Kayla Porter

Dr. Domeracki

HON 296-005

1 November 2021

Cohort Assignment Two

Each discipline represents a different way of researching a question. Humanities uses

rational inquiry to understand human behavior and experiences. It also tends not to use

quantitative research. Social Sciences approaches understanding human behavior on an

individual or collective basis by examining societal values and goals. STEM mainly relies on

prior scientific knowledge and data, and uses hypotheses to first interpret a problem. Each

project employed a different method of research and interpretation to analyze the respective

research question. In this paper, there will be an articulation of the processes and assumptions of

each discipline, and the similarities between them. Project One examined the problem using a

Humanities approach, Project Two used Social Sciences, and Project Five used STEM.

In Project One, research is conducted to “arrive at a more complete understanding and

historical reconstruction of the lives of selected female scholars.” Based on this purpose, Project

One embodies the humanities. Humanities is a discipline that uses inquiry to interpret the

experiences of humans and how those experiences correlate with the culture and societies of a

specific time. To conduct this project, the researcher begins by proposing detailed questions that

need to be answered to fulfill the research’s purpose. Then, collecting documents and compiling

databases. Following this step is analyzing the data and documents for relevant information to

apply to the project. After accumulating the relevant pieces of information, the researcher will

answer questions about how cultural and societal components such as religion and socio-

economic status affected the education of female scholars. There are assumptions the researcher

made in the first step of methodology when proposing questions. Assumptions were made about
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how female scholars were treated in that historical time. Asking questions like “Did religious

rules regarding veiling, seclusion, and women’s mobility in the public sphere affect the physical

circumstances of women’s education,” assumes women faced many obstacles getting their

education. The most noticeable assumption being made, like in most research projects, is the

researcher assumes their research will contribute relevant information to their field.

When looking at social sciences, social and cultural aspects of society are analyzed

through theoretical and empirical models. It observes human behavior at the individual and

collective level, looking specifically at social, cultural, political, and economic contexts. The

social sciences discipline can be seen in project three with its methods of research, observing

human behavior and identities, as well as the ways in which data is collected. Project three uses

several steps and assumptions to demonstrate the use of social sciences. Project 3 uses qualitative

and quantitative methods to gather data regarding the experiences, reactions, beliefs, and ideas

about the roles and responsibilities of the teachers being surveyed. This data involves surveys,

observations in the classroom, teacher interviews, and teacher’s journal logs. The project follows

certain steps to gather this data. It starts by initiating a survey with approximately – preferred –

300 teachers. It will collect information on teacher attitudes and beliefs. This will be followed by

observations and note collections, then followed by semi-structured interviews. Further

interviews are to be conducted to gather more in-depth information. The project itself assumes

that social, cultural, and historical context directly impact teaching. It also assumes that teachers

in different countries will have different experiences. As such, it has the diverse data collection

that it needs to be a strong project.

Research in the STEM discipline tends to pull from observable information from other

researchers in attempts to create a solution to a problem with more success than a current
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method. A question is asked that involves material already developed to some extent, and with

that question a method is developed to test the concept to hopefully achieve some sort of success

towards the research question. In context to Project Five, the researcher is investigating the use

of anammox (anaerobic ammonium oxidation) and microbial probes to more efficiently remove

nitrogen pollution from domestic wastewater. As explained in Project Five, the widely accepted

method of removing nitrogen from wastewater involves multiple processes and reactions, both of

which increase the need for time and resources. The steps of STEM research are visible through

Project 5, as a research question is attempting to more efficiently solve a problem identified by

the researcher with methods that already exist. Research is conducted through scientific testing in

hopes a solution will be found that most successfully solves the problem stated in the research

question. However, research involves assumptions that may affect the value or success of a

project. In Project 5, the researcher believes the current method to remove nitrogen waste from

wastewater is flawed, and then assumes the anammox process with microbial probes will provide

a better solution to the problem. The researcher also may assume others care about and

understand the importance of the removal of nitrogen waste. In comparison to other disciplines

such as humanities and social sciences, similarities can be drawn between the three fields as

well. Just as STEM relies on the works of others, research in general involves collaboration. In

relation to Project 5, the researcher developed connections with other institutions and programs

to create a network of opportunities to extend their research. In the research itself, all three

disciplines can be seen to use information to make claims that are assumed to be true. In this

process, the research process seen in not only STEM, but in other fields, repeat their work to gain

a stronger source of data, in which changes are made to adapt with the findings to better serve

the research question.

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Though each of the disciplines have some of their own steps there is some overlap

between them. The two disciplines that share the most similarities are the Humanities and the

Social Sciences. Both disciplines examine humans, their behavior, their dynamics, and the

societal structures that influence these things. In relation to the projects, Project 1 looks at

education of female scholars and how religion impacted this education and Project three

examines how society impacts the experience of teachers today. Each of these projects studies an

aspect of human experience which causes overlap in their assumptions such as the assumption

that societal factors influence human behavior. Where Social Sciences and the Humanities have

similarities in what they are studying and the assumptions that are made. Social Sciences and

STEM have similarities in the kind of data they produce and utilize. These disciplines rely

heavily on quantitative data in order to draw conclusions. Project 2 makes its use of quantitative

data explicit whereas in Project 5 it is more inferred based upon their methods of research.

However, to answer their questions it is apparent that this type of data is required. These

similarities are just some of the ways that these disciplines connect, thus emphasizing how

interdisciplinary research can be.

Each project included a research question, a set of steps that led to a conclusion, and a set

of assumptions. Although there were similarities amongst the projects, they each employed a

different discipline to conduct the research. Therefore, the use of Humanities in Project 1, Social

Sciences in Project 2, and STEM in Project 3 were evident in the author’s method of exploration.

The use of the different disciplinary approaches exemplify how research can be similar and reach

a conclusion but can be approached differently depending on the steps taken and the areas of

examination.