In the social sciences, a now-unpopular theoretical approach that tries to explain social and cultural phenomena in terms of predictable, underlying laws, and fundamentally believes that objective, often quantitative data can be used to uncover these laws. Philippe Bourgois rejects this approach in his study of East Harlem, where official statistics fall far short of describing reality, and only qualitative research can explain what motivates people to work in the underground economy.
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Positivism Term Timeline in In Search of Respect
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Introduction
...relationships based on trust” and “collect[ing] ‘accurate data’” even if they “violate the canons of positivist research .” Bourgois passed “hundreds of nights” with people who sell and use drugs, recording their...
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