Theme 3: Research and theory (After Seminar)

    After lecture,  reading and seminar, understanding the concept of theory became easier than before, but no less complex. The term "theory" could contain different types of interpretations; etymologically the word is derived from Greek and means contemplation. To formulate a theory of the same object could vary among people due to different views and knowledge they possess, as well as the concept of theory vary according to the subject and the type of analysis to be performed. A theory can be understood as a set of propositions that are intended to identify certain objects and the relationship between them. Sometimes the term theory is used to describe a hypothesis; however, the hypothesis is an idea that is assumed for a specific topic, while a theory defines why of these ideas. In addition, a theory can generate hypotheses that can be validated or refuted through different methods.

  Usually when the term "theory" is used, we are referring to scientific theory, which is based on the natural sciences, though that term can also be used to refer to theories based on the philosophy also known as philosophical theories. The difference is that a scientific theory aims to explain the nature of an event using the popular "scientific method", which can be falsifiable,  while a philosophical theory the main object of study is not real. In either case, a theory could be considered as a truth, while you cannot refute it. 

In history of science, it was believed that the bigger and complex was a theory, the theory was more reliable, however present day, the strength of a theory is more related to the amount of phenomena’s it can explain, which it can be measured by its ability to make predictions that can be right or wrong.  

The term research was also discussed during the Lecture and can be interpreted as a creative work that follows a system in order to obtain or increase knowledge of a certain subject. Research is a way to make knowledge and is designed to establish or confirm facts. When someone is referring to this term, you may be referring to scientific research, collecting data in a systematic way; applied research, focused on solving practical problems and usually used empirical methodologies; or artistic research. 

During the seminar, we discussed the different papers that everyone had selected, explaining the contents of it and trying to understand what theory(ies) were formulated. Particularly I think (and I think many agree with me) that in these kinds of articles, finding theories involved in the study is not an easy task and many authors do not make it easier to readers. Often hypothesis are implicit, and they are very difficult to find, especially if you have no knowledge of the field being studied. After discussing the different articles and understand the theories that explain them, we ended the seminar talking about the big question… What is Theory? A question that how you can see, is not very easy to answer concretely.