Positivist Methodology in Social Sciences
The use of positivism as a research method in the social sciencesdates back to August Comte, who wanted to institute a methodology based onfacts rather than speculation. For Comte, the social sciences should dealwith scientific laws instead of contemplation (Marcuse, 1941, p. 345).This "scientific method" continues to be the dominant method of conducting This paper argues that though positivism has contributed to thedevelopment of "value-free" social science and sociology. The first partof this paper examines positivism's contributions to social scienceresearch. These contributions include creating rules of research thatcontinue to be followed today. The positivist research method has allowedsociologists to study the nature and structure of social organizations likethe family, social class and political groups. Positivism has further ledto the development of statistical research, which has given the socialsciences a firmer analytical ground. However, this paper also argues that positivism has several importantshortcomings. First, positivism is only concerned with observablephenomenon and misses nuanced effects that are not readily observable.
Instead of focusingsolely on origins, the natural sciences are more concerned with empiricalobservations. Comte's writings on "The Positive Philosophy" mandated thedevelopment of a scientific method studying human society and behavior. In more modern examples, numerous studies have triedto find a link between violence on television and violent tendencies on thepart of the viewer. Finally, by limiting its observations to things that already exist,positivism remains descriptive rather than normative. Furthermore, when the facts no longer supporta theory, the said theory is then refuted. Furthermore, he also found a positivecorrelation between living in an urban area -- where Protestantism enjoyedgreater support -- and higher suicide rates. A straightpositivist approach, concerned with teasing out singular cause and effectrelationships, would be inadequate to study the complex interaction ofthese different social institutions in determining social behavior. Inorder to be gain legitimacy, a sociological theory must be constantlychecked, tested and upheld. This increasedsocial isolation led to increased suicide rates (Durkheim 18##). Rather, this social issue would most likely result from aconfluence of factors, including poverty, failing schools, the socializingeffects of media and the growing number of single-parent families. Also, in modern societies, it is becoming more difficult to discernwhere the influence of one social institution begins and ends. In addition to the concept of socialisolation, for example, Durkheim also proposed that an "invisible" moralforce also kept many people from committing suicide. By focusing on discoveringthe observable facts, a positivist thinker could miss factors that arehidden. In looking towards the moral forces, Durkheim moved from positivism torealism, a methodology that also examines underlying factors of socialbehavior that are not always readily observable.
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