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Introduction to Research What is research?

Assoc. Prof. Pradeep Pathak
Kathmandu School of Law

Pradeep Pathak/5th May, 2023/LLB 3rd Pradeep Pathak/5th May, 2023/LLB 3rd
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Any research is not considered What is Science?

as "Scientific Research" unless:
1. it contributes to a body of • a systematic and organized
science. body of knowledge in any
2. it follows scientific method. area of inquiry that is
acquired using "the
scientific method".
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year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law

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What is Scientific Knowledge? The nature of scientific knowledge:

• "A generalized body of laws and theories to explain a
phenomenon or behaviour of interest that are acquired
using the scientific method".
• PLAUSIBLE
• Laws are observed patterns of phenomena or behaviours.
• Theories are systematic explanations of the underlying • RELIABLE
phenomenon or behaviour. • DEGREE OF ACCURACY
• The goal of scientific research is to discover laws and
postulate theories that can explain natural or social • CONSISTENT
phenomena, or, in other words, build scientific knowledge. • TESTABLE
• We arrive at scientific laws or theories through a process of
logic and evidence. Logic (theory) and evidence • PREDICTABLE
(observations) are the two pillars upon which scientific
knowledge is based.
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year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law

Science can be grouped into two

broad categories:

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Propositions of Science

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1. Natural Science
• The world is real. 2. Social Science
3. Key Difference:
• The reality is objective.
Natural Science Social Science
Very precise, accurate, Less accurate, less
• The reality is comprehensible. deterministic and deterministic, less
independent of the unambiguous. High
person making the degree of
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year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law
scientific observations. measurement error.

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Sciences can also be classified Scientific Research: Key Points

based on their purpose: • Theories and observations are the two pillars of science.
• Scientific research operates at two levels: a theoretical
level and an empirical level.
• BASIC Sciences (Pure Sciences) • The theoretical level is concerned with developing
abstract concepts about a natural or social phenomenon
and relationships between those concepts.
• The empirical level is concerned with testing the
• APPLIED Sciences (Practical Sciences) theoretical concepts and relationships to see how well
they reflect our observations of reality, with the goal of
ultimately building better theories.
• Over time, a theory becomes more and more refined and
the science gains maturity.
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Scientific Research: Key Points What is Scientific Method?

SN Inductive Research Deductive Research • "A standardized set of techniques for building
1. The goal of a researcher is The goal of the researcher is scientific knowledge, such as how to make valid
to infer theoretical to test concepts and patterns observations, how to interpret results, and how to
concepts and patterns from known from theory using new
observed data. empirical data. generalize those results".
• Must satisfy four characteristics:
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Theory building and theory testing are particularly difficult

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in the social sciences, given the imprecise nature of the  Replicability

theoretical concepts, inadequate tools to measure them,
and the presence of many unaccounted factors that can  Precision
also influence the phenomenon of interest.  Falsifiability
Conducting scientific research, therefore, requires two sets  Parsimony
of skills – theoretical and methodological – needed to
operate in the theoretical and empirical levels respectively. Pradeep Pathak/5th May, 2023/LLB 3rd
year/Legal Research/Kathmandu School of Law