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Barbara kawulich

Introduction

one of the challenges facing the teacher of research methods is that students sometimes find it difficult to understand the role that theory plays in developing and conducting research. This was a problem for me in my own experience as a graduate student in the 1980s and early 1990s. The research courses i was required to take in my master’s and doctoral programmes of study were courses on statistics. in those courses, research theory was rarely discussed and, when it was, it was presented in terms of positivism. i believe this may have been the approach in many universities and, as a consequence, today’s methods teachers may lack a broader perspective on the relationship between theory and research; or, like me, they may have had to do a large amount of self-directed searching. i believe that a sound understanding of the relation of theory to research practice is fundamental to research methods education. in this chapter, i will share some of the issues about theory that i have found to be important in teaching research methods.

What is Theory?

Kurtines and Silverman (1999) define theory as an explanatory statement used to help explain and understand relations among variables, how they operate and the processes involved. The importance of theory lies in its ability to assist the researcher to identify and organize the connections among various phenomena that may seem unrelated. Researchers need a particular theoretical perspective from the outset to help them answer ‘why’ questions and to explain various cases or units of analysis in certain situations; theories determine the relationship between concepts that are carefully defined, ways to measure those concepts and what influences them (McTavish and Loether, 2002). Without theory, students tend to come up with questions that are not thought through for a particular setting and are, therefore, not meaningful for the members of that context. Their methods may not be appropriate for the situation and their results may be hard to justify, if not unfounded. Theory should drive the research process from beginning to end, providing a framework for action and for understanding.

in discussions in the literature, the term theory is used in three ways. First, it is used to reflect specifically explicated theories that make up paradigms, such

as identity theory or social construction theory used in symbolic interactionism.

second, it is portrayed more implicitly in a body of literature that provides a framework for understanding of a subject, such as the literature available on the topic of reading comprehension. Third, theory is used implicitly to describe the researcher’s assumptions and beliefs about the topic under study, as in sharing one’s theoretical perspective on a topic. While using specifically explicated theories is preferable, those who teach RM will have to consider the time available to devote to teaching about theory and the level of students they teach – that is, whether they are teaching undergraduate or graduate students. However one defines theory in his or her research, that definition should be described in detail and justified in the writing to explain to the reader how it has directed and/or influenced the design and implementation of the study and how it affected the analysis and interpretation of the data.

notions related to theory in social scientific research are paradigm, concept, construct and proposition. Not surprisingly, students sometimes find it difficult to distinguish between them all and to understand their relationship to one another.

What is the distinction between a paradigm and a theory and why is it important to our understanding of theory? Babbie (2001) distinguishes between paradigms and theories, defining the former as general frameworks or viewpoints and the latter as sets of interrelated statements that are used to explain some aspect of social life. These theories flesh out the paradigms, offering an explanation for what we observe, while the paradigms offer a way of looking (see Maree, chapter 4; and Wagner and okeke, chapter 5). silver (1983) views theory somewhat differently:

she views it as a way to perceive reality or a means for expressing one’s perception of the world. it enables the reader to enter into the researcher’s world to understand reality as he or she does. While Babbie defines paradigms and theories as separate but related concepts, Silver’s definition of theory incorporates the two conceptual definitions.

anfara and Mertz (2006) provide an excellent example of the relationship between paradigms, theories, concepts, constructs and propositions, using Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of needs. as a tool for understanding human motivation, Maslow describes various needs that must be met, some of which are more fundamental and necessary than others. in this example, the needs themselves are viewed as the concepts, the levels of needs are illustrated as constructs and these needs are arranged hierarchically (propositions). Maslow showed how lower order needs must be fulfilled before higher order needs; therefore, he concluded, one is motivated to fulfil those more basic needs (theory). Thus, a combination of the definitions of the terms (paradigms, theory, propositions, constructs and concepts) by Babbie, silver, and anfara and Mertz, may elucidate for students how concepts are related to constructs, which are arranged according to propositions, which make up theories, which flesh out paradigms (see Figure 3.1).

What is the Relationship of Theory to Practice?

in his discussion of theory driven research, Willer (1992) states that the way theory is structured determines how the research proceeds. he argues the value of viewing theory driven research as empirical research (which students often think of as meaning ‘experimental’ or ‘quantitative’), whether quantitative or qualitative. as noted previously, this theoretical frame may be either tacit/implicit or overt/explicit.

Tacit or implicit theory might be described as what you think is going on in the study, while overt or explicit theory would be the specific theoretical framework that assists in the identification of important concepts, operational definitions, development of research questions and interpretation of the data. Theory drives our actions in daily life and in research, whether or not we are aware of that theoretical frame.

one’s philosophical and theoretical perspectives, both tacit and overt, drive one’s approach to research (lecompte and Preissle, 1993). it is important for students to learn that this applies to any published research literature; they must also be aware of the theoretical frame they bring to their own research.

every discipline has its own implicit theoretical framework(s) based on the vocabulary, concepts and explicit theories used in that discipline; these theories determine the types of things that are of interest and the types of questions one asks (Merriam, 1998). in teaching action research to classroom teachers, where the emphasis for me is to teach them techniques that enable them to improve their practice, I do not enter into a specific discussion of explicit theories. I require them, however, to share the implicit theory and related assumptions about the topic under study and to seek out literature on their topic to inform and underpin their study. in this way, their tacit theoretical frameworks become apparent to them and aid them to put aside their personal orientations to view the data neutrally. The works of others, found in the literature review on the topic under study, further provide them with a theoretical framework for developing and understanding their research. The literature provides a basis for understanding, a basis for identifying gaps in the literature and a basis for making a comparison between one’s research findings and the existing literature.



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Figure 3.1 The relationship of concepts to constructs to propositions to theories to paradigms

McTavish and loether (2002) also point out the value of the literature review as a means for understanding how prior theory has affected others’ work, what concepts are important to the topic under study, how others define various concepts, and what questions other researchers deem to be important. Theories are used to guide research design and to let us know when the research is complete; McTavish and loether contend that theory is critical for identifying concepts and the situations in which these concepts may undergo change. Many instructors require students to set aside a separate chapter for the literature review as a means to ‘structure the inquiry, identify gaps in the literature, outline principal theoretical lines of thought, and generate potential research possibilities’ (clandinin and connelly, 2000, 41). however, clandinin and Connelly suggest that the literature may be interwoven throughout the final research product in a less formal way than having a separate literature review chapter.

one cannot properly implement a study without a guiding theory. as lecompte and Preissle state:

research designs are improved radically – in applicability and generalizability, in credibility and validity, and in precision and reliability – by explicit attention to the influence of theory throughout the design and implementation process (lecompte and Preissle, 1993, 137).

Quantitative studies that do not include general theory, particularly those oriented toward causal analysis, may leave the researcher unable to explain why some variables affect other variables (Mahoney, 2004). sherraden (2000) suggests that theory provides an integral basis for knowledge building in applied social research and in basic research alike. an exception to this is the use of grounded theory approaches, which are used to generate theory by grounding the findings in the data, rather than from a particular theoretical perspective. grounded theory also may be used to test theory or to further develop it.

The pervading role of theory is summarized in Figure 3.2. This figure illustrates that theory is important to all aspects of research. Theory directs the types of questions asked and determines which potential participants can best inform one’s study. For example, in her study of hiV-positive adults’ meaning making, viewed through transformational learning theory, Merriam (2006) illustrates how sample selection was guided by her research question, which was derived from her theoretical framework.

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Figure 3.2 The role of theory in research

in my role as a teacher of research methods, i frequently use my own ethnographic research as an example of how various theories yield different types of questions for study. For example, from the perspective of feminist theory, my investigation of Muscogee (creek) culture (kawulich, 1998, 2004), which is a matrilineal subculture of the patriarchal mainstream culture, focuses on these women’s choices and their perspectives of their role in the culture and how their roles differ from those of the men in that culture, while a cultural theory approach might focus on how they perceive their socialization in Muscogee (creek) culture to have affected their life decisions. using identity theory, by contrast, leads to questions about what it means to be a creek woman. if i took a critical theory approach to my work, i might ask, ‘how do the women of this culture perceive that their role as leaders differs from that of the male leaders?’ The theoretical viewpoint guides my thinking in developing questions, selecting participants, collecting data in various ways, in analysing that data and in presenting it. if theory determines the types of problems to be studied, it also provides the framework for looking at a problem.

The theory and, hence, the problem determine what questions need to be answered by the study. The questions lead the researcher to use a particular methodology, guided by a theory that is appropriate to answer those questions. Theory and methodology also direct the researcher’s role in selecting and interacting with participants and in determining what data should be collected to answer the research questions. Theory also determines one’s approach to analysing the data collected and how one interprets, presents and applies the findings of the research (lecompte and Preissle, 1993). data viewed through a particular theoretical frame would generate different interpretations, similar to the way various theories generate different questions.

Is the Use of Theory Discipline-specific?

Williams (2000) suggests that theory used to guide research often is ‘derived from a particular specialism’ (p. 158). Various disciplines tend to use particular theories more often than others and there seem to be differences in how various disciplines view the use of theory. in some disciplines, it is evident (from a historical perspective) why certain theoretical perspectives predominate. For example, in anthropology, several key figures of the twentieth century were in some way associated with institutional anthropology in new York city with the american Museum of natural history. Frank Boas, who was an assistant curator at the museum in the late 1800s, for example, trained or worked with many of the twentieth-century’s anthropologists, including Margaret Mead, who was an adjunct professor at columbia university with Boas, Ruth Benedict and alfred Kroeber, among others. Boas’s influence shifted the focus of prior anthropological work from the traditional typological/racialist physical anthropological approach to one that focused on the individual in the culture and on how the culture was structured internally. his approach emphasized historical study (looking at

processes exhibited in cultural traits) and psychological study (looking at how individuals from different cultures think and view the world). Boas’s influence on the field of anthropology coloured how anthropologists of today view their discipline and how they conduct their research (lesser, 2004).

another example of the relationship of theory to discipline exists in sociology.

Ritzer (2000) notes that, in preparing his fifth edition of Modern Sociological Theory, he once again added systems theory to the book because of the increased visibility of and attention to the work of luhmann in international sociological research. Ritzer describes the theories included in his book as having stood the test of time, as having wide application and as addressing important social issues. he suggests that these theories developed from the importance of such social factors as political revolutions that addressed social order, the rise of capitalism and socialism, the increasing importance of feminism, urbanization, changes resulting from religious influences and the growth of science and technology. These factors have influenced how various sociologists over the last two hundred years view the world around them and, thus, have influenced the generation of and reliance upon various theories found in the discipline.

so, of what importance is theory to the research in various disciplines? in education, classroom practice relies on tacit and formal theory alike, as it is carried out within the teachers’ framework of assumptions and beliefs (deng, 2004). Prevalent theories used in education include constructivism, change theory, leadership theory, cognitive theory and others, such as theories by Bandura, Vygotsky or Maslow. The discipline of sociology relies on such theories as structural functionalism, conflict theory, symbolic interactionism and exchange theory among others (Ritzer, 2000). The discipline of psychology also emphasizes the use of theory in research design, implementation and interpretation. of the many branches of psychology, only a couple will be mentioned here. For example, typical theories found in educational psychology include Bandura’s social cognitive learning theory; Vygotsky’s (1989) cultural historical theory of psychological development; and Piaget’s cognitive development theory. counselling and psychotherapy studies frequently use such theories as psychoanalytic, adlerian, existential, person-centred; gestalt, reality, behaviour, cognitive behaviour or family systems theories in therapy (corey, 1996).

anthropologists readily rely on theoretical frameworks for guiding research design, implementation and interpretation. Bernard (1994) describes two basic types of theory used in anthropological studies. ideographic theory is elemental theory that applies to a single case, while nomothetic theory applies to many cases.

Typical theories associated with anthropological studies are cultural materialism, sociobiology, structuralism, structural Marxism and, psychological and cognitive idealism, for example, harris (2001).

other disciplines, such as archaeology and social work, do not rely as heavily on the use of theory. in the case of archaeology, Bamforth (1999) suggests that, since the 1960s, theory has become a primary pursuit of some archaeologists;

yet, he notes, the practical, applied nature of archaeology, that is, the precise

collection of artefacts and features and their relationship, is very concrete and may be considered by some to be atheoretical. he notes that archaeology is rooted in observation and evidence, but the interpretation is grounded in both explicit and implicit theoretical background knowledge and generalizations. archaeology typically is not carried out to test hypotheses; therefore, experimental designs are not appropriate. Further, this discipline does not lend itself to replication; hence, Bamforth suggests that theory should be used in archaeological studies to help the researcher identify evidence, design data collection procedures, assess the strength of findings and enhance understanding. These studies typically use mid-range theories to connect archaeological data to human behaviour or use culture theory to explain that data. Mid-range theories are those which contain fairly concrete concepts that can be operationally defined and empirically tested, as opposed to grand theories, which are more abstract and lend themselves less to empirical testing. These (and other) theories and their uses in this discipline have received increased emphasis in discussion in the past decade (Bamforth, 1999).

social workers also rely on the use of theory. however, Thyer (2001) believes that much of social work research is not theory-based and that little attention is paid to theory or at least it is rarely articulated. Thyer suggests that not all research needs to be theory-based. For example, he lists the following types of research as being atheoretical: needs assessments; descriptive studies; epidemiological research;

some forms of qualitative inquiry; policy analysis; demographic studies; cross-cultural studies; meta-analyses; studies on methodological innovations; historical studies; empirically oriented risk assessments; predictive studies; evaluations of clinical interventions; agency programmes or community practice. Yet designing these types of research with a theoretical underpinning could provide a deeper, richer interpretation of results.

Williams (2000) suggests that there is a trend toward preparation of social researchers, rather than sociologists or educationalists, for example: ‘What is odd then about considering social research as a discipline, is that its raison d’etre is a set of tools for investigation’ (p. 163). social research, he points out, does not have a body of theory that explains what the world is like. While it has its foundation in epistemology as the framework for using methods for investigating a problem, Williams notes, it lacks ontological foundations that other disciplines have. he emphasizes the importance of the role of theory in social research, when he states that producing social researchers with no grounding in a particular discipline is similar to producing technicians who conduct research without regard for theoretical implications and these technicians may conduct research that produces untestable results.

in a recent informal survey of 22 graduate level research methods texts from the fields of education, anthropology, sociology, psychology and general social sciences, i found that four did not address theory, 11 addressed the role of theory in a few pages of one chapter, four of them devoted a chapter to the subject of theory and three of them addressed theory as an integral part of research and covered the role of theory in the research process throughout the book (though one of these