Research Paradigm Article 2022

Running head: RESEARCH PARADIGM 1
Research paradigm
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RESEARCH PARADIGM 2
Introduction
The article by Professor Charles Kivunja and Professor Ahmed Bawa Kuyini is based on
application and understanding of the research paradigms in the field of education. In their
article, they define research Paradigm as the beliefs of the researcher about the world he/she lives
in. They suggest that research paradigm definitions depend on the perspective of different
researchers. Besides, the article defines research paradigms as central point in which researchers
give an examination of the methodological aspects in their research project (Kivunja & Kuyini,
2017). They do so to determine which methods will be used and how the data for their project
will be analyzed. The article gives an analysis of the essential elements of the research paradigm
based on pertinent literature. The report states that the research paradigm comprises of the four
parts such as ontology, epistemology, axiology and methodology.
Epistemology
This is a Greek word that means knowledge. In the research field, epidemiology
describes how people know something. It is defined as the process of understanding the truth and
reality about something. It reflects on the human knowledge that researchers need when
communicating or interacting with other people.
Ontology
This is a branch of philosophy involving the assumption that people make to believe the
reality of something. It is described as a philosophical study of existence and basic knowledge
that exist in people (Kivunja & Kuyini, 2017). Ontology examines the beliefs of the people
involved in research about nature. It includes the assumptions that people make so that they can
believe in nature and essence in a social phenomenon setting.

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Methodology
This is the design, approaches, methods and procedures used in research to investigate on
something. It involves data collection and analysis of the data to get the fact and aim of the
paradigm research (Kivunja & Kuyini, 2017). Methodology articulates for flow and logic
systematic processes followed by development of the research project. This is aimed at gaining
the skills and knowledge regarding the research problem.
Axiology
This is the ethical issues which need to be considered in planning for the research
proposal. It involves consideration of the philosophical approaches to make the right decisions.
In the implementation of ethics, the four principles to be considered include; accuracy, privacy,
property and accessibility.
The discussion has lead to the controversy among researchers within a specified period
because both evidence in the literature and our experiences is supervising the HDR of the
students (Kivunja & Kuyini, 2017). It is therefore clearly stated in the article that research
students get confused about the term paradigm. The term brings about the confusion in everyday
discourses as contrasted with the institutional research.
The dominant research paradigm applied in the sector of educational research includes
the positivist, critical paradigm and Interpretivist. Positivist paradigm involves worldview to the
analysis based on research methods. Interpretivist understands the objective world of what
people experience (Kivunja & Kuyini, 2017). The characteristics of the Interpretivist include
believing in multiple realities. Critical paradigm is research in social justice that addresses the
social, political and economic issues. It can lead to social oppression, struggle, power struggle

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and conflict. The characteristics of the positivist paradigm include the assumption of un-
important context and believing that the truth and knowledge are to be discovered through the
research. This can be summarized by asking a question, doing the background research,
constructing a hypothesis, testing the experiment, analyzing the data, getting the results, then
communicating the final research results.
The article also discusses the methodological implications of the paradigm choice as the
interaction between the paradigm and methodology. It argues that the impact of the
methodological model involves the research question, the selected participants, the instruments
for collecting data, procedure and data analysis. The research methodologies are suitable for
positivist, interpretivism, critical and pragmatic paradigm (Kivunja & Kuyini, 2017). The
methods used in all mentioned areas include Quasi-experimental methodology, Participatory
emancipation, Phenomenology methodology, Hermeneutics methodology, Ethnography
methodology, Postcolonial/indigenous methodology, Causal comparative methodology,
Randomized control trials methodology and Survey research methodology among others.
Conclusion
Based on what has been discussed by the article, the methodology to be used in the
project research is influenced by the ontology, epistemology and axiology. This is because the
paradigm involves certain assumptions which should be taken into consideration before selecting
the type of the method to be used in the research work. The mentioned elements guide how
specific methodology should apply in the research. It is therefore clear that the type of the
paradigm chosen in the study affects the choice of the methods to be used. It is considered as a

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dependable relationship in which the type of the methodology depends on the research paradigm.
Reference
Kivunja, C., & Kuyini, A. B. (2017). Understanding and Applying Research Paradigms in
Educational Contexts. International Journal of higher education, 6(5), 26-41.