Research Paradigms and Their Use and Importance in Theological Inquiry and Education

Abstract

A SURVEY AND analysis of four major research paradigms—positivism, postpositivism, critical theory and constructivism—reveal that all have been applied effectively in recent theological inquiry. Although these paradigms might resemble worldviews to some extent, they are not so all-encompassing. Rather, they are essentially matrices of deeply held assumptions or conceptual frameworks that undergird and guide research, in this case, theological method. A three-step approach—one that applauds a willingness to examine and blend research paradigms—is recommended in so far as it may, in some cases, best maintain a commitment to faithful dealing with the biblical record and, hence, to truth-seeking—both in the direct theological endeavour and in theological education, both formal and informal.