What epistemological and practical factors should be considered when Essay

What epistemological and practical factors should be considered when planning a research project. My research project is (Perception of formal and informal care of aging (old) Saudi population) - Essay Example The objective of the research is to investigate the living trends of the aging population and how their care impacts the social arena in Saudi Arabia. The research would require qualitative explanations for them to be able to understand the issue in the social context. For this reason the research epistemology and practical aspects need to be organised. Epistemology refers to the researchers ontology on the existing reality and compares it with theories. Theories have been developed by earlier studies. The researchers epistemology may be different from others or may resemble. It is therefore important to determine the research epistemology which supports the research perspectives. In this research, the epistemology rest on the fact that changing social and economic conditions have given rise to the aging population in Saudi Arabia, which may be explained by empirical research and social theories. According to Bryman (2008) "a theory is an explanation for observed regularities" (p.6) which the researcher uses as stepping stones for his/her own epistemology. For research of the aging population and their perception on kind of care they receive, qualitative approach has been chosen because of social theoretical framework required to explain people’s perception. Research epistemology also largely depends on the underlying adopted methodology, methods, and techniques as well that the researcher chooses for objective evaluation (Love 2001). For this research an interpretivist approach has been chosen. An interpretivist approach is a methodology which involves inquiry of a specific sampling to formulate theories which are grounded to data. In this methodology interviews and focus groups are the preferred method for data collection (Dawson 2007). In this study, theory shall be generated by adopting the qualitative method for which subjective data shall