The concept and structure of the scientific research method. Classification of general scientific methods

A significant, sometimes decisive role in the construction of any scientific work the research methods used play a role.

Research methods are divided into empirical (empirical - literally - perceived through the senses) and theoretical.

Methods scientific research
Theoretical	Empirical
Operation methods	Action methods	Operation methods	Action methods
· Analysis · Synthesis · Comparison · Abstraction · Concretization · Generalization · Formalization · Induction · Deduction · Idealization · Analogy · Modeling · Thought experiment · Imagination	· Dialectics (as a method) · Scientific theories tested by practice · Proof · Method of analyzing knowledge systems · Deductive (axiomatic) method · Inductive-deductive method · Identification and resolution of contradictions · Statement of problems · Construction of hypotheses	· Study of literature, documents and performance results · Observation · Measurement · Survey (oral and written) · Expert assessments · Testing	· Methods for tracking an object: survey, monitoring, study and generalization of experience · Methods for transforming an object: experimental work, experiment · Methods for studying an object over time: retrospective, forecasting

Theoretical methods:

– methods – cognitive actions: identifying and resolving contradictions, posing a problem, constructing a hypothesis, etc.;

– methods-operations: analysis, synthesis, comparison, abstraction and specification, etc.

Empirical methods:

– methods – cognitive actions: examination, monitoring, experiment, etc.;

– operational methods: observation, measurement, survey, testing, etc.

Theoretical methods (methods-operations).

Theoretical methods-operations have a wide field of application, both in scientific research and in practical activities.

Theoretical methods - operations are defined (considered) by the main mental operations, which are: analysis and synthesis, comparison, abstraction and concretization, generalization, formalization, induction and deduction, idealization, analogy, modeling, thought experiment.

Analysis is the decomposition of the whole under study into parts, the identification of individual features and qualities of a phenomenon, process or relationships of phenomena, processes. Analysis procedures are an organic component of any scientific research and usually form its first phase, when the researcher moves from an undifferentiated description of the object under study to the identification of its structure, composition, its properties and characteristics.

The same phenomenon, process can be analyzed in many aspects. A comprehensive analysis of the phenomenon allows us to examine it in more depth.

Synthesis is the combination of various elements, aspects of an object into a single whole (system). Synthesis is not a simple summation, but a semantic connection. If you simply connect phenomena, no system of connections will arise between them; only a chaotic accumulation of individual facts will form. Synthesis is the opposite of analysis, with which it is inextricably linked.

Synthesis as a cognitive operation appears in various functions of theoretical research. Any process of concept formation is based on the unity of the processes of analysis and synthesis. Empirical data obtained in a particular study are synthesized during their theoretical generalization. In theoretical scientific knowledge, synthesis acts as a function of the interconnection of theories related to one subject area, as well as as a function of combining competing theories (for example, the synthesis of corpuscular and wave concepts in physics).

Synthesis also plays a significant role in empirical research.

Analysis and synthesis are closely related. If the researcher has a more developed ability to analyze, there may be a danger that he will not be able to find a place for details in the phenomenon as a whole. The relative predominance of synthesis leads to superficiality, to the fact that essential details for the study will not be noticed, which can be of great importance for understanding the phenomenon as a whole.

Comparison is a cognitive operation that underlies judgments about the similarity or difference of objects. With the help of comparison, the quantitative and qualitative characteristics of objects are identified, their classification, ordering and evaluation are carried out. Comparison is comparing one thing to another. Wherein important role play grounds, or signs of comparison, that determine possible relationships between objects.

Comparison makes sense only in a collection of homogeneous objects that form a class. Comparison of objects in a particular class is carried out according to principles that are essential for this consideration. Moreover, objects that are comparable on one basis may not be comparable on other characteristics. The more accurately the characteristics are assessed, the more thoroughly the comparison of phenomena is possible. An integral part comparison is always analysis, since for any comparison in phenomena it is necessary to isolate the corresponding characteristics of comparison. Since comparison is the establishment of certain relationships between phenomena, then, naturally, synthesis is also used during the comparison.

Abstraction is one of the main mental operations that allows you to mentally isolate and turn into an independent object of consideration individual aspects, properties or states of an object in its pure form. Abstraction underlies the processes of generalization and concept formation.

Abstraction consists in isolating such properties of an object that do not exist in themselves and independently of it. Such isolation is possible only in the mental plane - in abstraction. Thus, the geometric figure of a body in itself does not really exist and cannot be separated from the body. But, thanks to abstraction, it is mentally isolated, fixed, for example, with the help of a drawing, and independently considered in its specific properties.

One of the main functions of abstraction is to highlight the common properties of a certain set of objects and to fix these properties, for example, through concepts.

Concretization is a process opposite to abstraction, that is, finding the holistic, interconnected, multilateral and complex. The researcher initially forms various abstractions, and then, on their basis, through concretization, reproduces this integrity (mental concrete), but at a qualitatively different level of knowledge of the concrete. Therefore, dialectics distinguishes two processes of ascent in the process of cognition in the coordinates “abstraction - concretization”: the ascent from the concrete to the abstract and then the process of ascent from the abstract to the new concrete (G. Hegel). The dialectics of theoretical thinking consists in the unity of abstraction, the creation of various abstractions and concretization, movement towards the concrete and its reproduction.

Generalization is one of the main cognitive mental operations, consisting of isolating and fixing relatively stable, invariant properties objects and their relationships. Generalization allows you to display the properties and relationships of objects regardless of the particular and random conditions of their observation. Comparing objects of a certain group from a certain point of view, a person finds, identifies and designates with a word their identical, common properties, which can become the content of the concept of this group, class of objects. Separating general properties from private ones and denoting them with a word allows you to cover the entire variety of objects in an abbreviated, condensed form, reduce them into certain classes, and then, through abstractions, operate with concepts without directly referring to individual objects. The same real object can be included in both narrow and wide classes, for which scales of generality of characteristics are built according to the principle of generic relations. The function of generalization is to organize the variety of objects and their classification.

Formalization is the display of the results of thinking in precise concepts or statements. It is, as it were, a “second order” mental operation. Formalization is opposed to intuitive thinking. In mathematics and formal logic Formalization is understood as the display of content knowledge in a symbolic form or in a formalized language. Formalization, that is, the abstraction of concepts from their content, ensures the systematization of knowledge, in which its individual elements coordinate with each other. Formalization plays significant role in the development of scientific knowledge, since intuitive concepts, although they seem clearer from the point of view of ordinary consciousness, are of little use for science: in scientific knowledge it is often impossible not only to resolve, but even to formulate and pose problems until the structure of related concepts to them. True Science is possible only on the basis of abstract thinking, consistent reasoning of the researcher, proceeding in a logical linguistic form through concepts, judgments and conclusions.

In scientific judgments, connections are established between objects, phenomena or between their certain characteristics. In scientific conclusions, one judgment comes from another, and a new one is made on the basis of already existing conclusions. There are two main types of inferences: inductive (induction) and deductive (deduction).

Induction is an inference from particular objects, phenomena to a general conclusion, from individual facts to generalizations.

Deduction is an inference from the general to the particular, from general judgments to particular conclusions.

Idealization is the mental construction of ideas about objects that do not exist or are not realizable in reality, but those for which there are prototypes in the real world. The process of idealization is characterized by abstraction from the properties and relationships inherent in the objects of reality and the introduction into the content of the concepts being formed of such features that, in principle, cannot belong to their real prototypes. Examples of concepts that are the result of idealization can be the mathematical concepts “point”, “straight line”; in physics – “material point”, “absolutely black body», « ideal gas" and so on.

Concepts that are the result of idealization are said to represent idealized (or ideal) objects. Having formed concepts of this kind about objects through idealization, one can subsequently operate with them in reasoning as with really existing objects and build abstract diagrams of real processes that serve for a deeper understanding of them. In this sense, idealization is closely related to modeling.

Analogy, modeling. Analogy is a mental operation when knowledge obtained from the consideration of any one object (model) is transferred to another, less studied or less accessible for study, less visual object, called a prototype, original. This opens up the possibility of transferring information by analogy from model to prototype. This is the essence of one of the special methods of the theoretical level - modeling (construction and research of models). The difference between analogy and modeling is that if analogy is one of the mental operations, then modeling can be considered in different cases both as a mental operation and as an independent method - an action method.

Model is an auxiliary object, selected or transformed for cognitive purposes, providing new information about the main object. The forms of modeling are varied and depend on the models used and the scope of their application. According to the nature of the models, subject and sign (information) modeling are distinguished.

Subject modeling is carried out on a model that reproduces certain geometric, physical, dynamic, or functional characteristics of the modeling object - the original; in a particular case - analogue modeling, when the behavior of the original and the model is described by unified mathematical relationships, for example, unified differential equations. If the model and the simulated object have the same physical nature, then we speak of physical modeling. In symbolic modeling, models are diagrams, drawings, formulas, etc. The most important type of such modeling is mathematical modeling (we will look at this method in more detail later).

Modeling is always used together with other research methods; it is especially closely related to experiment. The study of a phenomenon using its model is a special type of experiment - a model experiment, which differs from a regular experiment in that in the process of cognition an “intermediate link” is included - a model, which is both a means and an object of experimental research, replacing the original.

A special type of modeling is a thought experiment. In such an experiment, the researcher mentally creates ideal objects, correlates them with each other within the framework of a certain dynamic model, mentally simulating the movement and situations that could take place in a real experiment. At the same time, ideal models and objects help to identify “in their pure form” the most important, essential connections and relationships, to mentally play out possible situations, weed out unnecessary options.

Modeling also serves as a way to construct something new that does not previously exist in practice. Researcher having studied character traits real processes and their trends, searches for their new combinations based on the leading idea, makes their mental reconstruction, that is, models the required state of the system under study (just like any person and even an animal, builds his activity based on the initially formed “model of the required of the future" - according to N.A. Bernstein [Nikolai Aleksandrovich Bernstein - Soviet psychophysiologist and physiologist, creator of a new direction of research - the physiology of activity]). In this case, hypothetical models are created that reveal the mechanisms of connection between the components of what is being studied, which are then tested in practice. In this understanding, modeling has recently become widespread in public and humanities– in economics, pedagogy, etc., when different authors propose different models of firms, industries, educational systems, etc.

Along with the operations of logical thinking, theoretical methods-operations can also include (perhaps conditionally) imagination as a mental process for creating new ideas and images with its specific forms of fantasy (creating implausible, paradoxical images and concepts) and dreams (as creating images of what is desired).

Theoretical methods (methods - cognitive actions).

The general philosophical, general scientific method of cognition is dialectics - the real logic of the content creative thinking, reflecting the objective dialectics of reality itself. The basis of dialectics as a method scientific knowledge is the ascent from the abstract to the concrete (G. Hegel) - from general and poor in content forms to dissected and richer in content, to a system of concepts that make it possible to comprehend an object in its essential characteristics. In dialectics, all problems acquire a historical character; the study of the development of an object is a strategic platform for knowledge. Finally, dialectics is oriented in knowledge towards the disclosure and ways of resolving contradictions.

Laws of dialectics: the transition of quantitative changes into qualitative ones, unity and struggle of opposites, etc.; analysis of paired dialectical categories: historical and logical, phenomenon and essence, general (universal) and individual, etc. are integral components of any well-constructed scientific research.

Scientific theories tested by practice: any such theory, essentially, acts as a method in constructing new theories in this or even other areas of scientific knowledge, as well as as a method that determines the content and sequence experimental activities researcher. Therefore, the difference between scientific theory as a form of scientific knowledge and as a method of cognition in in this case is functional in nature: formed as a theoretical result of past research, the method acts as a starting point and condition for subsequent research.

Proof - a method - a theoretical (logical) action, during which the truth of a thought is substantiated with the help of other thoughts. Any proof consists of three parts: thesis, arguments (arguments) and demonstration. According to the method of conducting evidence, there are direct and indirect, and according to the form of inference - inductive and deductive. Rules of evidence:

1. The thesis and arguments must be clear and precisely defined.

2. The thesis must remain identical throughout the entire proof.

3. The thesis should not contain a logical contradiction.

4. The arguments given in support of the thesis must themselves be true, beyond doubt, must not contradict each other and be a sufficient basis for this thesis.

5. The proof must be complete.

In the totality of methods of scientific knowledge, an important place belongs to the method of analyzing knowledge systems. Any scientific knowledge system has a certain independence in relation to the reflected subject area. In addition, knowledge in such systems is expressed using language, the properties of which influence the relationship of knowledge systems to the objects being studied - for example, if any sufficiently developed psychological, sociological, pedagogical concept is translated into, say, English, German, French languages– will it be clearly perceived and understood in England, Germany and France? Further, the use of language as a carrier of concepts in such systems presupposes one or another logical systematization and logically organized use linguistic units to express knowledge. And, finally, no system of knowledge exhausts the entire content of the object being studied. In it, only a certain, historically specific part of such content always receives description and explanation.

Method of analysis scientific systems knowledge plays an important role in empirical and theoretical research problems: when choosing an initial theory, a hypothesis to resolve chosen problem; when distinguishing between empirical and theoretical knowledge, semi-empirical and theoretical solutions scientific problem; when justifying the equivalence or priority of using certain mathematical tools in various theories, related to the same subject area; when studying the possibilities of extending previously formulated theories, concepts, principles, etc. to new subject areas; substantiation of new possibilities for the practical application of knowledge systems; when simplifying and clarifying knowledge systems for training and popularization; for coordination with other knowledge systems, etc.

- deductive method (synonym - axiomatic method) - a method of constructing a scientific theory in which it is based on some initial provisions of the axiom (synonym - postulates), from which all other provisions of this theory (theorem) are deduced in a purely logical way through proof. The construction of a theory based on the axiomatic method is usually called deductive. All concepts of deductive theory, except for a fixed number of initial ones (such original concepts in geometry, for example, are: point, straight line, plane) are introduced through definitions that express them through previously introduced or derived concepts. Classic example The deductive theory is Euclid's geometry. Theories in mathematics are constructed using the deductive method. mathematical logic, theoretical physics;

– the second method has not received a name in the literature, but it certainly exists, since in all other sciences, except those listed above, theories are built using a method that we will call inductive-deductive: first, an empirical basis is accumulated, on the basis of which theoretical generalizations (induction) are built, which can be built into several levels - for example, empirical laws and theoretical laws - and then these resulting generalizations can be extended to all objects and phenomena covered by a given theory (deduction).

Most theories in the sciences about nature, society and man are constructed using the inductive-deductive method: physics, chemistry, biology, geology, geography, psychology, pedagogy, etc.

Other theoretical methods research (in the sense of methods - cognitive actions): identifying and resolving contradictions, posing a problem, constructing hypotheses, etc. up to the planning of scientific research were previously considered in the specifics of the time structure research activities– construction of phases, stages and stages of scientific research.

Empirical methods (methods-operations).

Study of literature, documents and results of activities. Questions about working with scientific literature will be discussed separately below, since this is not only a research method, but also a mandatory procedural component of any scientific work.

A variety of documentation also serves as a source of factual material for the study: archival materials in historical research; documentation of enterprises, organizations and institutions in economic, sociological, pedagogical and other studies.

The study of performance results plays an important role in pedagogy, especially when studying problems vocational training pupils and students; in psychology, pedagogy and sociology of labor; and, for example, in archeology, when conducting excavations, analysis of the results of human activity: from the remains of tools, dishes, dwellings, etc. allows us to restore the way of their life in a particular era.

Observation is, in principle, the most informative research method. This is the only method that allows you to see all aspects of the phenomena and processes being studied that are accessible to the perception of the observer - both directly and with the help of various instruments.

Depending on the goals pursued in the process of observation, the latter can be scientific or non-scientific.

Purposeful and organized perception of objects and phenomena of the external world, associated with the solution of a specific scientific problem or task, is usually called scientific observation. Scientific observations involve obtaining certain information for further theoretical understanding and interpretation, for approval or refutation of any hypothesis, etc.

Scientific observation consists of the following procedures:

Determining the purpose of observation (why, for what purpose?);

Selection of an object, process, situation (what to observe?);

Choosing the method and frequency of observations (how to observe?);

Selection of methods for recording the observed object, phenomenon (how to record the information received?);

Processing and interpretation of received information (what is the result?).

The observed situations are divided into:

Natural and artificial;

Controlled and not controlled by the subject of observation;

Spontaneous and organized;

Standard and non-standard;

Normal and extreme, etc.

In addition, depending on the organization of observation, it can be open and hidden, field and laboratory, and depending on the nature of the recording - ascertaining, evaluative and mixed. Based on the method of obtaining information, observations are divided into direct and instrumental. Based on the scope of coverage of the objects under study, a distinction is made between continuous and sample observations; by frequency – constant, periodic and single. A special case of observation is self-observation, which is quite widely used, for example, in psychology.

Observation is necessary for scientific knowledge, since without it science would not be able to obtain initial information, would not have scientific facts and empirical data, therefore, the theoretical construction of knowledge would be impossible.

However, observation as a method of cognition has a number of significant disadvantages. Personal characteristics of the researcher, his interests, finally, his psychological condition can significantly affect the results of observation. Objective observation results are even more susceptible to distortion in cases where the researcher is focused on obtaining a certain result, on confirming his existing hypothesis.

To obtain objective observation results, it is necessary to comply with the requirements of intersubjectivity, that is, observation data must (and/or can) be obtained and recorded, if possible, by other observers.

Replacing direct observation with instruments significantly expands the possibilities of observation, but also does not exclude subjectivity; the evaluation and interpretation of such indirect observation is carried out by the subject, and therefore the subject influence of the researcher can still occur.

Observation is most often accompanied by another empirical method - measurement.

Measurement. Measurement is used everywhere, in any human activity. Thus, almost every person takes measurements dozens of times during the day, looking at his watch. The general definition of measurement is: “Measurement is cognitive process, which consists in comparing... a given value with a certain value taken as a standard of comparison.”

Including, measurement is an empirical method (method-operation) of scientific research.

A specific measurement structure can be distinguished, including the following elements:

1) a cognizing subject who carries out measurements for certain cognitive purposes;

2) measuring instruments, among which there can be both devices and tools designed by man, and objects and processes given by nature;

3) the object of measurement, that is, the measured quantity or property to which the comparison procedure is applicable;

4) a method or method of measurement that represents a set practical actions, operations performed using measuring instruments, and also includes certain logical and computational procedures;

5) the result of a measurement, which is a named number expressed using appropriate names or signs.

The epistemological justification of the measurement method is inextricably linked with the scientific understanding of the relationship between the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of the object (phenomenon) being studied. Although this method only records quantitative characteristics, these characteristics are inextricably linked with the qualitative certainty of the object being studied. It is thanks to qualitative certainty that quantitative characteristics to be measured can be identified. The unity of the qualitative and quantitative aspects of the object being studied means both the relative independence of these aspects and their deep interconnection.

The relative independence of quantitative characteristics makes it possible to study them during the measurement process, and use the measurement results to analyze the qualitative aspects of the object.

The problem of measurement accuracy also relates to the epistemological foundations of measurement as a method of empirical knowledge. The accuracy of the measurement depends on the ratio of objective and subjective factors in the measurement process.

Such objective factors include:

– the possibility of identifying certain stable quantitative characteristics in the object under study, which in many cases of research, in particular, social and humanitarian phenomena and processes, is difficult, and sometimes even impossible;

– the capabilities of measuring instruments (their degree of perfection) and the conditions in which the measurement process takes place. In some cases, finding the exact value of a quantity is fundamentally impossible. It is impossible, for example, to determine the trajectory of an electron in an atom, etc.

Subjective measurement factors include the choice of measurement methods, the organization of this process and a whole range of cognitive capabilities of the subject - from the qualifications of the experimenter to his ability to correctly and competently interpret the results obtained.

Along with direct measurements, the method of indirect measurement is widely used in the process of scientific experimentation. With indirect measurement, the desired quantity is determined on the basis of direct measurements of other quantities associated with the first functional relationship. Based on the measured values ​​of mass and volume of a body, its density is determined; The resistivity of a conductor can be found from the measured values ​​of resistance, length and cross-sectional area of ​​the conductor, etc. The role of indirect measurements is especially great in cases where direct measurement under conditions objective reality impossible. For example, the mass of any space object (natural) is determined using mathematical calculations based on the use of measurement data of other physical quantities.

Survey. This empirical method is used only in the social sciences and humanities. The survey method is divided into oral survey and written survey.

Oral survey (conversation, interview). The essence of the method is clear from its name. During the interview, the questioner has personal contact with the answerer, that is, he has the opportunity to see how the answerer reacts to a particular question.

The observer can, if necessary, ask various additional questions and thus obtain additional data on some unanswered questions.

Oral surveys provide specific results and can be used to obtain comprehensive answers to complex questions of interest to the researcher. However, respondents answer questions of a “sensitive” nature in writing much more frankly and give more detailed and thorough answers.

The respondent spends less time and energy on an oral response than on a written one. However, this method also has its negative sides. All respondents are in different conditions, some of them can receive additional information through the researcher’s leading questions; the facial expression or some gesture of the researcher has some effect on the respondent.

Written survey – questionnaire. It is based on a pre-developed questionnaire (questionnaire), and the responses of respondents (interviewees) to all items of the questionnaire constitute the required empirical information.

The quality of empirical information obtained as a result of a survey depends on factors such as the wording of the survey questions, which should be understandable to the respondent; qualifications, experience, integrity, psychological characteristics of researchers; the situation of the survey, its conditions; emotional state of the respondents; customs and traditions, ideas, everyday situations; and also – attitude towards the survey. Therefore, when using such information, it is always necessary to make allowances for the inevitability of subjective distortions due to the specific individual “refraction” of it in the minds of the respondents. And where we're talking about oh fundamentally important issues, along with the survey, they also turn to other methods - observation, expert assessments, document analysis.

In order to obtain reliable information about the phenomenon or process under study, it is not necessary to interview the entire contingent, since the object of study can be numerically very large. In cases where the object of study exceeds several hundred people, selective questioning is used.

Method of expert assessments. Essentially, this is a type of survey associated with the involvement of the most competent people in the assessment of the phenomena and processes being studied, whose opinions, complementing and cross-checking each other, allow a fairly objective assessment of what is being studied. Using this method requires a number of conditions. First of all, this is a careful selection of experts - people who know the area being assessed, the object being studied well, and are capable of an objective, unbiased assessment.

Varieties of the expert assessment method are: the commission method, the brainstorming method, the Delphi method, the heuristic forecasting method, etc.

Testing is an empirical method, a diagnostic procedure consisting in the use of tests (from English test - task, test). Tests are usually asked to subjects either in the form of a list of questions that require short and unambiguous answers, or in the form of tasks that do not take much time to solve and also require unambiguous decisions, or in the form of some short-term practical work subjects, for example, qualifying trial work in vocational education, labor economics, etc. Tests are divided into blank, hardware (for example, on a computer) and practical; for individual and group use.

These are, perhaps, all the empirical methods and operations that the scientific community has at its disposal today. Next, we will consider empirical action methods, which are based on the use of operational methods and their combinations.

Empirical methods (methods-actions).

Empirical methods-actions should, first of all, be divided into three classes. The first two classes can be attributed to the study of the current state of an object.

The first class is methods of studying an object without transforming it, when the researcher does not make any changes or transformations to the object of study. More precisely, it does not make significant changes to the object - after all, according to the principle of complementarity (see above), the researcher (observer) cannot help but change the object. Let's call them object tracking methods. These include: the tracking method itself and its particular manifestations - examination, monitoring, study and generalization of experience.

Another class of methods is associated with the researcher’s active transformation of the object being studied - let’s call these methods transformative methods - this class will include methods such as experimental work and experiment.

The third class of methods relates to the study of the state of an object in time: in the past - retrospection and in the future - forecasting.

Tracking, often in a number of sciences, is perhaps the only empirical method-action. For example, in astronomy. After all, astronomers cannot yet influence the things they study. space objects. The only possibility is to monitor their condition through operational methods: observation and measurement. The same, to a large extent, applies to such branches of scientific knowledge as geography, demography, etc., where the researcher cannot change anything in the object of research.

In addition, tracking is also used when the goal of learning is set natural functioning object. For example, when studying certain features radioactive radiation or when studying the reliability of technical devices, which is verified by their long-term operation.

Examination - how special case The tracking method is the study of the object under study with one or another measure of depth and detail, depending on the tasks set by the researcher. A synonym for the word “inspection” is “inspection,” which suggests that an inspection is basically an initial study of an object, carried out to familiarize itself with its condition, functions, structure, etc.

Empirical (what is perceived by the senses) cognition is carried out in the process of experience, understood in the broadest sense, that is, as the interaction of a subject with an object, in which the subject not only passively reflects the object, but also actively changes and transforms it.

The empirical method consists of sequentially performing the following five operations: observation, measurement, modeling, forecasting, checking the forecast.

In science the main forms empirical research are observation and experiment. In addition, they also include numerous measurement procedures, which, although closer to theory, are still carried out precisely within the framework of empirical knowledge and especially experiment.

The initial empirical procedure is observation, since it is included in both the experiment and the measurements, while the observations themselves can be carried out outside the experiment and do not involve measurements.

1. Observation - a purposeful study of objects, based mainly on data from the senses (sensation, perception, ideas). During observation, the knowledge gained is not only about the external aspects of the object of knowledge, but - as the ultimate goal - about its essential properties and relationships.

The concepts of methods and techniques are often used as synonyms, but they often differ when methods refer to more complex cognitive procedures that include a whole set of different research techniques.

Observation can be direct and indirect with various instruments and technical devices (microscope, telescope, photo and film cameras, etc.) With the development of science, observation becomes more complex and indirect.

Basic requirements for scientific observation: unambiguous design; the presence of a system of methods and techniques; objectivity, i.e. the possibility of control through either repeated observation or using other methods (for example, experiment).

Observation is usually included as part of the experimental procedure. An important point observation is the interpretation of its results - deciphering instrument readings, a curve on an oscilloscope, an electrocardiogram, etc.

The cognitive result of observation is a description - recording, using natural and artificial language, initial information about the object being studied: diagrams, graphs, diagrams, tables, drawings, etc. Observation is closely related to measurement, which is the process of finding the ratio of a given quantity to another homogeneous quantity, taken as a unit of measurement. The measurement result is expressed as a number.

Observation is particularly difficult in the social and human sciences, where its results depend to a greater extent on the personality of the observer, his life attitudes and principles, his interested attitude to the subject being studied.

During observation, the researcher is always guided by a specific idea, concept or hypothesis. He does not simply register any facts, but deliberately selects those that either confirm or refute his ideas.

In this case, it is very important to select the most representative, that is, the most representative group of facts in their interrelation. Interpretation of an observation is always carried out using certain theoretical principles.

2. Experiment - active and purposeful intervention in the course of the process being studied, a corresponding change in the object or its reproduction in specially created and controlled conditions.

Thus, in an experiment, an object is either reproduced artificially or placed in a certain way specified conditions that meet the goals of the study. During the experiment, the object being studied is isolated from the influence of side circumstances that obscure its essence and is presented in its pure form. In this case, specific experimental conditions are not only set, but also controlled, modernized, and reproduced many times.

Every scientific experiment is always guided by some idea, concept, hypothesis. The data of an experiment are always theoretically loaded in one way or another - from its setup to the interpretation of its results.

Main features of the experiment:

a) a more active (than during observation) attitude towards the object, up to its change and transformation;

b) repeated reproducibility of the studied object at the request of the researcher;

c) the possibility of detecting properties of phenomena that are not observed in natural conditions;

d) the possibility of considering a phenomenon in its “pure” form by isolating it from circumstances that complicate and mask its course or by changing, varying the experimental conditions;

e) the ability to control the behavior of the research object and verify the results.

The main stages of the experiment: planning and construction (its purpose, type, means, methods of implementation); control; interpretation of results.

An experiment has two interrelated functions: experimental testing of hypotheses and theories, as well as the formation of new scientific concepts. Depending on these functions, experiments are distinguished: research (search), testing (control), reproducing, isolating.

Based on the nature of the objects, physical, chemical, biological, and social experiments are distinguished. Of great importance in modern science is the decisive experiment, the purpose of which is to refute one and confirm the other of two (or several) concepts that compete.

This difference is relative: an experiment designed to be confirmatory may turn out to be disconfirming in its results, and vice versa. But in any case, the experiment consists of posing specific questions to nature, the answers to which should provide information about its laws.

One of simple types scientific experiment - a qualitative experiment aimed at establishing the presence or absence of a phenomenon assumed by a hypothesis or theory. A more complex quantitative experiment that reveals the quantitative certainty of any property of the phenomenon being studied.

A thought experiment, a system of mental procedures carried out on idealized objects, has become widespread in modern science. A thought experiment is theoretical model real experimental situations. Here the scientist operates not with real objects and the conditions of their existence, but with their conceptual images.

Social experiments are increasingly developing, which contribute to the introduction of new forms of social organization and optimization of social management. The object of the social experiment, which is played by certain group people, is one of the participants in the experiment, whose interests have to be taken into account, and the researcher himself finds himself included in the situation he is studying.

3. Comparison is a cognitive operation that underlies judgments about the similarity or difference of objects. Using comparison, the qualitative and quantitative characteristics of objects are revealed.

To compare is to compare one thing with another in order to identify their relationship. The simplest and important type relations revealed through comparison are relations of identity and difference.

It should be borne in mind that comparison makes sense only in the aggregate of homogeneous objects that form a class. Comparison of objects in a class is carried out according to characteristics that are essential for this consideration, while objects compared on one basis may be incomparable on another.

Comparison is the basis of such a logical device as analogy, and serves as the starting point of the comparative-historical method.

This is the method with the help of which, through comparison, the general and special in historical and other phenomena are revealed, knowledge of the various stages of development of the same phenomenon or different coexisting phenomena is achieved.

This method allows us to identify and compare levels in the development of the phenomenon being studied, changes that have occurred, and determine development trends. Scientific methods of theoretical research

1. Formalization - display of content knowledge in a sign-symbolic form. Formalization is based on the distinction between natural and artificial languages. Expressing thinking in natural language can be considered the first step of formalization. Natural languages ​​as a means of communication are characterized by polysemy, versatility, flexibility, imprecision, figurativeness, etc. It is an open, continuously changing system that constantly acquires new meaning and significance.

Further deepening of formalization is associated with the construction of artificial (formalized) languages, designed for a more accurate and rigorous expression of knowledge than natural language, in order to eliminate the possibility of ambiguous understanding - which is typical for natural language (the language of mathematics, logic, chemistry, etc.)

Symbolic languages ​​of mathematics and others exact sciences pursue not only the goal of shortening the recording - this can be done using shorthand. The language of artificial language formulas becomes a tool of cognition. It plays the same role in theoretical knowledge as the microscope and telescope in empirical knowledge.

It is the use of special symbols that allows you to eliminate the ambiguity of words ordinary language. In formalized reasoning, each symbol is strictly unambiguous.

As a universal means for communication and exchange of thoughts and information, language performs many functions.

An important task of logic and methodology is to convey and transform existing information as accurately as possible and thereby eliminate some of the shortcomings of natural language. This is why artificial formalized languages ​​are created. Such languages ​​are used primarily in scientific knowledge, and in recent years they have become widespread in programming and algorithmization various processes using computers.

The advantage of artificial languages ​​lies primarily in their accuracy, unambiguousness, and most importantly, in the ability to represent ordinary meaningful reasoning through calculation.

The meaning of formalization in scientific knowledge is as follows.

o It makes it possible to analyze, clarify, define and clarify (explicate) concepts. Everyday ideas (expressed in spoken language), although they seem clearer and more obvious from the point of view common sense, turn out to be unsuitable for scientific knowledge due to their uncertainty, ambiguity and inaccuracy.

o She acquires special role when analyzing evidence. Presenting the proof in the form of a sequence of formulas obtained from the original ones using precisely specified transformation rules gives them the necessary rigor and accuracy.

o It serves as the basis for the processes of algorithmization and programming of computing devices, and thereby the computerization of not only scientific and technical, but also other forms of knowledge.

When formalizing, reasoning about objects is transferred to the plane of operating with signs (formulas). Relationships of signs replace statements about the properties and relationships of objects.

In this way, a generalized sign model of a certain subject area is created, which makes it possible to detect the structure of various phenomena and processes while abstracting from the qualitative, substantive characteristics of the latter.

The main thing in the formalization process is that operations can be performed on the formulas of artificial languages, and new formulas and relationships can be obtained from them.

Thus, operations with thoughts about objects are replaced by actions with signs and symbols. Formalization in this sense is a logical method of clarifying the content of a thought by clarifying its logical form. But it has nothing to do with the absolutization of logical form in relation to content.

Formalization, therefore, is a generalization of the forms of processes that differ in content, and the abstraction of these forms from their content. It clarifies the content by identifying its form and can be carried out with to varying degrees completeness.

2. The axiomatic method is one of the ways of deductively constructing scientific theories, in which:

a) a system of basic terms of science is formulated;

b) from these terms a certain set of axioms (postulates) is formed - provisions that do not require proof and are the initial ones, from which all other statements of this theory are derived according to certain rules;

c) a system of inference rules is formulated, which allows one to transform initial provisions and move from one position to another, as well as introduce new terms (concepts) into the theory;

d) the transformation of postulates is carried out according to rules that make it possible to obtain from a limited number of axioms a set of provable provisions - theorems.

Thus, to derive theorems from axioms, special rules of inference are formulated.

All concepts of the theory, except primitive ones, are introduced through definitions that express them through previously introduced concepts.

Consequently, a proof in the axiomatic method is a certain sequence of formulas, each of which is either an axiom or is obtained from previous formulas according to some rule of inference.

The axiomatic method is only one of the methods for constructing scientific knowledge. It has limited application, since it requires a high level of development of an axiomatized substantive theory.

3. Hypothetico-deductive method. Its essence lies in the creation of a system of deductively interconnected hypotheses, from which statements about empirical facts are ultimately derived.

This method is thereby based on the deduction of conclusions from hypotheses and other premises, true meaning which are unknown. Therefore, the conclusions here are probabilistic in nature.

This nature of the conclusion is also due to the fact that guesswork, intuition, imagination, and inductive generalization are involved in the formation of a hypothesis, not to mention the experience, qualifications and talent of the scientist. And all these factors are almost impossible to strictly logically analyze.

Initial concepts: hypothesis (assumption) - a position put forward at the beginning of a preliminary conditional explanation of a certain phenomenon or group of phenomena; assumption about the existence of some phenomenon. The truth of this assumption is uncertain and problematic.

Deduction (inference): a) in the most general sense - this is a transition in the process of cognition from the general to the particular (individual), the derivation of the latter from the first; b) in a special sense - the process of logical inference, i.e., a transition according to certain rules of logic from certain given assumptions (premises) to their consequences (conclusions).

The general structure of the hypothetico-deductive method (or hypothesis method):

Familiarization with the factual material that requires theoretical explanation and an attempt to do so with the help of already existing theories and laws. If not, then:

Making conjectures (assumptions) about the causes and patterns of these phenomena using many logical techniques.

Assessing the severity of assumptions and selecting the most probable from among many guesses.

In this case, the hypothesis is checked for: a) logical consistency; b) compatibility with fundamental theoretical principles of this science (for example, with the law of conservation and transformation of energy).

However, it should be borne in mind that during periods scientific revolutions It is the fundamental principles that collapse and crazy ideas that cannot be derived from these principles arise.

o Deriving consequences from a hypothesis (usually deductively) with clarification of its content.

o Experimental verification of the consequences derived from the hypothesis. Here the hypothesis or gets experimental confirmation, or is refuted. However, confirmation does not guarantee its overall truth (or falsity).

From a logical point of view, the hypothetico-deductive method is a hierarchy of hypotheses, the degree of abstraction and generality of which increases with distance from the empirical basis.

At the very top are the hypotheses that are most general in nature and therefore have the greatest logical power. From these, as premises, lower-level hypotheses are derived. At the lowest level there are hypotheses that can be compared with empirical reality.

A mathematical hypothesis can be considered a type of hypothetico-deductive method, where some equations representing a modification of previously known and tested relationships act as hypotheses. By changing these relationships, a new equation is created that expresses a hypothesis that relates to unexplored phenomena.

The hypothetico-deductive method is not so much a method of discovery as a way of constructing and justifying scientific knowledge, since it shows exactly how one can arrive at a new hypothesis. Already in the early stages of the development of science, this method was especially widely used by Galileo and Newton.

Zagalological methods and techniques of cognition

1. Analysis - dividing an object into its component parts in order to self-study. It is used both in real (practice) and in mental activity.

Types of analysis: mechanical dissection; determination of dynamic composition; identifying forms of interaction between elements of the whole; finding the causes of phenomena; identifying levels of knowledge and its structure, etc.

The analysis should not overlook the quality of the items. Each area of ​​knowledge has, as it were, its own limit of division of an object, beyond which we move into another world of properties and patterns (atom, molecule, etc.). A type of analysis is also the division of classes (sets) of objects into subclasses - classification and periodization.

2. Synthesis - unification - real or mental - of various aspects, parts of an object into a single whole.

The result of the synthesis is a completely new formation, the properties of which are not only an external combination of the properties of the components, but also the result of their internal relationship and interdependence.

Analysis and synthesis are dialectically interrelated, but some activities are primarily analytical (e.g. analytical chemistry) or synthetic (for example, synergetics).

3. Abstraction. Abstraction:

a) side, moment, part of the whole, fragment of reality, something undeveloped, one-sided, fragmentary (abstract);

b) the process of mental abstraction from a number of properties and relationships of the phenomenon being studied with the simultaneous identification of properties that are of interest to the cognizing subject at the moment (abstraction);

c) a result that abstracts the activities of thinking (abstraction in the narrow sense).

These are various kinds of abstract subjects, which are both individual concepts and categories, and their systems (the most developed of them are mathematics, logic and philosophy).

Finding out which of the properties under consideration are essential and which are secondary - main question abstraction.

The question of what in objective reality is distinguished by the abstract work of thinking, from which thinking is distracted, is decided in each specific case depending, first of all, on the nature of the subject being studied, as well as on the tasks of cognition.

In the course of its historical development, science ascends from one level of abstraction to another, higher one.

There are different types of abstractions:

Abstraction of identification, as a result of which the general properties and relationships of the objects under study are highlighted. Here, corresponding classes are formed on the basis of establishing the equality of objects in given properties or relationships, taking into account what is identical in objects and abstracting from all the differences between them.

Isolating abstraction - certain properties and relationships are highlighted, which begin to be considered as independent individual objects.

Abstraction of actual infinity in mathematics - when infinite sets are considered as finite. Here the researcher is distracted from the fundamental impossibility of recording and describing every element of an infinite set, accepting such a problem as solved.

The abstraction of potential feasibility is based on the fact that any but a finite number of operations can be carried out in the process of mathematical activity.

Abstractions also differ in levels (orders). Abstractions from real objects are called first-order abstractions. Abstractions from first-level abstractions are called second-order abstractions, etc. The highest level of abstraction is characterized by philosophical categories.

4. Idealization is most often considered as a specific type of abstraction. Idealization is the mental construction of concepts about objects that do not exist and cannot be realized in reality, but those for which there are prototypes in the real world.

In the process of idealization, there is an extreme abstraction from all the real properties of an object with the simultaneous introduction into the content of the concepts being formed of features that are not realized in reality. As a result, a so-called idealized object is formed, with which theoretical thinking can operate when reflecting real objects.

As a result of idealization, a theoretical model is formed in which the characteristics and aspects of the cognizable object are not only abstracted from the actual empirical material, but through mental construction appear in a more sharply and fully expressed form than in reality itself.

The idealized object ultimately acts as a reflection of real objects and processes.

Having formed theoretical constructs using the idealization of this kind of objects, you can further operate with them in reasoning as a really existing thing and build abstract diagrams of real processes that serve for a deeper understanding of them.

Thus, idealized objects are not pure fictions unrelated to real reality, but are the result of a very complex and indirect reflection of it.

An idealized object represents real objects in cognition, but not according to all, but only according to some, strictly fixed characteristics. It is a simplified and schematized image of a real object.

Theoretical statements, as a rule, directly relate not to real objects, but to idealized objects, cognitive activity with which it allows us to establish significant connections and patterns that are inaccessible when studying real objects, taken in all the diversity of their empirical properties and relationships.

Idealized objects are the result of various thought experiments that are aimed at realizing some case that has not been realized in reality. Developed scientific theories usually consider not individual idealized objects and their properties, but integral systems of idealized objects and their structures.

5. Generalization is the process of establishing the general properties and characteristics of objects. Closely related to abstraction. The epistemological basis of generalization is the categories of the general and the individual.

It is necessary to distinguish between two types of generalities:

a) abstractly general as simple sameness, external similarity, superficial similarity of a number of individual objects (the so-called abstractly general feature). This type the general, identified through comparison, plays an important but limited role in cognition;

b) concretely general as the law of existence and development of a number of individual phenomena in their interaction as part of the whole, as unity in diversity. This type of commonality expresses the internal, deep, recurring nature of the group similar phenomena the basis is the essence in its developed form, that is, the law.

The general is inseparable from the individual (separate) as its opposite, and their unity is special. Single (individual, separate) is a philosophical category that expresses the specificity, originality of a given phenomenon (or group of phenomena of the same quality), its difference from others.

In accordance with the two types of generalities, two types of scientific generalizations are distinguished: the identification of any characteristics (abstract general) or essential (concrete general, law).

On another basis, generalizations can be distinguished:

a) from individual facts, events to their expression in thoughts (inductive generalization);

b) from one thought to another, more general thought (logical generalization). The mental transition from the more general to the less general is a process of limitation.

Generalization cannot be limitless. Its limit is philosophical categories that do not have a generic concept and therefore cannot be generalized.

6. Induction is a logical research technique associated with generalizing the results of observations and experiments and the movement of thought from the individual to the general.

In induction, the data of experience lead to the general, induce it. Since experience is always infinite and incomplete, inductive conclusions are always problematic. Inductive generalizations are usually regarded as empirical truths or empirical laws. The following types of inductive generalizations are distinguished: A. Popular induction, when regularly repeated properties observed in some representatives of the studied set and fixed in the premises of inductive inference are transferred to all representatives of the studied set - including its unstudied parts.

B. Induction is incomplete, where it is concluded that all representatives of the set under study belong to a property on the grounds that this property belongs to some representatives of this set.

Induction is complete, in which the conclusion is made that all representatives of the set under study belong to the property based on the information obtained during the study that each representative of the set under study belongs to this property.

When considering complete induction, it is necessary to keep in mind that:

D. Scientific induction, in which, in addition to the formal substantiation of the generalization obtained inductively, an additional substantive substantiation of its truth is given, including with the help of deduction (theories, laws). Scientific induction provides a reliable conclusion due to the fact that the emphasis is on necessary, natural and causal relationships.

D. Mathematical induction - used as a specific mathematical proof, where induction and deduction, assumption and proof are organically combined.

The considered methods for establishing causal relationships are most often used not in isolation, but in conjunction, complementing each other. In this case, one should not make the mistake: “after this, because of this.”

7. Deduction:

a) transition in the process of cognition from the general to the individual (particular); deducing the individual from the general;

b) the process of logical inference, i.e., transition according to certain rules of logic from certain given sentences - premises to their consequences (conclusions).

As one of the methods of scientific knowledge, it is closely related to induction; these are dialectically interconnected ways of moving thought.

The analogy does not give reliable knowledge: if the premises of an argument by analogy are true, this does not mean that its conclusion will be true.

To increase the likelihood of drawing conclusions by analogy, it is necessary to strive to:

a) the internal, rather than external, properties of the objects that are compared were captured;

b) these objects were similar in the most important and essential characteristics, and not in random and secondary ones;

c) the range of matching features was as wide as possible;

d) not only similarities were taken into account, but also differences - so that the latter were not transferred to another object.

8. Modeling. Inferences by analogy, understood extremely broadly, as the transfer of information from one object to another, form the epistemological basis of modeling - a method of studying objects using their models.

A model is an analogue of a certain fragment of reality, a product of human culture, conceptual and theoretical images, that is, the original of the model.

This analogue is a representative of the original in knowledge and practice. It serves to store and expand knowledge (information) about the original, construct the original, transform or manage it.

There must be a certain similarity (relationship of similarity) between the model and the original: physical characteristics, functions; behavior of the object being studied and its mathematical description; structures, etc. It is this similarity that allows the information obtained as a result of studying the model to be transferred to the original.

The forms of modeling are varied and depend on the models used and the scope of application of the modeling.

According to the nature of the models, material and ideal modeling are distinguished, expressed in the appropriate symbolic form.

Material models are natural objects, which obey in their functioning natural laws - physics, mechanics. In the physical (subject-specific) modeling of a specific object, its study is replaced by the study of a certain model that has the same physical nature as the original (models of airplanes, ships).

With ideal (symbolic) modeling, models appear in the form of diagrams, graphs, drawings, formulas, systems of equations, and proposals.

9. The systems approach is a set of general scientific methodological principles (requirements), which are based on the consideration of objects as systems.

System is a general scientific concept that expresses a set of elements that are in relationships and connections with each other and with the environment, forming a certain integrity, unity.

The types of systems are very diverse: material and spiritual, inorganic and living, mechanical and organic, biological and social, static and dynamic, open and closed.

Any system consists of many different elements that have structure and organization.

Structure: a) a set of stable connections of an object that ensure its integrity and identity with itself; b) a relatively stable way of connecting the elements of a complex whole.

The specificity of the systems approach is determined by the fact that it focuses research on revealing the integrity of the object and the mechanisms that provide it, identifying the diverse types of connections of a complex object and bringing them together into a single theoretical picture.

The main requirements of the systems approach include the following:

a) identifying the dependence of each element on its place and functions in the system, taking into account the fact that the properties of the whole are irreducible to the sum of the properties of its elements;

b) analysis of the extent to which the behavior of the system is determined both by the characteristics of its individual elements and by the properties of its structure;

c) research into the mechanism of interdependence, interaction between the system and the environment;

d) studying the nature of the hierarchy inherent in a given system;

e) ensuring a plurality of descriptions for the purpose of multidimensional coverage of the system;

f) consideration of the dynamism of the system, its presentation as an integrity that develops.

An important concept of the systems approach is the concept of self-organization. This concept characterizes the process of creating, reproducing or improving the organization of a complex, open, dynamic, self-developing system, the connections between the elements of which are not rigid, but probabilistic.

10. Probabilistic (statistical) methods - based on taking into account the action of many random factors, which are characterized by a stable frequency. This makes it possible to reveal the necessity that “breaks through” through the combined action of many accidents.

Probabilistic methods are based on the theory of probability, which is often called the science of chance, and in the minds of many scientists, probability and chance are practically inseparable.

There is even a statement that today randomness appears as self-start the world, its structure and evolution. The categories of necessity and chance are by no means outdated; on the contrary, their role in modern science has increased significantly.

To understand these methods, it is necessary to consider the concepts of dynamic patterns, statistical patterns and probability.

In dynamic type laws, predictions have a precisely defined, unambiguous character. Dynamic laws characterize the behavior of relatively isolated objects consisting of large number elements in which one can abstract from a number of random factors.

In statistical laws, predictions are not reliable, but only probabilistic. This nature of predictions is due to the action of many random factors.

A statistical pattern arises as a result of the interaction of a large number of elements that make up a team, and therefore characterizes not so much the behavior of an individual element, but rather the behavior of the team as a whole.

The necessity manifested in statistical laws arises as a result of mutual compensation and balancing of many random factors.

Statistical laws, although they do not give unambiguous and reliable predictions, are nevertheless the only possible ones in the study of mass phenomena of a random nature. Behind the combined action of various factors of a random nature, which are practically impossible to cover, statistical laws reveal something stable, necessary, and repeating.

They serve as confirmation of the dialectic of transforming the accidental into the necessary. Dynamic laws turn out to be a limiting case of statistical ones, when probability becomes practically certainty.

Probability is a concept that characterizes a quantitative measure of the possibility of the occurrence of some random event under certain conditions that can be repeated many times. One of the main tasks of probability theory is to clarify the patterns that arise from the interaction of a large number of random factors.

Probabilistic-statistical methods are widely used in the study of mass phenomena - especially in such scientific disciplines as mathematical statistics, statistical physics, quantum mechanics, cybernetics, and synergetics.

2.1. General scientific methods 5

2.2. Methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge. 7

1. Bibliography. 12

1. The concept of methodology and method.

Any scientific research is carried out using certain techniques and methods, according to certain rules. The study of the system of these techniques, methods and rules is called methodology. However, the concept of “methodology” in the literature is used in two meanings:

1) a set of methods used in any field of activity (science, politics, etc.);

2) the doctrine of the scientific method of knowledge.

Methodology (from “method” and “logy”) is the study of structure, logical organization, methods and means of activity.

A method is a set of techniques or operations of practical or theoretical activity. The method can also be characterized as a form of theoretical and practical mastery of reality, based on the patterns of behavior of the object being studied.

Methods of scientific knowledge include the so-called universal methods, i.e. universal methods of thinking, general scientific methods and methods of specific sciences. Methods can be classified according to the relationship between empirical knowledge (i.e. knowledge obtained as a result of experience, experimental knowledge) and theoretical knowledge, the essence of which is knowledge of the essence of phenomena and their internal connections. The classification of methods of scientific knowledge is presented in Fig. 1.2.

Each industry applies its own specific scientific, special methods, determined by the essence of the object of study. However, often methods characteristic of a particular science are used in other sciences. This happens because the objects of study of these sciences are also subject to the laws of this science. For example, physical and chemical methods research is used in biology on the basis that the objects of biological research include, in one form or another, physical and chemical forms the movements of matter and are therefore subject to physical and chemical laws.

There are two universal methods in the history of knowledge: dialectical and metaphysical. These are general philosophical methods.

The dialectical method is a method of understanding reality in its inconsistency, integrity and development.

The metaphysical method is a method opposite to the dialectical one, considering phenomena outside of their mutual connection and development.

Since the mid-19th century, the metaphysical method has been increasingly displaced from natural science by the dialectical method.

2. Methods of scientific knowledge

2.1. General scientific methods

The relationship between general scientific methods can also be presented in the form of a diagram (Fig. 2).

Brief description of these methods.

Analysis is the mental or real decomposition of an object into its constituent parts.

Synthesis is the combination of elements learned as a result of analysis into a single whole.

Generalization is the process of mental transition from the individual to the general, from the less general to the more general, for example: the transition from the judgment “this metal conducts electricity” to the judgment “all metals conduct electricity”, from the judgment: “the mechanical form of energy turns into thermal” to the judgment “every form of energy is converted into heat.”

Abstraction (idealization) is the mental introduction of certain changes to the object being studied in accordance with the goals of the study. As a result of idealization, some properties and attributes of objects that are not essential for this study can be excluded from consideration. An example of such idealization in mechanics is a material point, i.e. a point with mass but without any dimensions. The same abstract (ideal) object is an absolutely rigid body.

Induction is the process of deriving a general position from observing a number of particulars isolated facts, i.e. knowledge from the particular to the general. In practice, incomplete induction is most often used, which involves making a conclusion about all objects of a set based on knowledge of only a part of the objects. Incomplete induction, based on experimental studies and including theoretical basis, is called scientific induction. The conclusions of such induction are often probabilistic in nature. This is a risky but creative method. With a strict setup of the experiment, logical consistency and rigor of conclusions, it is able to give a reliable conclusion. According to the famous French physicist Louis de Broglie, scientific induction is the true source of truly scientific progress.

Deduction is the process of analytical reasoning from the general to the particular or less general. It is closely related to generalization. If the original general provisions are an established scientific truth, then the method of deduction will always yield a true conclusion. The deductive method is especially important in mathematics. Mathematicians operate with mathematical abstractions and base their reasoning on general principles. These general provisions apply to solving private, specific problems.

Analogy is a probable, plausible conclusion about the similarity of two objects or phenomena in some characteristic, based on their established similarity in other characteristics. An analogy with the simple allows us to understand the more complex. Thus, by analogy with the artificial selection of the best breeds of domestic animals, Charles Darwin discovered the law of natural selection in the animal and plant world.

Modeling is the reproduction of the properties of an object of cognition on a specially designed analogue of it - a model. Models can be real (material), for example, airplane models, building models, photographs, prosthetics, dolls, etc. and ideal (abstract) created by means of language (as a natural human language, and special languages, for example, the language of mathematics. In this case we have a mathematical model. Typically this is a system of equations that describes the relationships in the system being studied.

The historical method involves reproducing the history of the object under study in all its versatility, taking into account all the details and accidents. The logical method is, in essence, a logical reproduction of the history of the object being studied. At the same time, this history is freed from everything accidental and unimportant, i.e. it's kind of the same historical method, but freed from its historical form.

Classification is the distribution of certain objects into classes (departments, categories) depending on their general characteristics, fixing the natural connections between classes of objects in a unified system of a specific branch of knowledge. The formation of each science is associated with the creation of classifications of the objects and phenomena being studied.

2. 2 Methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge.

Methods of empirical and theoretical knowledge are schematically presented in Fig. 3.

Observation.

Observation is a sensory reflection of objects and phenomena of the external world. This is the initial method of empirical cognition, which allows us to obtain some primary information about the objects of the surrounding reality.

Scientific observation is characterized by a number of features:

· purposefulness (observation should be carried out to solve the research problem);

· systematic (observation must be carried out strictly according to a plan drawn up based on the research objective);

· activity (the researcher must actively search and highlight the moments he needs in the observed phenomenon).

Scientific observations are always accompanied by a description of the object of knowledge. The latter is necessary to record the technical properties and aspects of the object being studied, which constitute the subject of the study. Descriptions of observational results form the empirical basis of science, based on which researchers create empirical generalizations, compare the objects under study according to certain parameters, classify them according to some properties, characteristics, and find out the sequence of stages of their formation and development.

According to the method of conducting observations, they can be direct or indirect.

During direct observation, certain properties and aspects of an object are reflected and perceived by human senses. Currently, direct visual observation is widely used in space research as an important method of scientific knowledge. Visual observations from a manned orbital station- the simplest and most effective method studies of the parameters of the atmosphere, land surface and ocean from space in the visible range. From the orbit of an artificial Earth satellite, the human eye can confidently determine the boundaries of cloud cover, types of clouds, boundaries of the removal of turbid river waters into the sea, etc.

However, most often observation is indirect, that is, carried out using certain technical means. If, for example, before early XVII centuries, astronomers observed celestial bodies with the naked eye, then the invention of the optical telescope by Galileo in 1608 raised astronomical observations to a new, much higher level.

Observations can often play an important heuristic role in scientific knowledge. In the process of observations, completely new phenomena can be discovered, allowing one to substantiate one or another scientific hypothesis. From all of the above it follows that observations are very important method empirical knowledge, ensuring the collection of extensive information about the world around us.

Scientific research can be divided into three stages:

1. Installation stage

2. The actual research stage

3. Study processing stage

On installation stage occurs:

Choosing a research topic,

Definition of the object and subject of research,

Setting the goals and objectives of the study,

Selection of research methods.

On research stage there is an information study of the topic, the result of which is: a review of the literature on the research topic; a compiled card index of publications on the topic, information collected along the way. An experiment or theoretical work is carried out to obtain your own research results.

At the stage research processing preparation and writing of a scientific text takes place, which consists of:

Formation of a plan,

Selection and preparation of materials,

Grouping and systematization of materials,

Processing of the manuscript.

The result of all this great, painstaking work is coursework or diploma work.

Choosing a theme occurs in accordance with such a concept as relevance. Most often, a topic is chosen for research that is relevant when the need for research is caused by:

Solving vital problems,

Building a concept to solve a problem,

Research of a specific direction in certain period time,

A study of the activities of a specific enterprise in a specific area of ​​activity.

At different times there were different themes relevant . Scientific research is determined by life itself. But there are also “eternal” topics. For example, the search for new sources of energy, new materials with specified properties, the study of humans, etc.

Today, when the country's economy is in crisis, when the situation in both politics and economics is rapidly changing, the relevance of scientific research is also rapidly changing.

In the 1980s Topics related to the introduction of self-financing were actively developed. In the early 1990s. Topics related to the activities of commercial banks and the privatization of enterprises were studied. At the end of the 1990s. topics related to the study of the activities of exchanges appeared; transactions with securities, etc.

But what is “new”? This is a well-forgotten old thing. A forward spiraling movement, but at a higher level. An example is the New Economic Policy, NEP in the 1920s. in Russia and the new economic policy in the 1990s. already in the “new” Russia.

Subjects of scientific research work (R&D) applied character is as close as possible to everyday life. She solves immediate problems, mainly. This can be judged by the names (“in new economic conditions” or for a specific industry or enterprise).

Theoretical research is more durable.

When writing a coursework, diploma or other written work, in a concise presentation in the section “Relevance of the topic” they show what tasks science and practice face in terms of the direction you have chosen in specific socio-economic conditions; what (in the most general outline) has already been done by scientists, what remains undisclosed. On this basis, a contradiction is formed. As is known, contradiction (scientific) is the most important logical form of development of knowledge. Scientific theories develop as a result of the discovery and resolution of contradictions found in previous theories or in the practical activities of people.

Based on the identified contradiction, a problem is formulated. Not every contradiction in practice can be resolved by means of science - it can be due to material, personnel difficulties, lack of equipment, etc. In addition, science does not resolve contradictions in practice, but only creates prerequisites for their resolution, which may not be realized for various reasons.

Following the problem, it is necessary to understand what will be object And subject research.

An object in epistemology (theory of knowledge) - this is what opposes to the knowing subject in his cognitive activity. Those. this is that part of practice or scientific knowledge (in the case of theoretical, methodological research) with which the researcher deals.

Subject of study - this is that side, that aspect, that point of view, projection from which the researcher cognizes the entire object, while highlighting the main, most significant features of the object from the researcher’s point of view.

The same an object may be the subject of various studies and even scientific directions . For example, the object “man” can be studied by physiologists, psychologists, historians, sociologists, etc. But item These studies will vary among different specialists. For a physiologist, the subject of research will be, for example, the state of the human circulatory system; for a psychologist - the mental state of a person at a time of stress, etc.

Or such an object of research as a “bank”. What can be the subject of bank research? The subject may be the bank's foreign exchange transactions; bank credit policy; bank personnel management; transactions with securities, etc.

The central point is wording research objectives . The purpose of the research is what you, in the most general form, should or intend to achieve as a result of the work. What will the work be done for? What is the expected end result?

Examples of goal statements could be the following: develop, justify, analyze, summarize, identify, etc. When formulating a goal, the word “path” should be avoided.

The total number of goals should not be more than 2-3, so as not to clutter up the work. Each of the goals can be presented in the form of tasks, the totality of solutions of which ensures their implementation. Simply put, setting goals clearly demonstrates what the researcher needs to do to achieve the goal?

The next step is to build a hypothesis. Hypothesis is a scientific assumption, an assumption whose true meaning is uncertain. A hypothesis is one of the main methods of developing scientific knowledge, which consists of putting forward a hypothesis and its subsequent experimental and sometimes theoretical testing. As a result, the hypothesis is either confirmed and it becomes a fact, concept, theory, or it is refuted and then a new hypothesis etc. By formulating a hypothesis, you make an assumption about how you intend to achieve your research goal. It would be nice to have a multicomponent hypothesis or construct it in such a way as to test several options. And then in the work it will be possible to say that this worked and this is why, and this did not work, this assumption was erroneous. This will give the work credibility.

What methods will be used to solve the tasks? This question must be answered by listing research methods .

Methodology- this is the whole set of research techniques, including methodology, technology and various procedures (operations) with data.

Method (Greek – methodos) – in the broadest sense of the word - “the path to something”, the method of activity of the subject in any of its forms.

Any scientific method is developed on the basis of a certain theory, which thereby serves as its necessary prerequisite. The effectiveness and strength of a particular method is determined by the content, the depth of fundamentality of the theory, which is compressed into a method. In turn, the method “extends into the system,” i.e. used for further development of science, deepening and deployment of theoretical knowledge as a system, use in practice.

Each method is determined primarily by its subject, i.e. what exactly is being researched.

Any method, even the most important one, is only one of many factors in human creative activity, which is not limited only to logic and method. Creative activity may also include other factors: the strength and flexibility of the researcher’s mind, his criticality, depth of imagination, development of fantasy, ability to intuition, etc.

Research methods can be divided into methods of theoretical and empirical research, fundamental and applied, quantitative and qualitative methods, etc.

Each method has three main aspects:

Objectively meaningful,

Operational,

Praxeological.

The first aspect expresses the conditionality of the method by the subject of research through theory.

The operational aspect captures the dependence of the content of the method not so much on the object, but on the subject, his competence, ability to translate the corresponding theory into a system of rules, principles, techniques, which in their totality form the method.

The praxeological aspect of the method consists of such properties as efficiency, reliability, clarity, constructiveness, etc.

The characteristic features of the scientific method include objectivity, reproducibility, necessity, specificity, etc.

Method- a set of rules, techniques, operations for the practical or theoretical development of reality. It serves to obtain and substantiate objectively true knowledge.

The nature of the method is determined by many factors:

The subject of the study

The degree of generality of the tasks set,

The accumulated experience,

The level of development of scientific knowledge, etc.

Methods that are suitable for one area of ​​scientific research are not suitable for achieving goals in other areas. At the same time, many outstanding achievements in science - a consequence of the transfer and use of methods that have proven themselves in other areas of research. Thus, based on the methods used, opposite processes of differentiation and integration of sciences occur.

The method of scientific research is a way of understanding objective reality. A method is a certain sequence of actions, techniques, and operations.

Depending on the content of the objects being studied, methods of natural science and methods of social and humanitarian research are distinguished.

Research methods are classified according to branches of science: mathematical, biological, medical, socio-economic, legal, etc.

Depending on the level of knowledge, methods are distinguished:

1. Empirical

2. Theoretical

3. Metatheoretical levels.

Empirical level methods include observation, description, comparison, counting, measurement, questionnaire, interview, testing, experiment, modeling, etc.

Methods at the theoretical level include axiomatic, hypothetical (hypothetico-deductive), formalization, abstraction, general logical methods (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, analogy), etc.

Methods of the metatheoretical level are dialectical, metaphysical, hermeneutic, etc. Some scientists attribute the method to this level system analysis, and others include it among the general logical methods.

Depending on the scope and degree of generality, methods are distinguished:

1) universal (philosophical), operating in all sciences and at all stages of knowledge;

2) general scientific ones, which can be used in the humanities, natural and technical sciences;

3) private - for related sciences;

4) special - for a specific science, field of scientific knowledge.

The concepts of technology, procedure and methodology of scientific research should be distinguished from the concept of method under consideration. Research technique is understood as a set of special techniques for using a particular method, and research procedure is a certain sequence of actions, a method of organizing research.

Methodology is a set of methods and techniques of cognition.

For example, the methodology of economic research is understood as a system of methods, techniques, means of collecting, processing, analyzing and evaluating information about economic phenomena, their causes and conditions.

Any scientific research is carried out using certain techniques and methods, according to certain rules. The study of the system of these techniques, methods and rules is called methodology.

However, the concept of “methodology” in the literature is used in two meanings:

1) a set of methods used in any field of activity (science, politics, etc.);

2) the doctrine of the scientific method of knowledge.

Teaching about methods - methodology . It seeks to streamline, systematize methods, establish the suitability of their use in different fields, and answer the question of what kind of conditions, means and actions are necessary and sufficient to achieve certain scientific goals.

The variety of human activities determines the use various methods, which can be classified on a variety of grounds. In scientific knowledge, methods are used: general and specific, empirical and theoretical, qualitative and quantitative, etc.

It has now become obvious that a system of methods, methodology cannot be limited only to the sphere of scientific knowledge, it must go beyond its limits and certainly include it in its orbit and scope of practice. At the same time, it is necessary to keep in mind the close interaction of these two spheres.

As for the methods of science, there may be several reasons for dividing them into groups. Thus, depending on the role of place in the process of scientific knowledge, one can distinguish formal and substantive, empirical and theoretical, fundamental and applied methods, methods of research and presentation, etc.

There are also high-quality and quantitative methods, uniquely deterministic and probabilistic, methods of direct and indirect cognition, original and derivative, etc.

The characteristic features of a scientific method (whatever type it belongs to) most often include: objectivity, reproducibility, heuristics, necessity, specificity, etc.

The methodology of science develops a multi-level concept of methodological knowledge, distributing all methods of scientific knowledge according to the degree of generality and scope.

With this approach, 5 main groups of methods can be distinguished:

1. Philosophical methods, among which the most ancient are dialectical and metaphysical. Essentially, every philosophical concept has a methodological function, is a unique way mental activity. Therefore, philosophical methods are not limited to the two mentioned. These also include methods such as analytical (characteristic of modern analytical philosophy), intuitive, phenomenological, etc.

2. General scientific approaches and research methods, which have been widely developed and used in science. They act as a kind of “intermediate” methodology between philosophy and the fundamental theoretical and methodological provisions of the special sciences.

General scientific concepts most often include such concepts as “information”, “model”, “structure”, “function”, “system”, “element”, “optimality”, “probability”, etc.

The characteristic features of general scientific concepts are, firstly, the “fusion” in their content of individual properties, features, concepts of a number of special sciences and philosophical categories. Secondly, the possibility (unlike the latter) of their formalization and clarification by means of mathematical theory and symbolic logic.

On the basis of general scientific concepts and concepts, the corresponding methods and principles of cognition are formulated, which ensure the connection and optimal interaction of philosophy with special scientific knowledge and its methods.

To the number general scientific principles and approaches include systemic and structural-functional, cybernetic, probabilistic, modeling, formalization and a number of others.

3. Private scientific methods are a set of methods, principles of knowledge, research techniques and procedures used in one or another science corresponding to a given basic form of motion of matter. These are methods of mechanics, physics, chemistry, biology and social sciences.

4. Disciplinary methods are a system of techniques used in a particular scientific discipline that is part of some branch of science or that arose at the intersections of sciences. Each basic science is a complex of disciplines that have their own specific subject and their own unique research methods.

5. Interdisciplinary research methods- a set of a number of synthetic, integrative methods (arising as a result of a combination of elements of various levels of methodology), aimed mainly at the interfaces of scientific disciplines. These methods have found wide application in the implementation of complex scientific programs.

Thus, methodology is a complex, dynamic, holistic, subordinated system of methods, techniques, principles different levels, scope, focus, heuristic possibilities, contents, structures, etc.