization, ascent from the abstract to the concrete, historical, method of system analysis. We present the characteristics of the essential content of these methods in Table 4. Table 4 - Characteristics of theoretical level methods
The empirical level methods include: observation, description, calculation, measurement, comparison, experiment, modeling. We characterize the essence of these methods using Table 5. Table 5 - Characteristics of empirical level methods
4. Private and special methods of scientific research There are private and special methods of scientific research. Private, as a rule, are used in related sciences, have specific features that depend on the object and conditions of knowledge. Special research methods are used only in one branch of scientific knowledge or their application is limited to several narrow areas of knowledge. For example, private methods of state science and jurisprudence are: 1) formal legal (special legal); 2) concrete sociological. The formal legal method is a special system of methods and techniques for studying state-legal phenomena. It includes: a) description of the rules of law; b) establishment of legal signs of certain phenomena; c) development of legal concepts; d) classification of legal concepts; e) establishing their nature from the point of view of the provisions of legal science; f) their explanation from the point of view of legal theories; g) description, analysis and generalization of legal practice. This method is also applicable in the study of the forms of the state, determining the competence of its bodies, etc. Concrete sociological methods are based on the application of the methods of concrete sociology to the study of state-legal phenomena. Concrete sociological research is the scientific study, analysis and systematization of social facts, phenomena and processes related to various spheres of society. The methods of specific sociological research include: the study of documents (documentary method), surveys in the form of questionnaires and interviews, the method of expert assessments, and others. Of great importance are not only methods for obtaining information about phenomena, but also methods for collecting, processing and evaluating them. In this regard, in sociology, for example, the following methods are distinguished: registration of single events (observation, survey, study of documents, etc.); data collection (continuous, sample or monographic survey); data processing and analysis (description and classification, typology, system analysis, statistical analysis, etc.). Consider the essence of the most common methods of concrete sociological research of phenomena with the help of Table 6. Table 6 - The essence of common methods of sociological research
When conducting specific sociological studies of phenomena, other methods are also used: sociometry, tests, biographical, psychological and logical-mathematical. List of sources used Archibald R.S. Management of high-tech programs and projects. – M.: DMK Press, 2002. Bezrukova V.S. Pedagogy. Projective Pedagogy. - Yekaterinburg: Business book, 1996. Great Soviet Encyclopedia. 3rd edition. - M.: Soviet Encyclopedia, 1968-1979. Descartes R. Reasoning about the method. Beginnings of philosophy. – M.: Vezha, 1998. Kagan M.S. Human activity. – M.: Politizdat, 1974. Kanke V.A. Basic philosophical directions and concepts of science. Results of the XX century. - M.: Logos, 2000.
Kotarbinsky T. Treatise on good work. Per. from Polish. - M.: Economics, 1975. Kochergin A.N. Methods and forms of knowledge. – M.: Nauka, 1990. Kraevsky V.V. Methodology of scientific research: A manual for students and graduate students of humanitarian universities. - St. Petersburg: St. Petersburg. GUP, 2001. Kraevsky V.V., Polonsky V.M. Methodology for the teacher: theory and practice. - Volgograd: Change, 2001. Leshkevich T.G. "Philosophy of Science: Traditions and Innovations" M.: PRIOR, 2001 Masyukova N.A. Design in education. - Minsk: Technoprint, 1999. Methodological problems of modern science. – M.: Nauka, 1978. Methodology: yesterday, today, tomorrow. In 3 vols. ed.-st. Krylov G.G., Khromchenko M.S. - M .: Publishing house of the School of Cultural Policy, 2005. Nikitin V.A. Organizational types of modern culture: abstract of diss. Doctor of Cultural Studies. - Togliatti, 1998. New Philosophical Encyclopedia: In 4 volumes - M .: Thought, 2000. Novikov A.M., Novikov D.A. Methodology. Moscow: Sinteg, 2007. Novikov A.M., Novikov D.A. Educational project / Methodology of practical educational activities. – M.: Egves, 2004. Novikov A.M. Russian Education in the New Era: Paradoxes of Heritage; development vectors. – M.: Egves, 2000. Fundamentals of Philosophy of Science: Textbook for Postgraduate Students / V.P. Kokhanovsky and others - Ed. 2nd. - Rostov n / a: Phoenix, 2005. Ruzavin G.I. Methodology of scientific research: Proc. Allowance for universities. – M.: UNITI-DANA, 1999. Soviet encyclopedic dictionary. - M .: Great Russian Encyclopedia, 2002. Philosophy//under. ed. Kokhanovsky V.P. Rostov - n / a.: Phoenix, 2000 Philosophical Dictionary. Ed. MM. Rosenthal. Ed. third. - M .: Publishing house of political literature, 1972. Philosophical encyclopedic dictionary. – M.: Sov. Encyclopedia, 1983. Shchedrovitsky P.G. To the analysis of the topic of organizational and activity games. – Pushchino, 1987. scientific research. CONCEPTS METHOD And METHODOLOGIES SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH Method scientific research ...2.1. General scientific methods 5 2.2. Methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge. 7
1. The concept of methodology and method. Any scientific research is carried out by certain methods and methods, according to certain rules. The doctrine of the system of these techniques, methods and rules is called methodology. However, the concept of "methodology" in the literature is used in two meanings: 1) a set of methods used in any field of activity (science, politics, etc.); 2) the doctrine of the scientific method of cognition. Methodology (from "method" and "logy") - the doctrine of the structure, logical organization, methods and means of activity. A method is a set of techniques or operations of practical or theoretical activity. The method can also be characterized as a form of theoretical and practical development of reality, based on the laws of behavior of the object under study. Methods of scientific knowledge include the so-called general methods, i.e. universal methods of thinking, general scientific methods and methods of specific sciences. Methods can also be classified according to the ratio of empirical knowledge (i.e. knowledge obtained as a result of experience, experimental knowledge) and theoretical knowledge, the essence of which is the knowledge of the essence of phenomena, their internal connections. The classification of methods of scientific knowledge is presented in fig. 1.2. Each industry applies its specific scientific, special methods, due to the essence of the object of study. However, often the methods characteristic of a particular science are used in other sciences. This happens because the objects of study of these sciences are also subject to the laws of this science. For example, physical and chemical research methods are used in biology on the basis that the objects of biological research include in one form or another the physical and chemical forms of the movement of matter and, therefore, are subject to physical and chemical laws. There are two universal methods in the history of knowledge: dialectical and metaphysical. These are general philosophical methods. The dialectical method is a method of cognition of reality in its inconsistency, integrity and development. The metaphysical method is a method opposite to the dialectical one, considering phenomena outside their mutual connection and development. From the middle of the 19th century, the metaphysical method was more and more displaced from natural science by the dialectical method. 2. Methods of scientific knowledge 2.1. General scientific methods The ratio of general scientific methods can also be represented in the form of a diagram (Fig. 2).  Brief description of these methods. Analysis is the mental or real decomposition of an object into its constituent parts. Synthesis is the unification of the elements known as a result of analysis into a single whole. Generalization - the process of mental transition from the individual to the general, from the less general to the more general, for example: the transition from the judgment "this metal conducts electricity" to the judgment "all metals conduct electricity", from the judgment: "the mechanical form of energy turns into heat" to to the proposition “every form of energy is converted into thermal energy”. Abstraction (idealization) - the mental introduction of certain changes in the object under study in accordance with the objectives of the study. As a result of idealization, some properties, features of objects that are not essential for this study may be excluded from consideration. An example of such an idealization in mechanics is a material point, i.e. a point that has mass but no dimensions. The same abstract (ideal) object is an absolutely rigid body. Induction is the process of deriving a general position from the observation of a number of particular single facts, i.e. knowledge from the particular to the general. In practice, incomplete induction is most often used, which involves the conclusion about all the objects of the set based on the knowledge of only a part of the objects. Incomplete induction based on experimental research and including theoretical justification is called scientific induction. The conclusions of such induction are often probabilistic. This is a risky but creative method. With a strict formulation of the experiment, logical sequence and rigor of conclusions, it is able to give a reliable conclusion. According to the famous French physicist Louis de Broglie, scientific induction is the true source of truly scientific progress. Deduction is the process of analytical reasoning from the general to the particular or less general. It is closely related to generalization. If the initial general propositions are an established scientific truth, then the true conclusion will always be obtained by deduction. The deductive method is especially important in mathematics. Mathematicians operate with mathematical abstractions and build their reasoning on general principles. These general provisions apply to solving particular, specific problems. Analogy is a probable, plausible conclusion about the similarity of two objects or phenomena in some feature, based on their established similarity in other features. The analogy with the simple allows us to understand the more complex. So, by analogy with the artificial selection of the best breeds of domestic animals, Charles Darwin discovered the law of natural selection in the animal and plant world. Modeling is the reproduction of the properties of the object of knowledge on its specially arranged analogue - the model. Models can be real (material), for example, aircraft models, building models, photographs, prostheses, dolls, etc. and ideal (abstract) created by the means of the language (both natural human language and special languages, for example, the language of mathematics. In this case, we have a mathematical model. Usually this is a system of equations that describes the relationships in the system under study. The historical method implies the reproduction of the history of the object under study in all its versatility, taking into account all the details and accidents. The logical method is, in fact, the logical reproduction of the history of the object under study. At the same time, this history is freed from everything accidental, insignificant, i.e. it is, as it were, the same historical method, but liberated from its historical form. Classification - the distribution of certain objects into classes (departments, categories) depending on their common features, fixing regular connections between classes of objects in a single system of a particular branch of knowledge. The formation of each science is associated with the creation of classifications of the studied objects, phenomena. 2. 2 Methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge. The methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge are schematically presented in Fig.3.  observation. Observation is a sensual reflection of objects and phenomena of the external world. This is the initial method of empirical knowledge, which allows obtaining some primary information about the objects of the surrounding reality. Scientific observation is characterized by a number of features: purposefulness (observation should be carried out to solve the task of the study); regularity (observation should be carried out strictly according to the plan drawn up on the basis of the research task); activity (the researcher must actively search, highlight the moments he needs in the observed phenomenon). Scientific observations are always accompanied by a description of the object of knowledge. The latter is necessary to fix the technical properties, aspects of the object under study, which constitute the subject of the study. Descriptions of the results of observations form the empirical basis of science, based on which researchers create empirical generalizations, compare the studied objects according to certain parameters, classify them according to some properties, characteristics, and find out the sequence of stages of their formation and development. According to the method of conducting observations, they can be direct and indirect. With direct observation, certain properties, sides of the object are reflected, perceived by the human senses. At present, direct visual observation is widely used in space research as an important method of scientific knowledge. Visual observations from a manned orbital station are the simplest and most effective method for studying the parameters of the atmosphere, land surface and ocean from space in the visible range. From the orbit of an artificial satellite of the Earth, the human eye can confidently determine the boundaries of cloud cover, types of clouds, the boundaries of the removal of muddy river waters into the sea, etc. However, most often the observation is indirect, that is, it is carried out using certain technical means. If, for example, before the beginning of the 17th century, astronomers observed celestial bodies with the naked eye, then the invention by Galileo in 1608 of an optical telescope raised astronomical observations to a new, much higher level. Observations can often play an important heuristic role in scientific knowledge. In the process of observation, completely new phenomena can be discovered, allowing one or another scientific hypothesis to be substantiated. From all of the above, it follows that observations are a very important method of empirical knowledge, providing the collection of extensive information about the world around us.
FOUR LEVELS OF GENERALITY OF RESEARCH: 1. Industry-wide level of significance - works whose results have an impact on the entire field of a particular science 2. Disciplinary level of significance characterizes research, the results of which contribute to the development of individual scientific disciplines 3. General problem level of significance have studies, results which change the existing scientific ideas on a number of important problems within the same discipline
PHASES STAGES STAGES Design phase Conceptual stage Identification of contradiction Formulation of the problem Definition of the purpose of the study Choice of criteria Stage of modeling (building a hypothesis) 1. Building a hypothesis; 2. Refinement (concretization) of the hypothesis. Research design stage 1. Decomposition (determination of research objectives); 2. Research conditions (resource opportunities); 3. Building a research program. Stage of technological preparation of the study Technological phase Stage of the study Theoretical stage Empirical stage Stage of registration of the results 1. Approbation of the results; 2. Registration of results. Reflexive phase
FORMULATION OF THE PROBLEM A scientific problem is understood as such a question, the answer to which is not contained in the scientific knowledge accumulated by society. A problem is a specific form of organization of knowledge, the object of which is not the immediate objective reality, but the state of scientific knowledge about this reality.
SUB-STAGES OF FORMULATION OF THE PROBLEM 1. Statement of the problem - statement of questions. Isolation of the central problematic issue. 2. Assessment of the problem - determination of the necessary conditions, resource provision, research methods. 3. Substantiation of the problem - proof of the need to solve it, the scientific and / or practical value of the expected results. 4. Structuring the problem - decomposition - the search for additional questions (sub-questions), without which it is impossible to get an answer to the central - problematic - question.
OBJECT AND SUBJECT OF STUDY The object of research is that which opposes the cognizing subject in his cognitive activity - that is, it is that part of the surrounding reality with which the researcher is dealing. The subject of research is that side, that aspect, that point of view, “projection”, from which the researcher cognizes the integral object, while highlighting the main, most significant (from the researcher’s point of view) features of the object.
NEW RESULTS CAN BE OBTAINED: 1. A new (indicated by shading in the figure) subject area (Fig. a) has been investigated; 2. New technologies were applied to the previously studied subject area - methods or means of cognition (Fig. b) 3. At the same time, a new subject area is being explored using new technologies (Fig. c). The option (Fig. d) is fundamentally impossible!
REGULARITY: THE BROADER THE SUBJECT AREA, THE MORE DIFFICULT TO OBTAIN GENERAL SCIENTIFIC RESULTS FOR IT Weak sciences introduce the most minimal limiting assumptions (if not introduce them at all) and get the most fuzzy results. "Strong" sciences introduce many limiting assumptions, but get clearer, more substantiated results, the scope of which, however, is very narrowed (more precisely, clearly limited by the introduced assumptions).
“UNCERTAINTY PRINCIPLE” You can conditionally arrange various sciences on a plane (see the next slide): “Substantiation of the results” - “The area of \u200b\u200btheir applicability (adequacy)”, and formulate (again conditionally, by analogy with the Heisenberg uncertainty principle) the following “ uncertainty principle”: the current level of development of science is characterized by certain joint restrictions on the “validity” of the results and their scope
TOPIC OF RESEARCH In the very first approximation, the topic of research is formulated at its beginning. But, as a rule, it acquires a completed form when the subject of research is formulated - after all, in the overwhelming majority of cases, the topic of research indicates the subject of research, and the key word or phrase in the topic of research indicates, most often, its object.
RESEARCH APPROACHES 2 meanings 1. In the first meaning, the approach is considered as some initial principle, starting position, main position or belief: holistic approach, integrated approach, functional approach, systematic approach, integrated approach, personal approach, activity approach (personal-active approach) .
RESEARCH APPROACHES 2 meanings 2. In the second meaning, the research approach is considered as the direction of studying the subject of research and is classified into paired categories of dialectics, reflecting the polar sides, directions of the research process: content and formal approaches; logical and historical approaches (logical-historical and historical-logical approaches); qualitative and quantitative approaches; phenomenological and essential approaches; single and general (generalized) approaches. 2 to the 5th power = 32 options!
DETERMINING THE PURPOSE OF THE RESEARCH Based on the object and subject of the study, its purpose is determined. The purpose of the study is what, in the most general (generalized) form, must be achieved upon completion of the study. It is understood that upon completion of the study, the problem of the study should be, as it were, completely solved within the framework determined by its subject, purpose and tasks (see below).
CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING THE RELIABILITY OF RESEARCH RESULTS 1. Criteria for assessing the reliability of the results of a theoretical study. The result of a theoretical study - a theory, concept or any theoretical constructions - constructions must meet the following criteria for any branches of scientific knowledge: 1. objectivity; 2. completeness; 3. consistency; 4. interpretability; 5. verifiability; 6. credibility.
CRITERIA FOR ASSESSING THE RELIABILITY OF RESEARCH RESULTS 2. Criteria for assessing the reliability of the results of an empirical study: 1. Criteria should be objective (as far as possible in a given scientific field). 2. The criteria must be adequate, valid, that is, evaluate exactly what the researcher wants to evaluate. 3. Criteria must be neutral with respect to the phenomenon under study. 4. A set of criteria with sufficient completeness should cover all the essential characteristics of the phenomenon or process under study.
HYPOTHESIS Hypothesis is a model of future scientific knowledge (possible scientific knowledge). A scientific hypothesis plays a dual role: either as an assumption about some form of connection between observed phenomena and processes, or as an assumption about a connection between observed phenomena, processes and their internal basis. Hypotheses of the first kind are called descriptive, and those of the second kind are called explanatory.
CONDITIONS FOR THE VALIDITY OF THE HYPOTHESIS: 1. The hypothesis must explain the whole range of phenomena and processes for the analysis of which it is put forward. 2. Fundamental testability of the hypothesis. 3. Applicability of the hypothesis to the widest possible range of phenomena. 4. The maximum possible fundamental simplicity of the hypothesis.
THE STAGE OF IDENTIFYING RESEARCH OBJECTIVES A task is understood as the purpose of an activity given under certain specific conditions. Research objectives act as private, relatively independent goals of research under specific conditions for testing the formulated hypothesis.
STAGE OF BUILDING A RESEARCH PROGRAM (METHODOLOGY) A research methodology is a document that includes a description of the problem, object, subject of research, its goals, hypotheses, tasks, methodological foundations and research methods, as well as planning, that is, the development of a time schedule for the implementation of the planned work.
STAGE OF TECHNOLOGICAL PREPARATION OF THE RESEARCH It consists in the preparation of experimental documentation, the preparation of forms for observation protocols, questionnaires; acquisition or manufacture of the necessary experimental equipment, creation of the necessary software, etc. The stage of technological preparation of the study is specific to each specific scientific work.
STAGE OF RESEARCH includes two stages: theoretical stage (analysis and systematization of literary data, development of the conceptual apparatus, construction of the logical structure of the theoretical part of the study); the empirical stage is the conduct of experimental work.
REQUIREMENTS FOR CLASSIFICATION: 1. Each classification can be carried out only on one basis. 2. The volume of the members of the classification must be exactly equal to the volume of the entire class being classified. 3. Each object can only fall into one subclass. 4. The members of the classification must be mutually exclusive. 5. Subdivision into subclasses must be continuous. The following can serve as the central backbone element (link) of the theory: a concept, an idea, a unified research approach, a system of axioms or a system of axiomatic requirements, etc. In a number of branches of science, for example, in chemistry, pharmacy, microbiology, etc., the fact of obtaining a new chemical substance, a new drug, a new vaccine, etc. can act as a Central system-forming link. THE CENTRAL SYSTEM-FORMING ELEMENT OF THE THEORY
STRUCTURAL ELEMENTS OF THE THEORY: algorithm, apparatus (didactic, conceptual apparatus, etc.); classification; criteria; methods; methods; mechanisms (classes of mechanisms); models (basic, predictive, graph, open, closed, dynamic, complexes of models, etc.); directions; justification; grounds; basics; paradigms; options; periodization; approaches; concepts (developing concepts, systems of concepts, etc.); tricks; principles; programs; procedures; solutions; systems (hierarchical systems, generalized systems, etc.); content; ways; funds; scheme; structures; strategies; phases; entities; taxonomies; trends; technology; typologies; requirements; terms; phases; factors (system factors, etc.); forms (sets of forms, etc.); functions; characteristics (essential characteristics, etc.); goals (sets of goals, hierarchies of goals); stages, etc. In the branches of science of the strong version, more theorems, lemmas, and assertions are added.
EMPIRICAL STAGE. EXPERIMENTAL WORK Experimental work, although it often occupies a significant, and sometimes most of the researcher's time budget, serves only to confirm or refute the theoretical constructions made by him in advance, starting with a hypothesis.
STAGE OF RESEARCH RESULTS FORMULATION The stage of approbation of the results. Approbation is carried out in the form of public reports and speeches, discussions, as well as in the form of written or oral review. Results stage. Upon completion of the approbation, the researcher proceeds to the literary design and publication of the results of his research. Scientific research ends with a reflexive phase - "turning back": understanding, comparing, evaluating the initial and final states: - the object of scientific activity - the final assessment (self-assessment) of the results of the study oneself - reflection - systems of scientific knowledge - scientific reflection
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