Exploring research methodologies: positivism and interpretivism Before a researcher can start a research project, he or she must deal with the confusion and range of theoretical perspectives, methodologies, methods and philosophical underpinnings that encompasses all of them. This seemingly meticulous structure of the research process is actually intended to provide the researcher with “scaffolding,” or a direction that he or she can continue to develop in conjunction with his or her particular research goals. (Crotty, 1998) Once a researcher has developed a research question that he or she is seeking to answer, he or she must consider what methodologies and methods he or she will employ in the research; what theoretical perspective is hidden behind the methodology; and what epistemology informs this theoretical perspective. (Crotty, 1998) Before continuing it is important to explain these key terms: Epistemology is "the branch of philosophy concerned with the theory of knowledge, which seeks to inform us about how we can know the world." (Jary and Jary: Dictionary of Sociology, 1991) In the context of social research, epistemology is the form of evidence needed to justify a claim to knowledge about the social world. This will have a salient impact on the type of data you can collect to validate your arguments regarding the social world (methodology), as well as the methods you should consider for collecting valid data (methods). The researcher's choice of methods will be conditioned by theoretical perspectives, by the way in which one sees the social world. (Livesey) Social science researchers use a wide variety of research methods to acquire and improve knowledge and theory. The different types of research methodologies, quantitative and qualitative, are associated with the epistemological and theoretical perspectives that the researcher wishes to adopt. This choice made by the researcher determines how the research should be conducted. This article will discuss, critically analyze and compare the epistemological and theoretical perspectives of two research methodologies used for social research: positivism and interpretivism. The various research methods used within each of these will then be discussed. Positivism There are two main types of epistemologies: positivist and antipositivist. “Positivist research is an approach that combines a deductive approach with…… half of the article……12. Love, T. (1998). Valuable role in computer-aided design. Western Australia: Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering.13. Neuman, L. W. (2000). Social research methods: qualitative and quantitative approaches. Sydney: Allyn and Bacon.14. Orlikowski, W. J. & Baroudi, J. J. (1991). Studying information technology in organizations: research approaches and hypotheses. Information Systems Research, pages 1-28.15. Pawson, R., & Tilley, N. (1997). Realistic evaluation. London: Sage.16. Sarantakos, S. (1998). Social research. Melbourne: Macmillan.17. Sharma, B.A.V., Ravindra Prasad, D. & Satyanarayana. (1984). Research methods in the social sciences. New Delhi: Sterling Publishers Private Ltd.18. Silverman, D. (2000). Do qualitative research. London: Sage.19. Vrasidas, C. (2001). Interpretivism and symbolic interactionism: “Making the familiar strange and interesting again” in educational technology research. In Heinecke, W. & Willis, J. (Eds.), Research Methods in Educational Technology. Greenwich, CT: Information Age Publishing, Inc.20. Wainwright, S. P. (2000). For Bourdieu in the realistic social sciences. London.