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Non-positive Approaches to Research in the Third Sector: Empowered Policy-making
Citation
Alessandrini, M, Non-positive Approaches to Research in the Third Sector: Empowered Policy-making, Conference Working Papers Series Volume VIII - siena, Italy, 2012, 10-13 July 2012, Siena, Italy, pp. 1-17. (2012) [Refereed Conference Paper]
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Copyright Statement
Copyright 2012 The Author
Official URL: http://www.istr.org/
Abstract
This paper defines, describes and discusses non-positivism and demonstrates its
application to the analysis of the structures, processes and outcomes found in and
delivered by third sector non-government organisations [NGOs]. The emergence of the
discipline of political science brought with it a widespread conviction that the
application of the positivist approach was necessary to deliver robust and valid research
findings. A parallel school of thought rejected this view, refuting positivist claims of
objectivity and assumptions of a superior form of knowledge. Non-positivism is ethat
which is not positivistf but has other fundamental characteristics. While positivism is
wholly empirical, attributing to the researcher skills and insights not available to the
research subjects, a non-positivist perspective maintains that evidenced based reasoning
can be used incorporating a voice for those providing the research data. Many nonpositivists
reject the concept of human eresearch subjectsf, as this implies a
methodologically unsound separation of the researcher and the researched. Nonpositivist
data is collected transparently, emphasising ethics, and no particular data type
is prioritised; no voice is given credence at the expense of another. Non-positivism as a
term emerged in response to the dominance of the positivist perspective in the social
sciences, but it contributes much more than simply a rebuttal of positivism and has a
long and glorious history. The principles of the positivist approach to research on
human social matters have always been controversial and hotly debated. Positivism has
been a popular and highly influential approach to research in the natural and social
sciences, contending that a rigorous and appropriate scientific research structure is likely
result in the discovery of the truth [Bevir and Rhodes, 2004]. Non-positivists recognise
that data collected through a positivist approach, such as empirical data, is important and
relevant, but reject the positivist treatment. Several strands of this approach have
emerged that emphasise particular aspects of the approach. Hermeneutics,
phenomenology and interpretivism are examples [Blaikie, 1993]. More recently, the use
of storytelling through a multiple perspective framework has emerged as a powerful
technique for collecting and interpreting data, and constructing enlightened accounts of
policy development and implementation episodes [Rhodes, 2011]. The non-positivist
approach is particularly appropriate for the study of non-government organisations
(NGOs), enabling a discursive empowering approach that returns value to the
organisations to use at their discretion. In the case study used to illustrate a nonpositivist
approach in action, a range of methods and data types is used including
document search, key informant interviews, observation, and secondary data in the form
of statistics. This research based paper describes the theory, provides a context by
exploring its historical dimension and demonstrates non-positivism in use in the case of
non-government organisations.
Item Details
Item Type: | Refereed Conference Paper |
---|---|
Research Division: | Human Society |
Research Group: | Political science |
Research Field: | Australian government and politics |
Objective Division: | Law, Politics and Community Services |
Objective Group: | Government and politics |
Objective Field: | Government and politics not elsewhere classified |
UTAS Author: | Alessandrini, M (Dr Megan Alessandrini) |
ID Code: | 83170 |
Year Published: | 2012 |
Deposited By: | Government |
Deposited On: | 2013-03-04 |
Last Modified: | 2018-03-27 |
Downloads: | 2 View Download Statistics |
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