Abstract

Educational research enquiries differ based on philosophical beliefs and assumptions regarding researchers’ explicitly stated views. This paper critically explores the most dominant philosophical stances in social research sciences, namely positivism, interpretivism and pragmatism. It begins with an overview of the role of the aforementioned beliefs and assumptions in shaping research. It then delves into the epistemology, ontology and value views underlying each philosophical belief to examine its strengths and weaknesses. This discussion might be beneficial for researchers who encounter problems in determining designs for their research.

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