For a correct interpretation of sociological research, understanding philosophy is essential. It presents principles and approaches to thinking and acquiring knowledge about the world (Moon & Blackman, 2017). Any study begins with selecting an area of interest, determining its philosophical orientation, and choosing a research approach. This paper examines the philosophical paradigm of the theme of student loan debt of African-American graduates and how the latter affects their ability to perform in the housing market.
Determining philosophical orientation affects the choice of the most appropriate research design. Studying student loans of African-American graduates and their influence on the future can be implemented through post-positivism. This paradigm’s ontological assumption suggests the existence of a single reality but indicates that it cannot be fully and precisely learned (Burkholder & Burbank, 2020). Student loans can significantly affect housing, but the study cannot cover all students and include all factors affecting future opportunities. Epistemology is the study of knowledge, its origin, and methods of obtaining it (Babbie, 2017).
For post-positivists, the desire for objective truth is essential, but simultaneously, they consider the influence of the scientist’s knowledge and biases on the observed phenomenon and the formation of assumptions about it. Therefore, it is necessary to use a mixed approach, which combines qualitative and quantitative ones (Burkholder, 2020). They will provide the most comprehensive understanding of the topic – for example, quantitative methods based on statistics, and qualitative ones focusing on the causes of the problem.
Thus, in studying the influence of student loans among African-American graduates on housing, the philosophical orientation is post-positivism. In this paradigm, the ontological assumption is one reality, and the epistemological – is the impossibility of entirely objective truth, but the desire for it. These assumptions justify the choice of a mixed approach to inquiry, which includes qualitative and quantitative methods. The use of this approach is necessary since there is no single perfect method of knowing reality.
References
Babbie, E. (2017). Human inquiry and science. In Babbie, E. Basics of social research (7th ed.) (pp. 1-30). Cengage Learning.
Burkholder, G. J. & Burbank, P. M. (2020). Philosophical foundations and the role of theory in research. In Burkholder, G. J., Cox, K. A., Crawford, L. M., & Hitchcock, J. H. (Eds.). Research design and methods: An applied guide for the scholar-practitioner (pp. 13-35). SAGE Publications.
Burkholder, G. J. (2020). Introduction to research. In Burkholder, G. J., Cox, K. A., Crawford, L. M., & Hitchcock, J. H. (Eds.). Research design and methods: An applied guide for the scholar-practitioner (pp. 3-13). SAGE Publications.
Moon, K. & Blackman, D. (2017). A guide to ontology, epistemology, and philosophical perspectives for interdisciplinary researchers. Integration and Implementation Insights. Web.