Non-Positivist Methodologies

Non-positivists study the internal processes represented through emotions, motives and the individual’s interpretation of social reality.

• Example: In studying religion, a non-positivist approach might explore what being religious means to different individuals, rather than simply quantifying religious affiliation. Researchers might interview participants to understand how they interpret spiritual experiences, personal beliefs, and practices in their daily lives. This type of research highlights personal meaning over generalization.

They also suggested the understanding of social reality and not prediction of events.

• Example: A non-positivist approach to studying youth subcultures, like skateboarding communities, would focus on understanding how participants interpret their own identities, values, and experiences within the subculture, rather than predicting future trends in youth behavior. This research might explore why individuals are drawn to skateboarding, what it represents to them, and how they create a sense of belonging, without trying to generalize or forecast behaviors of future youth groups.

They refrained from formulation of generalized universal theories.

• Example: In studying marriage and family structures, non-positivists avoid creating universal theories about family life that apply to all societies. Instead, they focus on understanding how marriage and family are experienced differently across cultures and individual situations. For instance, instead of trying to define a “normal” family structure, a non-positivist might explore how diverse cultural, social, and economic factors shape family dynamics in various communities, recognizing that no single framework can universally explain family life across different societies.

They also highlighted impossibility of total objectivity and hence, were accommodative of subjectivity in research.

• Example: In researching the impact of colonialism on indigenous communities, a non-positivist approach would acknowledge that the researcher’s own cultural background, values, and experiences inevitably influence their interpretation of the findings. Rather than claiming complete neutrality, the researcher would reflect on how their perspectives shape the research process and conclusions. For example, a researcher from a post-colonial society studying indigenous resistance movements might openly discuss their personal stance on colonialism and how this may inform their empathy towards the subjects, allowing a more transparent and subjective interpretation of the social reality being studied.

They emphasized upon using qualitative methods and not the Scientific methods.

• Example: A non-positivist approach to studying mental health would prioritize qualitative methods such as in-depth interviews or ethnographic fieldwork to understand the personal experiences of individuals living with mental health conditions, rather than using quantitative surveys or experiments. For instance, a researcher might conduct narrative interviews with people suffering from depression to explore how they interpret their symptoms, their coping strategies, and the meaning they attach to their experiences. This approach focuses on the richness of individual stories and subjective experiences, rather than trying to generalize or measure mental health with statistical tools.