Chapter Four - PowerPoint Presentation

Slide1

Chapter Four

Interpretive Perspectives on Theory Development

Copyright © 2005 The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. Permission required for reproduction or display.Slide2

Historical Background

In 1600s, enlightenment--approach to knowledge favored rationality and empirical data

One reaction to enlightenment was

German idealism--

emphasis on subjectivity (Kant)

Mid-19th century, positivism

Late 19

th

& early 20

th

century

--neo-Kantians emphasized importance of understanding (

verstehen

)

of the subjective life world (

lebenswelt

)Slide3

Foundations of

Interpretivism:Hermeneutics

Began with study of sacred texts, but has since embraced wide range of literal and cultural texts

Associated with Hans-Georg

Gadamer

Text

is now considered to be any human action, product, or expression that can be treated like a text Slide4

Hermeneutic Analysis

Consideration of text in light of…

Researchers theoretical knowledge and information about type text

Source of text (author)

Situation in which text produced

Tacking back and forth between

theory & text

Goal is

embedded understanding, not scientific prediction and controlSlide5

Contributions to Contemporary Interpretive Theory

Emphasis on

understanding

rather than

explanation

,

prediction

, and

control as goal of social analysisMeaning & subjective experience rather than universal laws and causal explanationsWide inclusion of actions and objects as texts (nonverbal, conversation, architecture)Do not separate the knower and the knownSlide6

Foundations of

Interpretivism:Phenomenology

Transcendental phenomenology & social phenomenology share views that

Knowledge is not in external experience but in individual consciousness

Meaning is derived from potential for object or experience in a person’s life (tree in backyard)

World experienced and meaning developed through languageSlide7

Transcendental Phenomenology

Edmund Husserl

emphasizes understanding that can be gained by transcending taken-for-granted

bracketing

out the life world (

époche

)

or personal blinders (biases, history, values, etc.) of researcher, as well as other aspects of situation to understand relation to object or “phenomenon”Slide8

Social Phenomenology

Alfred Schutz emphasizes intense study of life world through consideration of

typifications

in social interaction

Typifications are interpretive constructs (schema?) that vary by culture, personality, relational context

Arranged into knowledge structures of social lifeSlide9

Foundation of Interpretivism:

Symbolic Interactionism

George Herbert Mead’s

Mind, Self, and Society

(1934) delineates central concepts

Human thought (

mind

) and social interaction (the

self with others) serve to interpret the society in which we liveMeaning arises out of interaction rather than other way aroundPeople influenced by culture/social organization but also produce

culture, society, & norms of conduct Slide10

Symbolic Interactionism, cont.

Social interaction can be understood through consideration of

significant symbols (shared meaning)

significant others (influential in life)

generalized other (concept of how others

perceive you

role taking (modeling behavior after the behavior of other)Slide11

Interpretive Theory:

Metatheoretical Commitments

Ontology:

Nominalist

or more often

social constructionist

position that emphasizes ongoing construction of social reality

Epistemology:

Subjective position that emphasizes situated and local knowledge from the actor’s point of viewSlide12

Metatheoretical Commitments

,cont.

Axiology

: Belief that personal and professional values are a lens through which social phenomena are observed

Some

interpretivists

argue for

bracketing

(phenomenology; Weber)Most believe values aid researcher’s goal of understanding (though they should be addressed)Slide13

Miller’s distinction for Function and Form

General

interpretivist

theories

Propose processes of social construction that can be discussed across situational boundaries

Grounded

interpretivist

theoriesConcentrate on local and emergent communication phenomena—specific situations and contexts

Slide14

Structure and Function of General Interpretive Theories

Strive to develop understanding of intersubjective processes of reality construction

Seek an

understanding

(not explanation) through a consideration of

in-order-to

motives

Typically stated in abstract form to go across situations Slide15

Criteria for evaluating

Much the same as positivist theoriesAccuracy, Consistency, Scope, Parsimony. & Heurism

Also

Does theory provide depth of understanding that goes beyond commonsense understandings?Slide16

Structure and Function of Grounded Interpretive Theories

Term grounded theory was developed by Glaser and Strauss

Grounded theory is driven by empirical observation--it is grounded in data

Grounded theory is produced in a systematic waySlide17

Grounded Interpretive Theories, cont.

Theory development based on comparative analysis of multiple data sources (interviews, observations, past theory & research, media, etc.)

Tends to be presented in narrative formSlide18

Evaluation of Grounded

Theory (Table 4.1, p. 64)

Both process and product are evaluated

Criteria

1. Are concepts generated?

2. Are the concepts systematically related?

3. Are there conceptual linkages?

Are categories well developed?

Do they have conceptual density?Slide19

Evaluation of Grounded

Theory (cont.)

4. Is much variation built into the theory?

5. Are the broader influences built into explanation?

6. Has process been taken into account?

7. Do the theoretical findings seem significant and to what extent?