Dialectic Critical Realism: Grounded Values and Reflexivity in Social Science Research

Abstract

Critical realism emerged from the philosophical writings of Roy Bhaskar, and has evolved into a philosophy of social science research using the model of "dialectical critical realism" (DCR) which begins with the researcher's assumptions that the structures being researched have a real, ontological grounding which is independent of the researcher. This approach has proved fruitful in British and European social science research, but has had less influence in North America. We outline DCR's four-level model for understanding society and its changing social structures through "the pulse of freedom". DCR has been used by Marxists, Muslims, Catholics and secular scholars who engage fruitfully in morphogenic dialogues leading to a critical realist understanding of society and social research, which transcends positivist and social constructionist models. Examples of DCR's application in the fields of childhood research, child abuse, education, and research on organisations are outlined to illustrate the working of this new research paradigm. We are enthusiastic in our advocacy of DCR as a model of qualitative research, and for constructing models of positive social change, and are particularly impressed by the substantive and theoretical expositions of DCR by Priscilla Anderson, Matthew Wilkinson and Margaret Archer, whose work we document and review.

Personality, Work-Life Balance, Hardiness, and Vocation: A Typology of Nurses and Nursing Values in a Special Sample of English Hospital Nurses

“…This paper is planned as the first in a series of quantitative and qualitative reports on a group of nurses, from a longitudinal study of personality, stress, values, role performance, and career outcomes in groups of hospital nurses. The study is grounded in the research philosophy of critical realism (Bhaskar 2002;Wilson and McCormack 2006;Bagley et al 2016). Critical realism is a value-based approach which intuitively identifies the ontology or value base of the phenomena examined, creating layers of understanding and analysis through dialogues with, and by, the subjects of study in order to achieve morphogenesis, the constructive dialogue of consciously engineered social change (Archer 2007;Caetano 2015).…”

“…Critical Realism seeks on the basis of both an intuitively derived value framework, and a variety of types of evidence, to promote social change in which absences-the hidden parts of systems of oppression, abuse or exploitation are hidden-can be exposed as the basis of morphogenesisis, the dialogue for social change and the confrontation of alienating forces which mask oppression (Alderson 2013(Alderson , 2015Sawyerr and Bagley 2017). A fuller account of general principles of critical realist methodologies is given in Bagley et al (2016). Critical realism is seen as a valuable research approach in the study of institutions, and of groups of students and workers (including nurses), experiencing stress and change (Bhaskar 2002;McEvoy and Richards 2003;Wilson and McCormack 2006;Walsh and Evans 2014;Schiller 2016;Williams et al 2017;Allmark and Machaczek 2018).…”

Importance of Cultural and Organisational Contexts in the Adoption of Work-Life Balance Policies: Case Studies of Palestinian Telecommunication Companies

“…Consistent with a critical realist model of research (Easton, 2010;Abubaker & Bagley, 2016b;Bagley, Sawyerr & Abubaker, 2016), we did not make initial hypotheses, or explore researcher-derived categories on reasons for adopting WLB policies. Critical realism accepts the values implicit in the research process, but does not necessarily accept existing theories: rather, this approach seeks to and understand the sub-layers of meaning and motivation involved in the adoption of WLB policies, such as religious and cultural values.…”

Muslim Woman Seeking Work: An English Case Study with a Dutch Comparison, of Discrimination and Achievement

“…'Visibly Muslim' women are particularly likely to be targets of discrimination, both in Britain and the Netherlands. Yet such discrimination is a hidden crime, largely missing from public understanding and debate: it is "absent", as critical realists would term it [56,57]. Nevertheless, employment discrimination is a deeply embedded part of modern society in North America and Europe.…”