Interpretive research methodology

Misyurov D.A. Dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas // Credo New. 2012. №2

by Dmitry Misyurov

The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with... more The article suggests dialectical formulas based on the binary notation as the development formulas: formula with dominant and the non-dominant elements; universal formula; formula with symbolic weight of elements; tautological formula. For example, it suggests an opportunity to use the dialectical formulas for modeling and artificial intelligence creation, etc.

What symbols

by Dmitry Misyurov

This article contains 12 questions about the symbols. What are your thoughts in response? This article contains 12 questions about the symbols. What are your thoughts in response?

An interpretive methodology applied to existential psychotherapy

by Martin Packer

Psicología interpretativa

by Martin Packer

Packer, M. (2007). Psicología interpretativa [Interpretive psychology]. In A. Reid & M. A. Aguilar (Eds.), Tratado de psicología social. Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana.

Evaluating an interpretive account

by Martin Packer

Packer, M. J., & Addison, R. B. (1989). Evaluating an interpretive account. In M. Packer & R. B. Addison (Eds.), Entering the circle: Hermeneutic investigation in psychology (pp. 275-292). Albany, NY: State University of New York Press.

Hermeneutic inquiry in the study of human conduct.

by Martin Packer

Packer, M. J. (1985). Hermeneutic inquiry in the study of human conduct. American Psychologist, 40, 1081-1093.

"Re-reading Hegel: Meaning and Subjectivity in the Phenomenology of Spirit"

by William J. Urban

class paper written December 1, 2011

Il n’y a pas de rapport sexuel: The Irresolvability of the Gadamer-Habermas Debate

by William J. Urban

class paper written Good Friday, April 6, 2012

"Advice to the Humanities scholar: Do some math!"

by William J. Urban

presentation delivered April 8, 2011

Absenteeism in the College Classroom

by Adam Knowlton

The central issue that this study seeks to address is the consistent absenteeism problems that post-secondary schools... more The central issue that this study seeks to address is the consistent absenteeism problems that post-secondary schools are experiencing. To address this problem, this study explored the experience of absenteeism from the perspectives of both students and teachers, to gain a fuller understanding of the nature, structure, and creation of absenteeism on college campuses.
To gather data, this study utilized a combination of convenience and typical case sampling. The students and teachers were interviewed at a location of their choosing in order to gain a richer understanding of the phenomenon of human reactions to absenteeism in post-secondary education by bringing the lived experiences of the participants to light.
This data lead to the following three themes: influence of student self-perception, influences outside the university, and influence of the university classroom.
The themes resulting from this study may prove useful to educators who are in the process of constructing their courses, allowing them to creatively address the concern of student attendance in their classrooms. Finally, the results of this study illustrate the need for students and teachers alike to make a continued effort to strive for a dialogic relationship within the classroom.

Myth, Place, and the Loss of Culture in Small-Town America: The Communication of Cultural Infringement in Waterloo, Nebraska

by Adam Knowlton

The central issue that this study sought to address was the loss of culture as a larger metropolis infringed upon a... more The central issue that this study sought to address was the loss of culture as a larger metropolis infringed upon a small rural community.  To address this problem, the purpose of this interpretive study was to understand how the citizens of Waterloo, Nebraska experience and communicate the loss of their village’s culture. To gather data, this study utilized a combination of convenience and typical case sampling.  The citizens were interviewed at a location of their choosing in order to gain a richer understanding of the phenomenon of human reactions to cultural infringement by bringing the lived experiences of the participants to light. This data lead to the myths of the bedroom community, and community as family.  The themes resulting from this study may prove useful for both the citizens of Waterloo, Nebraska and researchers alike as it illustrates how a community communicates and experiences the loss of their mythic sense of culture and place. Additionally, the values and myths associated with the metropolis’s infringement appear to simultaneously constrain action, while producing discussion. 

Response: Interpretive Social Science and Democratic Theory

by Mark Bevir

International Journal of Organization Theory and Behavior Volume 14, Number 4, Summer 2011

I summarize my views on democratic governance before responding to critics. Governance arose partly from the impact of... more I summarize my views on democratic governance before responding to critics. Governance arose partly from the impact of modernist social science on public policy and it limits the space for democratic action.  My preferred alternative is an interpretive social science inspiring more participatory and dialogic democratic practices.  In defending these arguments, I concentrate on the nature of interpretive social science and its relation to democratic theory.  I define interpretive social science in theoretical terms as based on recognition of the role of meanings in human life and the holistic and historical nature of meanings.  This interpretive social science does not lead to any particular methods or topics, but it does rule out reified and deterministic appeals to structures. Democratic renewal depends on promoting interpretive social science, not institutional blueprints

Advancing Family Business Research Through Narrative Analysis

by Alex Dawson

Family Business Review published online 19 September 2011
DOI: 10.1177/0894486511421487
Co-authored with Daniel Hjorth

Despite advances in family business research, the field would benefit from greater methodological rigor. However,... more Despite advances in family business research, the field would benefit from greater methodological rigor. However, rigor does not mean convergence of methodologies. In this article, the authors adopt a novel approach, based on narrative analysis, to address the succession process in a family business. This interpretive perspective is appropriate for family business studies, which address multifaceted and complex social constructs that are performed by different actors in multiple contexts. The analysis highlights five key themes centering on leadership style and succession, trust and communication, balance between agents, history and identity, and fear of losing one’s identity and social standing through the succession process.

Rethinking Britain's Role in the World for a New Decade: The Limits of Discursive Therapy and the Promise of Field Theory

by David McCourt

Published in 'British Journal of Politics and International Relations', 13, 2, 2011, 145-64.

This paper argues that while debate over the future of British foreign policy will doubtless invoke the notion of... more This paper argues that while debate over the future of British foreign policy will doubtless invoke the notion of Britain’s ‘role in the world’, the deep interconnection between Britain’s role as an analytical concept within the academic field and as a category within the political field renders such a starting point problematic. It underpins a tendency in British foreign policy to take descriptive statements for objective analysis, which has the result that the language of British foreign policy is saturated with clichés, historical tropes and bland platitudes, from the ‘special relationship’ to Acheson’s famous barb that Britain ‘has lost an empire and not yet found a role’. These tropic notions should not therefore be considered mere descriptions of Britain in the world: this language should instead be viewed as constitutive of British foreign policy. This paper consequently assesses two theoretical approaches that can cope with the heavily discursive nature of UK foreign policy: first, a form of discursive ‘therapy’ which attempts to denaturalize this language, which I find to be both necessary but also limited in the impact it can have; and second, field theory, which I show allows us to move beyond the level of discourse to the structure of British foreign policy knowledge and expertise creation, and which I find particularly promising for the attempt to say something new about the Britain in world politics for the 2010s.

" How Ideologies Work: A Critical Interactionist Approach

by Wayne Mellinger

‘Negotiating Life’ The Regulation of Human Cloning and Embryonic Stem Cell Research in Israel

by Barbara Prainsack

Israel endorses one of the world's most liberal regulations of embryonic stem cell (ESC) research and human cloning.... more Israel endorses one of the world's most liberal regulations of embryonic stem cell (ESC) research and human cloning. After an introduction to the technologies and their regulation in many Western countries and on an international level, I discuss ethical and moral concerns formulated in Western countries, many of which have no room in the bioethical discourse in Israel. The traditional argument is to explain this with religion: particularly, by arguing that Jewish religious teachings lead to a conception of ESC research and cloning as morally unproblematic. Nevertheless, in order to fully understand the Israeli situation, I argue that we have to take into consideration prevalent political narratives. The ‘demographic threat’ that the Jewish majority population in Israel will be outnumbered by non-Jews in the not too distant future provides a context of risk to the discourse on ‘Israeli cells’. Contexts of risk extend the scope of self-governing of individuals by predetermining ways of preventing particular risks. Instead of there being a consistent governmental policy on how to regulate medical technologies, the Israeli bioethics discourse shaped the regulations on ESC research and human cloning by providing decision-makers with particular understandings of what is ‘thinkable and sayable’. A discussion of the deliberation of the Prohibition of Genetic Intervention Law of 1999, which was extended in March 2004 for another 5-year period, will illustrate this claim.

SIGNIFICANCE OF IT GOVERNANCE IN TRANSFORMATIONAL GOVERNMENT

by Hamed Qahri Saremi

Interpretive empirical political science: What makes this not a subfield of qualitative methods

by Dvora Yanow

From:  Qualitative Methods Newsletter 1/2 (Organized Section, American Political Science Association, ISSN 1544-8045; Fall): 9-13. 

Mentoring and Reporting Research: A Concern for Aesthetics

by Donna Alvermann

Co-authored with George G. Hruby

Comparing the Uncertain Terrain of Local Cultural Governance in Australia & New Zealand

by Emma Blomkamp

Peer-reviewed conference paper, presented at the the 2011 Australian Political Studies Association Conference, Canberra, 28 September 2011.

Local governments in Australia and New Zealand have long contributed to the cultural life of their communities through... more Local governments in Australia and New Zealand have long contributed to the cultural life of their communities through the provision or facilitation of libraries, community halls, public art, community arts programmes, community festivals, and other public facilities.  Yet the place and purpose of cultural policy at the local government level has never been clear in either of these countries.  Requirements to report on outcomes have only complicated the terrain for local authorities faced with limited resources and whose influence is mediated by various other governmental and non-governmental agencies.
This paper makes the case for conducting an interpretive comparison of cultural governance at the local level in Australia and New Zealand.  Although this level of government is characterised by a diverse range of structures and policies, there is sufficient similarity in the legislative framework, traditions and organisational culture of local government in these two countries to compare the common challenges they face in defining and evaluating their role in community cultural development. 
Exploring the tensions implicit in a post-positivist comparative study, this paper argues that an interpretive approach usefully highlights both the contingency and the power of particular discourses in governance and in the cultural sector.  Such an analysis draws attention to the difficulty in evaluating the impact of local strategies and programmes, particularly when dealing with the uncertain and often intangible outcomes of cultural policy.