Experiment (lat. experimentum - verification, test, experience) - is the most important method of empirical research and implementation of experimental activities, during which the experimental scientist influences the object under study with the help of special material means (experimental installations, devices, instruments) and with the aim of obtaining extremely important information about the properties of these objects.
In accordance with the diverse types of experiment, the experimental method is specifically manifested in the research, verification, natural, model, mental, reproducing, creative, qualitative, quantitative, laboratory, industrial, physical, biological, technical, social, etc.
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types of experiments.
Also, a specific experimental method is manifested when the experiment performs a number of functions in science and education. The most essential function of experiment in scientific research is the experimental testing of hypotheses and theories. In the process of verification experiments with the help of the experimental method, the truth of scientific constructions is proved, hypotheses are confirmed or refuted. G. Galileo stood at the origins of the formation of the verification experiment. For the first time, he began to systematically test his hypotheses with the help of experiment, thereby he decisively broke with the natural-philosophical and scholastic traditions of former physics.
In research experiments, the heuristic function of the experimental method is fully manifested, with the help of which previously unknown elements and properties are detected in the objects under study. The value of such experimental discoveries is most clearly manifested in the formation of new hypotheses and theoretical constructions, their refinement and correction. In demonstrative experiments, the experimental method manifests its educational functions; with its help, the scientist demonstrates any phenomena for educational purposes.
The application of the experimental method in science is carried out in the process of experimental activity.
Three major historical periods can be distinguished in the historical development of experimental activity. The first period (XVII - the end of the XIX centuries) is the period of handicraft and individual experimental activity.
In the second period of the development of experimental activity (the end of the 19th - the middle of the 20th centuries), private capital began to be widely involved in supporting and conducting experimental research.
The third period of development of experimental activity is carried out in the conditions of state regulation and planning of scientific research (mid-20th century to the present). A nationwide period has begun in the organization and conduct of experimental activities. Many research institutes were transferred to the state budget, which opened up new opportunities for expanding scientific research. Experimental activity is further developed in the conditions of the scientific and technological revolution.
Within the framework of the theory of scientific experiment, a number of stages in the implementation of experimental activities are distinguished. The first stage - the stage of developing the concept of experimental research - involves the formulation of the problem and the development of hypotheses for its solution. An experiment is conceived on the basis of existing theoretical knowledge and its purpose is often to confirm or refute a hypothesis and scientific theory. The second stage is the stage of planning an experimental study. It includes a number of stages and operations: clarifying the purpose of the experiment, choosing planning methods, calculating forces and financial resources, determining the timing of work in general and by stages, planning the sequence and coordination of work, managing significant factors in basic situations of experimental research, etc.
The third stage is the stage of conducting an experimental study. It assumes: analysis of the initial state of the object before the experimental intervention; experimental intervention - the introduction of an experimental factor, the exercise of control over the experimental situation and the object under study; after the experimental intervention operation, a new analysis of the state of the object of study is carried out. The fourth stage is the stage of processing (statistical and theoretical) empirical data, their interpretation, explanation of the meaning of the results, combining them into a common empirical-theoretical system. At this stage, the dependence of experimental activity on theory becomes even more pronounced. The ultimate goal of all this work is to give a scientifically sound answer to the hypothesis about the causal relationships of phenomena, the nature and degree of their dependence on each other.
Methods of empirical research - ϶ᴛᴏ methods of obtaining and processing empirical data, their systematization, obtaining facts and empirical laws, as well as testing hypotheses and theories.
Empirical research is usually carried out purposefully, guided by prior knowledge - the existing theory, hypothesis, they are built on the basis of research programs and research plans. The role of theory is also great in comprehending experimental data and presenting research results. The relationship of empirical research with hypotheses and theories gives rise to the problem of ʼʼtheoretical loadingʼʼ of empirical facts.
In an empirical study, several stages are distinguished, at which appropriate methods are applied. At the first stage of empirical research, aimed at obtaining empirical data, the main methods of empirical research are applied - observation and experiment. Here, too, the measurement and comparison of experimental data takes place. Scientific observation is a purposeful, organized, systematic perception of the objects under study, associated with the solution of a certain theoretical problem. Scientific observation involves: setting the goal of the study, determining ways to achieve it, having a plan, monitoring, recording experimental data, etc.
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In observation, devices are used that expand the possibility of perception. At the same time, in some cases (when studying the phenomena of the microcosm), the problem arises of taking into account the ʼʼperturbingʼʼ effect of the device on the observed object.
An experiment is a controlled and controlled impact on the object under study in order to obtain information about it. In the experiment, cognitive activity is combined with practical, it uses a number of material means of activity: devices and installations, tools, devices, recording and measuring equipment. There are numerous types of experiments: research, verification, reproducing, isolating qualitative and quantitative, physical, biological, social, technical.
Comparison is a method of identifying the similarities and differences of the phenomenon under study with other phenomena. Measurement is a method for identifying the quantitative characteristics of the objects under study (length, weight, speed, number of elements, temperature, etc.). In the measurement process, special measuring instruments and mathematical methods are used.
At the second stage of empirical research, the connections between the experimental data are revealed, which makes it possible to distribute them into groups, systematize and classify, that is, describe. The scientific description of empirical data consists in their categorical characteristics, systematization and classification by species and genera. The description is made both with the help of a natural language and with the help of a special language of science (symbols, tables, graphs, etc.) When describing empirical data, scientists use such logical means as analysis, synthesis, comparison, systematization, classification, etc.
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Analysis is the decomposition of the whole into parts and the identification of their properties. Synthesis is the reunification of the whole from parts, the grouping of experience data according to essential features. By essential features, empirical concepts are introduced, which serve as the basis for the systematization and classification of experimental data. Systematization is the ordering of objects and their properties based on certain principles. Classification - the distribution of objects and their properties into groups, types, according to the chosen basis.
At the third stage of empirical research, the data of experience are generalized on the basis of induction, a connection is established between empirical concepts within groups of experimental data, and knowledge about empirical patterns is developed. An ideal model that fixes empirical patterns should be represented as a sign model, it is called a phenomenological construction or an empirical theory. Induction is a logical method of moving thought from a single fact to a general position, in the process of this an empirical law is established in this case, it is as if the essence of the first order is achieved. Modeling is a method of reproducing the characteristics of an object on another object (model), specially created for their study. Modeling is applied at all stages of empirical research. At the third stage of empirical research, ideal and symbolic models are used to study and test the alleged empirical patterns.
Empirical research is also used when it is extremely important to confirm or disprove a hypothesis and theory. For this purpose, methods of verification and falsification are used. Verification is the discovery of facts confirming a hypothesis or theory in empirical experience. Falsification is the discovery of facts refuting a hypothesis or theory in empirical experience.
Methods of empirical research - concept and types. Classification and features of the category "Methods of empirical research" 2017, 2018.
Observation ¨ comparison ¨ measurement ¨ experiment Observation Observation is a purposeful perception of an object, determined by the task of activity. The main condition for scientific observation is objectivity, i.e. the possibility of control by either repeated ... .
1. Observation - a purposeful study of objects, based mainly on the data of the sense organs (sensations, perceptions, ideas). In the course of observation, we gain knowledge not only about the external aspects of the object of knowledge, but - as the ultimate goal - about it ... .
1. Observation - a purposeful study of objects, based mainly on the data of the sense organs (sensations, perceptions, ideas). In the course of observation, we gain knowledge not only about the external aspects of the object of knowledge, but - as the ultimate goal - about it ... [read more] .
Observation is a deliberate, directed perception aimed at revealing the existing properties and relations of the object of knowledge. It can be direct and indirect devices. Observation acquires scientific significance when it is in accordance with ... .
In the logical-epistemological aspect in the philosophy of science, it is traditionally customary to single out empirical and theoretical knowledge. Often they are considered as two levels of scientific knowledge, which is not entirely accurate, since knowledge gained in experience not only provides the necessary ... .
Experiment (lat. experimentum - verification, test, experience) - is the most important method of empirical research and implementation of experimental activities, during which the experimental scientist influences the object under study with the help of special ... .
There is no generally accepted classification of general scientific methods and techniques; it is carried out for a variety of reasons. The most successful approach seems to us, according to which three levels (“top to bottom”) are distinguished in the structure of general scientific methods and techniques: ... .
Empirical Research Methods
1. Observation.
This method assumes that the researcher is in close proximity to the object of interest to him, for example, a moral and legal conflict, and has the opportunity to see and fix all phases of its sociodynamics.
Observation can be included when the researcher assumes the role of one of the participants in the studied fragment of legal relations. This provides additional opportunities for deepening into the essence of the legal conflict, into the motivational spheres of its participants.
With normal, non-participant observation, the information collected may not be as deep. But its advantages lie in the fact that, remaining as an outside observer, the sociologist has more chances to maintain a position of impartiality and objectivity, to avoid elements of evaluativeness in ascertaining judgments.
It is necessary to distinguish between hidden observation, when the participants in the studied legal relations do not suspect that the sociologist is interested in them, and open observation, when the participants are aware of the ongoing study.
Such a gradation of observations is also possible, such as extensive, when the field of view is a fairly extensive subject that occupies a significant place in the social space, and intensive, when the subject of research attention is not large in volume and completely fits in the field of view of one sociologist. In the second case, the observation is extremely focused and more effective.
The observation method is convenient when studying local, fragmentary, small in volume and number of participants, and easily accessible objects.
2. Analysis of documents.
When a certain legal reality is out of reach for direct empirical study (for example, it disappeared from the present and remained in the historical past), but some single texts or complexes of written documents remain from it, then these latter can serve as a source of information for a sociologist. Documents as artifacts, that is, artificial, secondary facts, are able to testify to the actual, once existing, primary facts of the legal life of society and the individual. Various legislative acts, codes, government decrees, protocols of investigative actions and court proceedings, written testimonies of participants in various legal proceedings, as well as journalistic and artistic works covering various legal problems - all this can provide sociologists with the necessary information. When analyzing them, the sociologist becomes a jurist, and the jurist becomes a sociologist. One and the same event looks for the former as a typical social fact, and for the latter as a characteristic legal phenomenon-casus. Taken together, both of these views, sociological and jurisprudential, give a three-dimensional image of the studied social and legal realities, allow fixing in it such properties and boundaries that researchers, if they acted separately, could pass without noticing them. The advantage of the sociology of law as a theoretical discipline lies precisely in the fact that its representative develops the strengths of both a sociologist and a jurist at the same time.
If the documents are not of a purely legal nature, but due to certain circumstances are of interest to the sociologist, then he faces the difficult task of identifying purely legal information from their contexts. One of the means of solving this problem is content analysis. It is used in the presence of voluminous textual material in order to identify the number of certain content-semantic units in it. For example, an analysis of all issues of the central newspaper Pravda for 1937 and a calculation of the total number of executions of "enemies of the people" that it reports on can provide quite eloquent information about the state of the Soviet justice system, about the degree of its civilization, humanity, justice.
Sociologists of law often refer to the example of content analysis related to the activities of the International Institute of Human Rights in Strasbourg. In 1971, his staff made an attempt to identify the words that are most often found in official legal documents of the state and international level. The first three places were taken respectively by the words law, equality and freedom. That is, the priority values of the political and legal activities of the international community have been identified, serving as guidelines for the practical efforts of states and peoples.
To collect information characterizing the state of various, archaic and modern, forms of customary law, folklore may be of some interest - ancient myths, folk tales, legends, as well as various ethnographic materials.
When using this method, we are talking about scrupulously methodical reading of texts according to a pre-compiled multi-stage program. The required information in such cases can be collected literally bit by bit and over a sufficiently long period of time.
Sociologists of law, endowed with an artistic flair, can successfully work with the literary works of outstanding writers as sources of social and legal information. Thus, French sociologists are inclined to believe that sound material on the sociology of property is available in the novels of the Human Comedy by O. Balzac, and on the sociology of the family - in E. Zola's multi-volume epic Rougon-Macquart. Similarly, for Russian (and not only Russian) sociologists, the work of F. M. Dostoevsky is an invaluable source of information on the sociology of law and crime.
The analysis of documents is important in those cases when sociologists deal with such structures of the legal system, whose activities are strictly documented. If we take into account that a certain part of this documentation is classified and the information contained in them is designed for specific professionals, then it should be recognized that law enforcement agencies need their own sociological personnel. They could, by their analytical research, provide significant assistance in the self-improvement of the legal system.
3. Survey (interviewing, questioning, testing).
Among the sociological methods of collecting primary information, the survey occupies an important place. It is used in cases where observation is impossible or impractical. It is resorted to, if necessary, to identify the state of public opinion regarding any significant events in the social and legal life of the state and civil society. Polls are important on the eve of such events in the political and legal life of society, such as referendums. Covering not too many citizens, they are trial measurements of the state of public opinion and a kind of rehearsal for the upcoming extremely wide poll, which, in fact, is itself.
Interviewing looks like a personal conversation of a sociologist with a person of interest to him. Such a conversation most often has the nature of questions and answers and can take place either in person or over the phone. The responses received are recorded, processed, summarized, correlated with the results of other similar interviews.
The interview may be tape recorded. The recording itself can be used in different ways, depending on the research settings of the interviewer. For example, in 1959 the American Truman Capote published a book based on tape recordings of his conversations with two young convicted criminals. Some time later, her Russian translation came out (Ordinary Murder. - M., 1965).
Questioning differs from interviewing in that it can be not only individual, but also group. In addition, it assumes that the sociologist has a pre-compiled questionnaire. Its advantage lies in the fact that it allows you to simultaneously interrogate a large number of people. Another clear advantage of the survey is that it can be not only named, but also anonymous. This second option for sociologists is often preferable to the first one, since it allows respondents to give sincere answers to questions that are called in everyday language "ticklish".
Testing is a method of complicated questioning. Specialists compile a special kind of questionnaire (test), which contains a significant number of heterogeneous questions. The purpose of the test is to get the respondent to "talk out" or "let out", that is, to give answers to those questions that he would not answer in a normal interview or questionnaire. At the same time, tests make it possible to reveal the unconscious attitudes of individuals, hidden even from their own understanding.
This technique is important in the study of the motivational sphere of individual legal consciousness. It has great prospects in criminological research. 4. Sociological experiment.
To confirm their hypothesis, to refute the assumptions that contradict it, sociologists can model the social and legal situation they need. A model of this kind can be either quite real, that is, situational-empirical, or mental, imaginary.
Legal relations are an area to which individuals are very painful and react extremely sharply to all manifestations of which. It is always very difficult to set up any real experiments on its "territory". As for thought experiments in the field of law, culture came to the rescue of sociologists. For a long time there have been talented dramas, novels, short stories created by brilliant word artists that explore the most diverse aspects of legal relations, the most complex structures of individual legal and criminal consciousness. Created by the play of creative imagination, they are nothing but thought experiments. And sociologists, of course, should not pass by classical and modern works of art with a jurisprudential and criminological orientation. At the same time, under the conditions of thought experiments not set by themselves, they will have to use the method of sociological analysis of documents, which in this case will be literary texts. 5. Biographical method.
It can be attributed to the analysis of documents, but it can also be considered an independent method. It is a way of studying biographical data in order to collect the necessary information of a psychological, sociological, moral and legal nature. The biographical method allows one to formulate hypotheses and find evidence regarding the peculiarities of the relationship of a particular person or a certain category of individuals to certain social and legal phenomena and processes, as well as to make assumptions about the nature of their legal consciousness and typical features of their social and legal behavior.
The active use of the biographical method in modern socio-legal theory began in the first decades of the 20th century. and is associated with the release of the works of W. Healy "The Criminal" (1915) and "Emotional Conflicts and Wrong Behavior" (1917), Z. Freud's "Dostoevsky and Parricide" (1928). Many Western researchers, including F. Znaniecki, C. Cooley, G. D. Lasswell, D. G. Mead, W. A. Thomas, when building their theoretical hypotheses, turn to the study of personal documents, letters, diaries in order to acquire reliable information about the motives of the social behavior of the people they are interested in. By analyzing family relations, heredity and continuity of generations, human actions in critical life situations, relationships with others, not only conscious, but also unconscious inclinations are revealed that affected the features of both law-abiding and illegal behavior of individuals.
Empirical data of a biographical nature, together with the general logic of inductive-deductive constructions, make it possible to reconstruct the most complex motivational conflicts in the inner life of individuals who find themselves in extraordinary conditions of situations of suicide, committing a crime, imprisonment, etc.
Types of sociological research
The above methods can be used in different proportions, in relation to different socio-legal material, and in each individual case they form a special model of research activity. Let us designate the most significant of these models. 1. Pilot study.
Its essence lies in the fact that it has an exploratory nature and allows researchers to test their tools in a small area of the problem field of interest to them. This is a kind of micromodel of a future full-scale study. Its task is to identify the weaknesses of the conceived program, make the necessary adjustments to it in advance, clarify the initial assumptions of the hypothesis, more accurately outline the boundaries of the subject under study, and clearly identify the problem and the tasks arising from it. 2. Descriptive research.
This type of research includes a comprehensive, as complete as possible description of the legal phenomenon. Its features, structural and content properties, functionality are revealed. At the same time, researchers are not in a hurry with final assessments, generalizations and conclusions. Their task is to create the necessary empirical prerequisites for all this.
3. Analytical study.
This is the most complex and in-depth version of scientific research, not limited to sliding on the phenomenal surface of social and legal realities. The task here is to move from phenomena into the depths of the problem, to the essential parameters of recorded social and legal phenomena and facts, to the causes and grounds for their occurrence and to the conditions of functioning.
The results of analytical studies are of the greatest scientific value and practical significance. Based on them, the customers, for whom this work was carried out, take certain practical steps to correct, reorganize, and improve specific areas of social and legal reality.
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Empirical Research Methods
1. Methods for isolating and studying an empirical object
Empirical research methods include all those methods, techniques, methods of cognitive activity, as well as the formulation and consolidation of knowledge that are the content of practice or its direct result. They can be divided into two subgroups: methods for isolating and studying an empirical object; methods of processing and systematization of the received empirical knowledge, as well as on the forms of this knowledge corresponding to them. This can be represented with a list:
observation -- a method of collecting information based on the registration and fixation of primary data;
study of primary documentation - based on the study of documented information directly recorded earlier;
comparison - allows you to compare the object under study with its analogue;
measurement - a method for determining the actual numerical values of the properties of the object under study by means of appropriate measuring units, for example, watts, amperes, rubles, standard hours, etc.;
normative - involves the use of a set of certain established standards, a comparison with which the real indicators of the system allows you to establish the conformity of the system, for example, with the accepted conceptual model; standards can: determine the composition and content of functions, the complexity of their implementation, the number of personnel, type, etc. act as standards of defining norms (for example, the cost of material, financial and labor resources, manageability, the number of acceptable levels of management, the complexity of performing functions) and enlarged values determined as a ratio to some complex indicator (for example, the standard of turnover of working capital; all norms and standards must cover the entire system as a whole, be scientifically sound, have a progressive and promising character);
experiment - based on the study of the object under study in conditions artificially created for it.
When considering these methods, it should be borne in mind that in the list they are arranged according to the degree of increase in the activity of the researcher. Of course, observation and measurement are included in all types of experiments, but they should also be considered as independent methods widely represented in all sciences.
2. Observation of empirical scientific knowledge
Observation is a primary and elementary cognitive process at the empirical level of scientific knowledge. As a scientific observation, it consists in a purposeful, organized, systematic perception of objects and phenomena of the external world. Features of scientific observation:
Relies on a developed theory or individual theoretical provisions;
It serves to solve a certain theoretical problem, to formulate new problems, to put forward new or to test existing hypotheses;
Has a reasonable planned and organized character;
It is systematic, excluding errors of random origin;
Uses special means of observation - microscopes, telescopes, cameras, etc., thereby significantly expanding the scope and possibilities of observation.
A theory or an accepted hypothesis allows targeted observation and discovery of what goes unnoticed without theoretical guidelines. However, it should be remembered that the researcher, "armed" with a theory or hypothesis, will be quite biased, which, on the one hand, makes the search more effective, but on the other hand, it can eliminate all contradictory phenomena that do not fit into this hypothesis. In the history of methodology, this circumstance gave rise to an empirical approach in which the researcher sought to completely free himself from any hypothesis (theory) in order to guarantee the purity of observation and experience.
In observation, the activity of the subject is not yet aimed at transforming the subject of study. The object remains inaccessible to purposeful change and study, or is deliberately protected from possible influences in order to preserve it - its natural state, and this is the main advantage of the observation method. Observation, especially with the inclusion of measurement, can lead the researcher to the assumption of a necessary and regular connection, but in itself it is completely insufficient to assert and prove such a connection. The use of instruments and instruments indefinitely expands the possibilities of observation, but does not overcome some other shortcomings. In observation, the dependence of the observer on the process or phenomenon being studied is preserved. The observer cannot, while remaining within the boundaries of observation, change the object, manage it and exercise strict control over it, and in this sense, his activity in observation is relative. At the same time, in the process of preparing an observation and in the course of its implementation, a scientist, as a rule, resorts to organizational and practical operations with the object, which brings the observation closer to the experiment. Another thing is also obvious - observation is a necessary component of any experiment, and then its tasks and functions are determined in this context.
3. Obtaining information by the empirical methodempirical object research information
Methods for obtaining quantitative information are represented by two types of operations - counting and measurement in accordance with the objective differences between discrete and continuous. As a method for obtaining accurate quantitative information in the counting operation, numerical parameters are determined, consisting of discrete elements, while a one-to-one correspondence is established between the elements of the set that makes up the group and the numerical signs with which the count is kept. The numbers themselves reflect objectively existing quantitative relations.
It should be realized that numerical forms and signs perform a wide variety of functions both in scientific and everyday knowledge, of which not all are related to measurement:
They are means of naming, a kind of labels or convenient identifying labels;
They are a counting tool;
They act as a sign to designate a certain place in an ordered system of degrees of a certain property;
They are a means of establishing the equality of intervals or differences;
They are signs expressing quantitative relations between qualities, i.e., means of expressing quantities.
Considering various scales based on the use of numbers, it is necessary to distinguish between these functions, which are alternately performed either by a special sign form of numbers, or by numbers acting as semantic values of the corresponding numerical forms. From this point of view, it is obvious that the naming scales, examples of which are the numbering of athletes in teams, cars in the State traffic inspectorate, bus and tram routes, etc., are neither a measurement nor even an inventory, since here numerical forms perform the function of naming, and not an account.
A serious problem remains the method of measurement in the social sciences and humanities. First of all, these are the difficulties of collecting quantitative information about many social, socio-psychological phenomena, for which in many cases there are no objective, instrumental means of measurement. It is also difficult to single out discrete elements and objective analysis itself, not only because of the characteristics of the object, but also because of the interference in non-scientific value factors - prejudices of everyday consciousness, religious worldview, ideological or corporate prohibitions, etc. It is known that many so-called assessments , for example, the knowledge of students, the performances of participants in competitions and competitions of even the highest level, often depend on the qualifications, honesty, corporatism and other subjective qualities of teachers, judges, jury members. Apparently, this kind of evaluation cannot be called measurement in the exact sense of the word, which involves, as the science of measurements - metrology defines, a comparison by a physical (technical) procedure of a given quantity with one or another value of an accepted standard - units of measurement and obtaining an accurate quantitative result.
4. Experiment - the basic method of science
Both observation and measurement are included in such a complex basic method of science as experiment. In contrast to observation, an experiment is characterized by the intervention of the researcher in the position of the objects under study, by the active influence of various instruments and experimental means on the subject of research. An experiment is one of the forms of practice, which combines the interaction of objects according to natural laws and an action artificially organized by a person. As a method of empirical research, this method assumes and allows the following operations to be carried out in accordance with the problem being solved:
Construction of the object;
Isolation of the object or subject of research, its isolation from the influence of side effects and obscuring the essence of phenomena, study in a relatively pure form;
Empirical interpretation of the original theoretical concepts and provisions, selection or creation of experimental tools;
Purposeful impact on the object: systematic change, variation, combination of various conditions in order to obtain the desired result;
Repeated reproduction of the course of the process, fixing data in the protocols of observations, their processing and transfer to other objects of the class that have not been studied.
The experiment is not carried out spontaneously, not at random, but to solve certain scientific problems and cognitive tasks dictated by the state of the theory. It is necessary as the main means of accumulation in the study of facts that constitute the empirical basis of any theory; it is, like all practice as a whole, an objective criterion of the relative truth of theoretical propositions and hypotheses.
The subject structure of the experiment makes it possible to isolate the following three elements: the cognizing subject (the experimenter), the means of the experiment, and the object of the experimental study.
On this basis, a branched classification of experiments can be given. Depending on the qualitative difference between the objects of study, one can distinguish between physical, technical, biological, psychological, sociological, etc. The nature and variety of means and conditions of the experiment make it possible to single out direct (natural) and model, field and laboratory experiments. If we take into account the goals of the experimenter, then there are search, measurement and verification types of experiments. Finally, depending on the nature of the strategy, one can distinguish between experiments carried out by trial and error, experiments based on a closed algorithm (for example, Galileo’s study of the fall of bodies), an experiment using the “black box” method, “step strategy”, etc.
The growing importance of probabilistic-statistical concepts and principles in the real practice of modern science, as well as the recognition of not only objective certainty, but also objective uncertainty and understanding in this regard of determination as a relative uncertainty (or as a limitation of uncertainty) has led to a new understanding of the structure and principles experiment. The development of a new experimental strategy was directly caused by the transition from the study of well-organized systems, in which it was possible to distinguish phenomena that depend on a small number of variables, to the study of so-called diffuse or poorly organized systems. In these systems, it is impossible to clearly distinguish individual phenomena and distinguish between the action of variables of different physical nature. This required a wider application of statistical methods, in fact, introduced the "concept of the case" into the experiment. The program of the experiment began to be created in such a way as to diversify numerous factors to the maximum and take them into account statistically.
Thus, the experiment from a single-factor, rigidly determined, reproducing single-valued connections and relationships, has turned into a method that takes into account many factors of a complex (diffuse) system and reproduces single-valued and multi-valued relationships, i.e., the experiment has acquired a probabilistic-deterministic nature. In addition, the strategy of the experiment itself is also often not rigidly determined and may change depending on the results at each stage.
Material models reflect the corresponding objects in three forms of similarity: physical similarity, analogy and isomorphism as a one-to-one correspondence of structures. A model experiment deals with a material model, which is both an object of study and an experimental tool. With the introduction of the model, the structure of the experiment becomes much more complicated. Now the researcher and the device interact not with the object itself, but only with the model that replaces it, as a result of which the operational structure of the experiment becomes much more complicated. The role of the theoretical side of the study is increasing, since it is necessary to substantiate the similarity relationship between the model and the object and the possibility of extrapolating the obtained data to this object. Let us consider what is the essence of the extrapolation method and its features in modeling.
Extrapolation as a procedure for transferring knowledge from one subject area to another - unobserved and unexplored - based on some identified relationship between them, is one of the operations that have the function of optimizing the process of cognition.
In scientific research, inductive extrapolations are used, in which the pattern established for one type of object is transferred with certain refinements to other objects. So, having established, for example, the property of compression for some gas and expressing it in the form of a quantitative law, one can extrapolate this to other, unexplored gases, taking into account their compression ratio. Exact natural science also uses extrapolation, for example, when extending an equation that describes a certain law to an unexplored area (mathematical hypothesis), while a possible change in the form of this equation is assumed. In general, in the experimental sciences, extrapolation refers to the distribution of:
Qualitative characteristics from one subject area to another, from the past and present to the future;
Quantitative characteristics of one area of objects to another, one aggregate to another on the basis of methods specially developed for this purpose;
Some equation for other subject areas within the same science or even for other areas of knowledge, which is associated with some modification and (or) with a reinterpretation of the meaning of their components.
The procedure of knowledge transfer, being only relatively independent, is organically included in such methods as induction, analogy, modeling, mathematical hypothesis, statistical methods, and many others. In the case of simulation, extrapolation is included in the operational structure of this type of experiment, which consists of the following operations and procedures:
Theoretical substantiation of the future model, its similarity with the object, i.e., the operation that ensures the transition from the object to the model;
Building a model based on similarity criteria and the purpose of the study;
Experimental study of the model;
The operation of transition from the model to the object, i.e. extrapolation of the results obtained in the study of the model to the object.
The similarity theory formulates the conditions under which the legitimacy of the transition from statements about the model to statements about the object is ensured both in the case when the model and the object belong to the same form of motion (physical similarity), and in the case when they belong to various forms of motion of matter (physical analogy). Such conditions are the similarity criteria that have been clarified and observed in the simulation. So, for example, in hydraulic modeling, which is based on mechanical laws of similarity, geometric, kinematic and dynamic similarities are necessarily observed. Geometric similarity implies a constant relationship between the corresponding linear dimensions of the object and model, their areas and volumes; kinematic similarity is based on a constant ratio of velocities, accelerations and time intervals during which similar particles describe geometrically similar trajectories; finally, the model and the object will be dynamically similar if the ratios of masses and forces are constant. It can be assumed that the observance of these relationships leads to the receipt of reliable knowledge when extrapolating the model data to the object.
The considered empirical methods of cognition provide factual knowledge about the world or facts in which specific, direct manifestations of reality are fixed. The term fact is ambiguous. It can be used both in the meaning of some event, a fragment of reality, and in the meaning of a special kind of empirical statements - fact-fixing sentences, the content of which it is. Unlike the facts of reality, which exist independently of what people think about them and are therefore neither true nor false, facts in the form of sentences admit a truth value. They must be empirically true, i.e., their truth is established by empirical, practical means.
Not every empirical statement receives the status of a scientific fact, or rather, a sentence fixing a scientific fact. If statements describe only single observations, a random empirical situation, then they form a certain set of data that do not have the necessary degree of generality. In the natural sciences and in a number of social sciences, for example: economics, demography, sociology, as a rule, statistical processing of a certain set of data takes place, which makes it possible to remove the random elements contained in them and, instead of a set of statements about the data, obtain a summary statement about these data, which acquires the status of a scientific fact.
5. Scientific facts of empirical research
As knowledge, scientific facts are distinguished by a high degree (probability) of truth, since they fix the “immediately given”, describe (and not explain or interpret) the very fragment of reality itself. A fact is discrete, and therefore, to a certain extent, localized in time and space, which gives it a certain accuracy, and all the more so because it is a statistical summary of empirical data purified from accidents or knowledge that reflects the typical, essential in the object. But a scientific fact is at the same time relatively true knowledge; it is not absolute, but relative, i.e., capable of further refinement, change, since the “immediately given” includes elements of the subjective; the description can never be exhaustive; both the object itself, described in the fact-knowledge, and the language in which the description is carried out change. Being discrete, a scientific fact is at the same time included in a changing system of knowledge; the very idea of what a scientific fact is historically changes as well.
Since the structure of a scientific fact includes not only information that depends on sensory cognition, but also its rational foundations, the question arises about the role and forms of these rational components. Among them are logical structures, conceptual apparatus, including mathematical, as well as philosophical, methodological and theoretical principles and premises. A particularly important role is played by the theoretical prerequisites for obtaining, describing and explaining (interpreting) the fact. Without such prerequisites, it is often impossible even to discover certain facts, and even more so to understand them. The most famous examples from the history of science are the discovery by astronomer I. Galle of the planet Neptune according to preliminary calculations and predictions by W. Le Verrier; the discovery of chemical elements predicted by D. I. Mendeleev in connection with the creation of his periodic system; detection of the positron, theoretically calculated by P. Dirac, and the discovery of the neutrino, predicted by V. Pauli.
Thus, one of the most fundamental astrophysical facts of the expansion of the Metagalaxy was established as a statistical summary of numerous observations of the "redshift" phenomenon in the spectra of distant galaxies, carried out since 1914, as well as the interpretation of these observations as due to the Doppler effect. Certain theoretical knowledge from physics, of course, was involved in this, but the inclusion of this fact in the system of knowledge about the Universe occurred regardless of the development of the theory within which it was understood and explained, i.e., the theory of the expanding Universe, especially since it appeared many years after the first publications on the discovery of redshift in the spectra of spiral nebulae. The theory of A. A. Fridman helped to correctly assess this fact, which entered the empirical knowledge about the Universe before and independently of it. This speaks of the relative independence and value of the empirical basis of scientific and cognitive activity, interacting “on an equal footing” with the theoretical level of knowledge.
6. Methods involving work with the obtained empirical information
So far, we have been talking about empirical methods that are aimed at isolating and studying real objects. Let us consider the second group of methods of this level, which involve working with the received empirical information - scientific facts that need to be processed, systematized, carried out initial generalization, etc.
These methods are necessary when the researcher works in the layer of existing, acquired knowledge, no longer referring directly to the events of reality, ordering the data obtained, trying to discover regular relationships - empirical laws, to make assumptions about their existence. By their nature, these are largely “purely logical” methods, unfolding according to the laws adopted primarily in logic, but at the same time included in the context of the empirical level of scientific research with the task of streamlining current knowledge. At the level of ordinary simplified ideas, this stage of the initial predominantly inductive generalization of knowledge is often interpreted as the very mechanism for obtaining a theory, in which one can see the influence of the “all-inductivist” concept of knowledge that was widespread in past centuries.
The study of scientific facts begins with their analysis. By analysis we mean a research method consisting in the mental division (decomposition) of a whole or in general a complex phenomenon into its constituent, simpler elementary parts and the allocation of individual aspects, properties, connections. But analysis is not the ultimate goal of scientific research, which seeks to reproduce the whole, to understand its internal structure, the nature of its functioning, the laws of its development. This goal is achieved by subsequent theoretical and practical synthesis.
Synthesis is a research method that consists in connecting, reproducing the connections of the analyzed parts, elements, sides, components of a complex phenomenon and comprehending the whole in its unity. Analysis and synthesis have their objective foundations in the structure and laws of the material world itself. In objective reality, there is a whole and its parts, unity and differences, continuity and discreteness, constantly occurring processes of decay and connection, destruction and creation. In all sciences, analytical and synthetic activity is carried out, while in natural science it can be carried out not only mentally, but also practically.
The very transition from the analysis of facts to a theoretical synthesis is carried out with the help of methods that, complementing each other and combining, constitute the content of this complex process. One of these methods is induction, which in the narrow sense is traditionally understood as a method of transition from knowledge of individual facts to knowledge of the general, to empirical generalization and the establishment of a general position that turns into a law or other essential connection. The weakness of induction lies in the insufficient validity of such a transition.
The enumeration of facts can never be practically complete, and we are not sure that the following fact will not be contradictory. Therefore, knowledge obtained by induction is always probabilistic. In addition, the premises of the inductive conclusion do not contain knowledge about how generalized features, properties are essential. With the help of enumeration induction, it is possible to obtain knowledge that is not reliable, but only probable. There are also a number of other methods of generalization of empirical material, with the help of which, as in popular induction, the knowledge gained is probable. These methods include the method of analogies, statistical methods, the method of model extrapolation. They differ from each other in the degree of validity of the transition from facts to generalizations. All these methods are often combined under the general name of inductive, and then the term induction is used in a broad sense.
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Methods of theoretical research
RESEARCH METHODS
Research methods are determined by the initial concept of the researcher, his ideas about the essence and structure of the studied object, phenomenon and process, general methodological orientation, goals and objectives of a particular study.
Any Method has limitations , advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, when conducting research, it is necessary to remember that The choice of survey methods is closely related to:
The way the research question is posed, what is its main idea and how the hypothesis is formulated;
Taking into account the real conditions of their application in practice;
Giving preference to those methods that are pedagogically impeccable;
Taking into account the level of training of the researcher in the field of methodology and methods of conducting a survey.
Methods of scientific knowledge are divided into: a) general; b) special.
Special Methods are not arbitrary, since they are determined by the nature of the object under study. General Methods scientific knowledge are used throughout the exploration process and in a wide variety of sciences. General methods are divided into three big groups:
Methods of theoretical research;
Methods of empirical research;
Statistical methods and means of formalization in the study.
Of the methods of theoretical research, it is widely used method of ascending from the abstract to the concrete. This method is a process of cognition, according to which thinking ascends from the concrete in reality to the abstract in thinking and from it to the concrete in thinking. According to this method, the process of cognition is, as it were, divided into two relatively independent stages.
At the first stage there is a transition from the sensory-concrete, from the concrete in reality to its abstract definitions. A single object is divided, described using a variety of concepts and judgments.
Second phase process of cognition is the ascent from the abstract to the concrete. Its essence is in the movement of thought from the abstract definitions of the object, i.e. from the abstract in knowledge to the concrete in knowledge. At this stage, the original integrity of the object is restored, as it were, it is reproduced in all its versatility - but already in thinking. Both these stages of knowledge are closely interconnected.
When conducting empirical research, various methods of collecting information are used. To select them at each stage of the study, it is necessary to know the general and specific capabilities of each method, its place in the system of research procedures.
Research methods are divided into two groups: main (observation and experiment) and auxiliary (collection of research materials and processing of the obtained data). The system of methods is shown in fig. 17.
Observation - the most common method by which pedagogical phenomena and processes are studied in various natural conditions without interfering in their course by direct and immediate registration by the researcher of the events and conditions in which they take place. Observation as a means of cognition provides primary information about the world. It is purposeful and usually structured by a rigid program ( formalized observation) or plan ( informal). It is carried out "secretly" or in such a presence of the observer, when the objectives of the study are disguised. Observations are: field(under natural conditions); laboratory, used most often in psychological and socio-psychological research; systematic according to a predetermined plan. Studying an object for a certain time: unsystematic; short-term. Conducted at the exploration stage to formulate hypotheses for the upcoming study.
Rice. 17. Research methods in pedagogy
In addition, the observation is: a) worldly. Limited to the registration of facts, is of a random nature; b) scientifically organized. Assumes a hypothesis, goal, plan, registration, processing of results. For any observation, depending on whether the observables know about it or not, the following are characteristic: interaction types: participant observation- the observed are aware of the presence of the researcher in the group; included observation- observed do not know about it; non-included observation- observed know about it; non-included observation- observed do not know about it.
Pedagogical supervision should satisfy requirements , the most important of which are: carried out with a clearly defined goal in advance; carried out according to a pre-conceived and written plan; the number of traits studied should be minimal and they should be precisely defined; the observer must carefully foresee the possibility of observation errors and, if possible, prevent them; the adequacy of the observation of its conditions to the type of interaction between the subject and the object; the degree of formalization of the procedure; representativeness of information.
Stages of preparation and conduct of pedagogical supervision:
Selecting an object, determining the purpose of observation;
Drawing up an observation plan, preparation of documents, including forms of observation protocols, instructions to the observer and observation equipment (equipment);
Collection of observational data (records, protocols, tables, etc.);
Processing and registration of the results of observation;
Analysis of the results and conclusions of the observation.
Observations used in pedagogical research can be classified according to various criteria (see Fig. 18).
The main advantage of observation- the immediacy of the researcher's impressions, the active production of hypotheses in the course of observation.
Disadvantages of Surveillance consist in the impossibility to guarantee the representativeness of the data due to the difficulties of practical coverage of a large number of phenomena and the significant probability of errors in interpreting events in terms of the motives of the motives of the actors.
Observation is usually used in combination with other methods of collecting information, for example, surveys, questionnaires, etc. For an example, we will give a scheme for monitoring the behavior of a person (see Table 3).
Rice. 18. Classification of pedagogical observations
Table 3
Observation scheme
Experiment is a special case of observation. Definition experiment in the literature it is interpreted as a general empirical method of research, during which phenomena are studied under strictly controlled and controlled conditions; active interference in the activities of the subjects is assumed; the best conditions are created for the study of specific pedagogical phenomena; scientifically posed examination An artificially induced phenomenon is checked under precisely taken into account conditions, which makes it possible to monitor its development, course, manage it and recreate it every time the conditions are repeated. The experiment should be carried out on a large sample of individuals participating in it. The latest requirement of the Higher Attestation Commission of the Russian Federation under the Ministry of Education and the Committee of Sciences is more than 100 people.
During the experiment, the researcher deliberately changes the course of some phenomenon or process by introducing a new factor into it. A new factor introduced or changed by the experimenter is called experimental factor. or independent variables. Factors that have changed under the influence of the independent variable are called independent variables.
The experiment allows: to study this or that phenomenon in its “pure form”; explore the properties of objects of reality in extreme conditions; to carry out multiple experiments in the study of a particular object.
The basic principle of any experiment- a change in each research procedure of only one of some factors, while the rest remain unchanged and controllable. If it is required to check the influence of another factor, then the following research procedure is carried out, where this last factor is changed, and all other controlled factors remain unchanged, etc. The general classification of experiments is shown in fig. nineteen.
The experimental study of objects in comparison with observation has the following Benefits:
Observation of the course of the experiment, measurement of the necessary parameters, description of phenomena or processes that characterize their certain patterns;
Analysis and generalization of the obtained results;
Formation of conclusions, proposals, evaluation of the theoretical and applied value of the facts and arguments obtained.
Rice. 19. Types of experiments
The most common forms of experimentation are laboratory and natural experiments. The laboratory experiment takes place in specially organized conditions and according to the instructions. It can be with the use of equipment or without technical means. A natural experiment takes place in natural conditions in compliance with all the requirements of the method.
Mainly distinguish three kinds experiment: ascertaining, forming and controlling. The ascertaining is carried out at the initial stage of the study and is used to obtain data as a starting point. The data of this type of experiment are used to organize the following types of experiment. A formative experiment means such a development of a pedagogical phenomenon or process in which certain qualities, properties, knowledge, skills and abilities are purposefully developed and formed. The control is carried out in order to make a final decision on the usefulness of this pedagogical product for its use in the real educational process.
When conducting an experiment, it is important to have constant creative communication with experienced experimental teachers.
The experiment plan includes: purpose and objectives of the experiment; place and time of the experiment, its scope; characteristics of students participating in the experiment; preparation of participants in the experiment; description of the materials used for the experiment; description of the methodology for conducting the experiment and the use of private research methods; method of observation, testing, etc. during the experiment; description of the method of processing the results of the experiment.
The number of people accepted in the experiment (sample size), the degree of reliability of the results obtained can be determined using the rules of mathematical statistics.
Method of generalized independent characteristics involves the identification and analysis of opinions about those phenomena received from different people. It could be experts.
Poll-method involves the answers of the subjects to specific questions of the researcher. It can be written (questionnaires, when questions are presented in printed form: questionnaires, questionnaires) and oral, when personal contact is established with the subject. The survey method includes: conversation, questioning, interview.
Conversation - is a research method that can be considered as:
1) the method of psychological and pedagogical research, based on obtaining information in the process of verbal communication;
2) a question-answer method of teaching, used by a teacher to enhance the mental activity of students in the process of acquiring new knowledge or repeating and consolidating previously acquired knowledge.
Questionnaire- a method of collecting information about the objective or subjective facts of the mental activity of the respondents (respondents), carried out according to a specific plan. The answers are given in the prescribed form and are subject to further analysis. Questioning is carried out using a questionnaire, which is a questionnaire for obtaining any information about who fills it out and includes a list of questions to the surveyed contingent of persons, the answers to which serve as the initial empirical material for sociological research.
Interview- a method of obtaining sociological and psychological information through oral questioning in direct contact with the respondent.
Testing - a method during which the subjects perform certain actions, perform the test tasks of the researcher. Test (from English. test- test, experience) is an objective and standardized test procedure that a person is subjected to, a specific tool for assessing the psychological and other qualities of a person. It consists of a series of tasks or questions that are offered under standard conditions and measure specific behaviors based on standardized ways of assessing test performance. Currently, success tests, development tests, etc. are used.
Analysis of documents and products of activity- a method of direct study of the pedagogical phenomenon according to the practical results of the subjects, objects of labor, in which knowledge, skills, abilities, etc. are embodied. It is aimed at obtaining reliable social information recorded in documents. A necessary condition for obtaining reliable information using this method is to check the reliability of a documentary source. The whole variety of ways to analyze documents can be conditionally reduced to two main types: traditional(qualitative, meaningful) analysis; formalized(quantitative) analysis.
5.3. Statistical methods and means of formalization
in the study
These methods are used to process the results of pedagogical research. These include:
1. Analysis of variances. Designed to identify the influence of individual features independent of each other, traditionally called (A, B, C, ...), on some observed feature (Y). It consists in the selection and comparison of various components of the variance of the feature U. The method is used to analyze data.
2. Qualitative regression analysis - a group of methods for multivariate data analysis that allow assessing the influence of several qualitative independent features (X-s) on the dependent feature Y. These methods include: regression analysis with dichotomous variables; multiple classification analysis; multiple nominal analysis.
3. Cluster analysis - a method for classifying objects and features that describe these objects. This method is also called taxonomy, unsupervised pattern recognition. Purpose of classification- division of the population under consideration into homogeneous groups of objects (features) that are close to each other according to a certain criterion and differ from objects in other groups. Classification of signs is carried out on the basis of various coefficients of pair correlation. When grouping objects, this procedure is used as a preliminary stage for the selection and construction of classification features. When using this method, it is important to choose an adequate measure of proximity between classifying objects and classification algorithms. Among the cluster analysis algorithms, the following main types are distinguished: hierarchical algorithms; optimizing the specified classification quality criterion; search for "object condensation".
4. Latent-structural analysis allows, by answering respondents to a certain set of questions, to reveal their distribution according to some hidden (latent) feature. This sign cannot be measured directly, but the set of questions used by the researcher allows us to fix its various manifestations. This method refers to the method of statistical analysis of empirical data.
5. Factor analysis combines a group of methods for analyzing correlations of observed features. The main position of factorial analysis is that the groups of closely correlated characteristics observed in the study can be explained and quantitatively described by a small number of hidden factors. Factor analysis is a specific way of grouping features. Methods of factorial analysis set the number of factors. Factor analysis methods differ in the mathematical interpretation of the main assumption and, accordingly, in the methods of estimating the total number of hidden factors.
Methods used both on empirical
research level, as well as theoretical
This group of methods includes the following: abstraction, analysis and synthesis, induction and deduction, modeling, generalization, explanation, systematization, classification, etc. Consider their brief description.
I. Abstraction. The essence of the method consists in the mental abstraction from non-essential properties, connections, relations, objects and in the simultaneous selection, fixation of one or more aspects of these objects of interest to the researcher. The process of abstraction in the system of logical thinking is closely connected with other methods of research and, above all, with analysis and synthesis.
II. Analysis- a method of scientific research by decomposing an object into its component parts.
III. Synthesis represents the combination of the parts obtained during the analysis into something whole.
IV. Argumentation - logical process, the essence of which is that it substantiates truth our judgment (proof thesis) with the help of other judgments (i.e. arguments, arguments). Argumentation reaches its goal when the rules of proof are observed: the thesis of the proof must be formulated clearly and precisely; during the proof, the thesis must remain unchanged, i.e. the same proposition must be proved.
The main mistakes in the construction of the thesis: a) loss of the thesis; b) complete substitution of the thesis; c) partial substitution of the thesis.
To be persuasive, the arguments must be:
1) such provisions may serve as arguments, truth, which has been proven or no one doubts at all, i.e. arguments must be true;
2) arguments must be proven regardless of the thesis, i.e. the rule of their autonomous justification must be observed;
3) arguments must be consistent;
4) arguments must be are sufficient.
Consider briefly the content of the above requirements.
1. Requiring truth of arguments determined by the fact that they are the foundation on which the entire proof is built. Arguments must be such that no one doubts their indisputability or they must be proved earlier. Violation of this requirement results in two errors.
BUT. " False Argument”, i.e. used as an argument of a non-existent fact, a reference to an event that did not exist, etc.
B. " foundation anticipation"- this is when the truth of the argument is not established with certainty, but only assumed. In this case, unproven or arbitrarily taken positions are used as arguments.
2. Argument autonomy requirement means that the arguments must be proven regardless of the thesis. Otherwise, the argument itself will have to be proved. Therefore, before proving the thesis, it is necessary to check the arguments.
3. Argument Consistency Requirement means that they must not contradict each other.
4. Argument Sufficiency Requirement is determined by the fact that they in their totality must be such that the provable thesis necessarily follows from them. Violation of this requirement is often manifested in the fact that in the course of proof they use arguments that are logically unrelated to the thesis and therefore do not prove its truth. Meet here two mistakes : a) insufficiency of arguments, when they try to substantiate a very broad thesis with separate facts: generalization in this case will always be “too hasty”; b) excessive evidence. The principle “the more arguments, the better” is not always appropriate. The credibility of arguments should be understood not in terms of their number, but in terms of their weight and persuasive power.
Very often, authors make mistakes in the methods of proof, i.e. demonstration errors. They are connected with the lack of a logical connection between the arguments and the thesis, i.e. lack of connection between what is being proved, in relation to what exactly is being proved.
It often happens that a researcher cites numerous facts, cites solid documents, and refers to authoritative opinions. The outward impression is created that his speech is sufficiently reasoned, but upon closer examination it turns out that the ends do not meet. Initial positions - arguments " do not stick" with the end result - thesis. In general, this means that the lack of a logical connection between the arguments and the thesis is called the fallacy of "imaginary following".
You can name the forms of such a discrepancy:
Unjustified logical transition from a narrow area to a wider one;
The transition from what has been said with a condition to what has been said is unconditional.
In scientific work, for example, in a dissertation, it is very often necessary to prove not true but false judgments or incorrectness of the evidence of other researchers, i.e. to refute their arguments. Refutation, therefore, aims to destroy the evidence of other researchers by establishing the falsity or unfoundedness of their statements.
The rebuttal operation can be done in three ways: criticism of the thesis; criticism of arguments; criticism of the demonstration.
1. Criticism (refutation) of the thesis. Its purpose is to show the inconsistency (falsity or fallacy) of the thesis put forward by the proponent (offering something for discussion). The refutation of such a thesis can be direct or indirect. direct refutation is built in the form of reasoning, called " reduction to absurdity". The argument in this case proceeds as follows: first, they conditionally admit the truth of the position put forward by the proponent and deduce a consequence logically from it.
2. Criticism of the Arguments. Since the proof operation is the substantiation of the thesis with the help of previously established provisions, arguments (arguments) should be used, the truth of which is beyond doubt. Criticism of the arguments can be expressed in the fact that the opponent points to an inaccurate presentation of facts, the ambiguity of the procedure for generalizing statistical data, expresses doubts about the authority of the expert whose conclusion the proponent refers to, etc.
3. Criticism of the demonstration. They show that in the arguments of the proponent there is no logical connection between the arguments and the thesis. When the thesis does not follow from the arguments, it seems to hang in the air and is considered unfounded.
Both the criticism of the arguments and the criticism of the demonstration in themselves only destroy the proof.. It is impossible to claim that this also refutes the thesis of the opposite side. We can only say about it that it requires a new justification, since it relies on unconvincing arguments (arguments) or arguments (arguments) that are not directly related to the thesis.
v. Induction - a kind of rational (heuristic) assessment (interpretation) of facts that makes it possible to foresee or predict natural phenomena, social life with a certain degree of likelihood. The role of induction in the practice of scientific research is determined by the cognitive necessity of generalizations from experience: inductive generalizations are considered as empirical truths or empirical laws. Inductions are either complete or incomplete.. Complete induction - expressed by a deductive inference scheme. incomplete induction. In it, the number of similar cases is finitely-unlimited or infinite.
VI. Deduction (inference):
The transition in knowledge from the general to the particular and the individual from the general;
In the logic and methodology of science, the process of logical inference, which is the transition from premises to conclusions (consequences) based on the application of the rules of logic.
Deductive reasoning is used in the process of explanation, as well as in the course of substantiation of put forward hypotheses. Methods of deduction are studied by logic, theory of knowledge, methodology and psychology. Deduction is associated with analysis - the disclosure of the components of the premises of a deductive, meaningful conclusion, as well as with synthesis and induction.
VII. Modeling method- substitution of a real object to study the possible course of a process and phenomenon, solve problems, etc. Modeling - method of finding objects on their models; construction and study of models of real-life objects and phenomena and constructed objects to determine or improve their characteristics, rationalize the methods of their construction, control, etc. In this method, modern informatization tools are widely used.
The forms of modeling are varied and depend on the models used and the scope of modeling. By the nature of the models (measure, sample, norm) allocate subject and symbolic (information) modeling. The subject is called modeling, during which the study is carried out on a model that reproduces certain geometric, physical, dynamic or functional characteristics of the object of modeling - the original. With sign modeling models are diagrams, drawings, formulas, sentences in some alphabet.
Modeling is always used together with other general scientific and special research methods. It is especially closely related to experiment. Modeling necessarily involves the use of abstraction and idealization procedures.
VIII. Generalization - this is such a synthesis of knowledge when less general signs are excluded from the concept of the object under study and replaced by more general ones. Generalization is a transition from: separate facts, events to their identification in thoughts (inductive generalization); one concept, judgment (one thought), etc. to another more general concept (another more general thought), etc.
IX. Classification - the process of mental separation and subsequent unification of objects for any reason.
x. Systematization- the process of mental separation and subsequent unification of groups and classes on the basis of common features.
XI. Explanation- a form of logical reasoning in the analysis and generalization of facts. It is one of the main and most important functions of science. scientific explanation represents the coverage of connections between objects, phenomena, facts of the real world, in order to reveal such connections, find out the laws to which they obey, or determine the causal relationships of the objects under study. The quantitative characterization of the facts helps to strengthen the evidence of the arguments of the explanation.
In logic, there are several types of scientific explanation : causal, when logical inference or deduction is built on the basis of established causes that gave rise to the phenomena being explained; explanation of individual facts with the help of the laws to which they obey; an explanation of laws, when the regularities (correspondence corresponding to laws) to be revealed are sought to be brought under a general law or group of laws in order to show that they serve as a special case of general laws.
XII. Comparison - one of the most common methods of cognition; a word or expression containing the likening of one object to another, one situation to another. Compare - establish similarities or differences, compare. As a result of the comparison, something common is revealed that is inherent in two or more objects, and this, as you know, is a step on the way to the knowledge of patterns and laws. In order to the comparison was fruitful, it must satisfy the following requirements:
1. Only such phenomena and processes should be compared between which a certain objective commonality can exist.
2. For the cognition of objects, their comparison should be carried out according to the most important, essential (in terms of the cognitive task) features.
The historical method is used to study complex objects. It is used only where, in one way or another, the history of the object becomes the subject of research.
XIII. Measurement- a more accurate cognitive tool; the procedure for determining the numerical value of some quantity by means of a unit of measurement. The value of measurement is that it gives accurate quantitative information about the surrounding reality. The most important indicator of the quality of measurement, its scientific value is accuracy. It depends on the diligence of the scientist, on the methods applied by him and on the measuring instruments used.
XIV. Description- analysis of the results of scientific research. It can be in the form of a scientific report (short and complete), reference, etc. The description is carried out after the study. It contains the main results of the research.
Questions for self-examination
1. What factors influence the choice of research methods?
2. Name the classification of general research methods.
3. Methods of theoretical research, their characteristics.
4. Methods of empirical research, their classification.
5. Name the main characteristics of observation and its classification.
6. What are the most important surveillance requirements you know?
7. Name the main characteristics of the experiment and its classification.
8. What steps does the experiment plan include?
9. Give a description of the survey method of research.
10. Name the types of statistical methods and give a brief description of them.
11. Name the methods used both at the empirical level and at the theoretical level.
TOPIC 6. STRUCTURE AND CONTENT OF STAGES
Various methods are used. Empirical research is a separate group of methods that includes the indirect or direct collection of data obtained in the course of studying a phenomenon. Other methods include organizational, interpretative and data processing methods. It should also be noted that scientific empirical research is important to distinguish from theoretical.
Differences between empirical and theoretical research
Literally, "empirical" means "obtained by experience", that is, an empirical study - obtained in the course of studying the object of specific data. Thus, in an empirical study, there is a direct contact between the researcher and the object under study. Theoretical research takes place, roughly speaking, at the mental level. As the main empirical knowledge uses mainly experiment and observation of real objects (direct impact or observation of the studied phenomena). Empirical research is, first of all, the maximum exclusion of the influence of subjective components on the result of cognition. Theoretical knowledge in this regard is characterized by greater subjectivity, operating with ideal images and objects.
The structure of the empirical method of cognitionThe composition of empirical scientific research includes methods of study (observation and experiments); the results obtained through these methods (factual data); various procedures for translating the results obtained (“raw data”) into patterns, dependencies, facts. empirical research is not just doing an experiment; it is a complex one during which scientific hypotheses are confirmed or refuted, new patterns are revealed, etc.
Stages of empirical research
Empirical research, like any other method, consists of several steps, each of which is important for obtaining objective data. Let us list the main stages of empirical research. After the goal has been set, research objectives have been formulated, a hypothesis has been put forward, the researcher proceeds directly to the process of obtaining facts. This is the first stage of empirical research, when observational or experimental data are recorded in the course of work. At this stage, the results obtained are strictly evaluated; the experimenter tries to make the data as objective as possible, clearing them of side effects.
At the second stage of the empirical study, the results obtained during the first stage are processed. At this stage, the results undergo primary processing in order to find various patterns and relationships. Here, the data is classified, classified into different types, and the results obtained are described using special scientific terminology. Thus, the empirical study of any phenomenon or object is extremely informative. In the course of such cognition of reality, one can derive important patterns, make a certain classification, and reveal obvious connections between objects.
