Demystifying Research Paradigms: Navigating Ontology, Epistemology, and Axiology in Research

Authors

Lynette Pretorius, Monash UniversityFollow

Abstract

A sound understanding of research paradigms is crucial for developing coherent and philosophically grounded research designs, particularly in the humanities and social sciences. This paper offers an accessible overview of the most common research paradigms: positivism, post-positivism, constructivism, social constructionism, interpretivism, pragmatism, and critical realism. These paradigms differ in their approaches to ontology (the nature of reality), epistemology (the nature of knowledge), and axiology (the role of values in research). The paper also discusses the methodological and ethical implications of these paradigms. Reflexivity and ethical responsibility are emphasised, where researchers must account for how their own biases and values influence their work. By exploring these paradigms and their philosophical foundations, this paper aims to help researchers identify the paradigm that best aligns with their views about the world, ultimately enabling them to coherently design studies that are methodologically sound, ethically informed, and practically relevant. This article contributes to academic discourse by offering a clear and practical guide to research paradigms, fostering a deeper understanding of the philosophical underpinnings that shape research practices across disciplines.

Keywords

research paradigms, ontology, epistemology, axiology, methodology

Author Bio(s)

Dr. Lynette Pretorius is an award-winning educator and researcher in the fields of academic language, literacy, research skills, and research methodologies. She has experience teaching undergraduate, postgraduate, and graduate research students, including supervising Ph.D. students. Lynette is the author of multiple journal articles, and two academic books focused on the experiences of graduate research students in academia. She has qualifications in Medicine, Science, Education, as well as Counselling, and her research interests include doctoral education, academic identity, student wellbeing, AI literacy, and autoethnography. Lynette is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy – an international honour awarded to educators who demonstrate a thorough understanding of, and a strong commitment to, teaching and learning approaches which foster high-quality student learning. Please direct correspondence to lynette.pretorius@monash.edu

Acknowledgements

I did not receive any specific grants from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors for the preparation or publication of this manuscript. I disclose that I earn a small income from my YouTube channel, where I have previously posted videos discussing the topics covered in this manuscript. This manuscript is exempt from ethical approval as it does not include any data collected through research. This manuscript was previously made available via pre-print on Monash University’s institutional research repository. The pre-print can be accessed here: https://doi.org/10.26180/27013843 It is also important to note that this manuscript is an academic version of a blog post that I wrote for my website in February 2024. In recognition of the numerous requests for an academic source that could be referenced in articles, books, and theses, I decided to convert it into this short article. The original blog post can be found here: https://www.lynettepretorius.com/ the_scholars_way_blog/demystifying-research-paradigms/ I acknowledge that I used a customised version of ChatGPT 4 (OpenAI, https://chat.openai.com/) to help me refine my phrasing during the preparation of both the original blog post and this manuscript. The output from ChatGPT 4 was adapted to reflect my own style and voice, as well as during the peer review process. I take full responsibility for the final content of this manuscript.

Publication Date

12-1-2024

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike 4.0 International License.

DOI

10.46743/2160-3715/2024.7632

Recommended APA Citation

Pretorius, L. (2024). Demystifying research paradigms: Navigating ontology, epistemology, and axiology in research. The Qualitative Report, 29(10), 2698-2715. https://doi.org/10.46743/2160-3715/2024.7632

ORCID ID

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8998-7686

ResearcherID

JJE-5868-2023