Ontology is the study of being and existence in the world. It is the attempt to discover the fundamental categories of what exists in the world. (Burr, 1995, p.92) My ontological position is that a experience is real to the person person’s experiencing it, although I acknowledge the subjective nature of this and that one experience of a situation may differ completely to another person’s people can, and do, perceive and experience (what person. ‘...different appears to be) the environment in radically different ‘same’ ways’ (Willig, 2008, p.53). This experience is subject to interpretation and my interpretation is constructed and flexible based on the subjective person’s experience. Within my research, my focus is on, What do the about his feelings and informant’s statements reveal perceptions and what inferences can be made from them about the actual environment or events he has experienced? (Dean & Foote Whyte, 2006, p.100). My ontology fits with (2007) description of an interpretative Langdridge’s, phenomenological ontology. Epistemology Epistemology is concerned with the of and ‘theory knowledge’ asks ‘How can we (Willig, 2008, p.13) or what we think can be known and how. know?’ involves thinking about the nature of knowledge itself, about its scope ‘This and about the validity and reliability of claims to (Willig, 2008, knowledge’. p.2) According to Madill, Jordan & Shirley (2000), epistemological positions within qualitative research can range from to ‘radical relativist’ ‘naive assumes there is no such thing as reality, or a realist’. Relativism ‘pure as all knowledge is constantly changing and relative. Realism experience’ assumes that we can access true experiences within their world. I people’s adopt an interpretative phenomenological epistemology or position which
Ontology is the study of being and existence in the world. It is the attempt to discover the fundamental categories of what exists in the world. (Burr, 1995, p.92) My ontological position is that a person’s experience is real to the person experiencing it, although I acknowledge the subjective nature of this and that one person’s experience of a situation may differ completely to another person. ‘...different people can, and do, perceive and experience (what appears to be) the ‘same’ environment in radically different ways’ (Willig, 2008, p.53). This experience is subject to interpretation and my interpretation is constructed and flexible based on the person’s subjective experience. Within my research, my focus is on, What do the informant’s statements reveal about his feelings and perceptions and what inferences can be made from them about the actual environment or events he has experienced? (Dean & Foote Whyte, 2006, p.100). My ontology fits with Langdridge’s, (2007) description of an interpretative phenomenological ontology. Epistemology Epistemology is concerned with the ‘theory of knowledge’ and asks ‘How can we know?’ (Willig, 2008, p.13) or what we think can be known and how. ‘This involves thinking about the nature of knowledge itself, about its scope and about the validity and reliability of claims to knowledge’. (Willig, 2008, p.2) According to Madill, Jordan & Shirley (2000), epistemological positions within qualitative research can range from ‘radical relativist’ to ‘naive realist’. Relativism assumes there is no such thing as reality, or a ‘pure experience’ as all knowledge is constantly changing and relative. Realism assumes that we can access people’s true experiences within their world. I adopt an interpretative phenomenological epistemology or position which