One thing which I have noticed whilst thinking about and exploring my chosen research topic and researching different research approaches is that often no ultimate correct answer can be achieved because the knowledge gained through research is relative to the individual perspective of the researcher. It is important therefore that the researcher is always aware of this and is self-critical in their work.
I remind myself that I am undergoing the project not to reach any correct answer but to uncover a range of possibilities and deepen not only my own understanding of the given subject but also to provide other practitioners in my field of work with the knowledge gained from completing such a project.
Hi Sarah-Louise,
ReplyDeleteThe issue of relexivity has been a constant thought during the module for me too.
Your point about "providing other practitioners in [your] field of work" with any recommendations or findings is so true. It can be easy to interpret data in a way that suits our expectations, especially when a work-based project means that we have first-hand experience of our topic of research.
Have you found any strategies to ensure that your perspective remains as neutral as possible? The only strategy that I employed was to ask others to check my interpretation of the findings against the data itself. I found that this stopped me from exaggerating results to suit my conclusions!
I would be interested to hear of any strategies that you have used.
Kind regards,
Laura
Hi Sarah-Louise,
ReplyDeleteYou make some interesting points regarding 'reflexivity'. I think your statement is true in any research project but especially in the situation of the 'teacher- researcher' as it can be very difficult to be objective when you know what you are trying to achieve. I think it important to remember that with social research it is important that you don't seek to try and prove something but rather say 'I'm going to try this and lets see what happens' you must be open to possible outcomes than those that you have anticipated. You show within your blog that you have an understand the concept of reflexivity and how it has been evident in your research.
Regards
Melissa