Reading: Ontology and Epistemology
Demystifying Ontology and Epistemology in research methods
Hashil Al-Saadi
PhD Research Student
School of Education
University of Sheffield
© 2014
Introduction
Most postgraduate research students find it difficult to get their heads around some of the
theoretical concepts and issues which they come across as they begin their research
journey. Amongst these concepts and issues are ontology and epistemology. These
philosophical assumptions or positions are a basic component of any postgraduate research
and, as such, need to be clearly set out at the beginning of the methodology chapter. This
paper therefore aims to help novice research students understand, in easy terms, what
ontology and epistemology mean, what their variants are and how they relate to research.
Ontology
Ontology is the study of ‘being’ and is concerned with ‘what is’, i.e., the nature of existence
and structure of reality as such (Crotty, 1998) or what it is possible to know about the world
(Snape & Spencer, 2003). The SAGE Online Dictionary of Social Research Methods (2006)
defines ontology as “a concept concerned with the existence of, and relationship between,
different aspects of society such as social actors, cultural norms and social structures…
Ontological issues are concerned with questions pertaining to the kinds of things that exist
within society” (no page). For Richards, (2003), ontology is the assumptions we make about
the kind and nature of reality and what exists. Snape and Spencer (2003) also define
ontology as the nature of the world and what we can know about it. Furthermore, Bryman
(2008) introduces the concept of ‘social ontology’ which he defines as a philosophical
consideration in research which concerns the nature of social entities, i.e., whether these
social entities are or can be objective entities which exist independently from social actors
or rather they are social constructions in themselves built up from the perceptions, actions
and interpretations of the individuals in society. Similarly, Ormston et al (2014) assert that
ontology concerns the question “whether or not there is a social reality that exists
independently from human conceptions and interpretations and, closely related to this,
whether there is a shared social reality or only multiple, context-specific ones” (p.4). In
short, ontology concerns our beliefs about the kind and nature of reality and the social
world (what exists).
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Epistemology
Epistemology in general is the assumptions we make about the kind or the nature of
knowledge (Richards, 2003) or how it is possible to find out about the world (Snape &
Spencer, 200). For Crotty (1998), epistemology is a way of looking at the world and making
sense of it. It involves knowledge and, necessarily, it embodies a certain understanding of
what that knowledge entails. He further explains that epistemology deals with the ‘nature’
of knowledge, its possibility (what knowledge is possible and can be attempted and what is
not), its scope and legitimacy. Similarly, but with a particular reference to the contrasting
views about how natural and social worlds should be studied, Bryman (2008) defines
epistemology as “an issue concerns the question of what is (or should be) regarded as
acceptable knowledge in a discipline” (p.13). To further explain what epistemology is about,
I cite Cohen, Manion and Morrison (2007) as saying that epistemology is about the
assumptions which one makes about “the very bases of knowledge – its nature and form,
how it can be acquired and how communicated to other human beings” (P.7). Furthermore,
the authors stress how the kind of epistemological assumptions which we make or hold
about knowledge profoundly affect how we go about uncovering knowledge of social
behaviour. Here they refer to the decisions which the researcher will need to make about
the kind of method(s) he or she will be using in their research as per their epistemological
assumptions. That is, if knowledge, on one hand, is viewed as hard, objective and tangible,
this demands of the researcher an observer role together with an allegiance to the methods
of natural science such as testing, measuring, etc. If knowledge, on the other hand, is
viewed as personal, subjective and unique, then this imposes on the researcher a rejection
of the methods used by natural science and a greater involvement with their subjects.
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