Abstraction, conceptualization, disambiguation, ideation, innovation, objectivization, quantification, and theorization in the social sciences: New pillars for contemporary social sciences research

Abstract

In many of our previous papers published over the years, we had developed and propounded concepts such as fuzzy logic, the theory of paradoxes, the certainty uncertainty principle for the social sciences, innovative methods for the social sciences, and had also explained the importance of inductive approaches, grounded theory, and nomothetic rule building. We had also stated the importance of practicalism as a core component of the philosophy of science. In this paper, we state the importance of abstraction, conceptualization, ideation, innovation, quantification, theorization, objectivization and disambiguation in the social sciences, and explain all of these concepts in detail. We also refer to them as the “pillars of social sciences research methods and techniques”, or “the guiding principles or the guiding forces in the use or employment of social science research methods and techniques, and social science research activity”. These approaches are necessary because social sciences research is mostly qualitative; these techniques could impart quality and objectivity to social science research in a way that other techniques cannot. These are different from the philosophy of science or the philosophy of social science, and these we anticipate would guide and drive much of social science research enterprise in the twenty-first century and beyond. These are also foundationally different from the objectives of social science research, examples of which could be cultural emancipation, inculcation of a scientific temper, etc. Needless to say, these can be gainfully employed in the non social sciences as well, though this is not our primary focus and emphasis here.