‘A knowledge claim means that researchers start a project with certain assumptions about how they will learn and what they will learn during the inquiry’. The claim may be called a research methodology which can also be defined as ‘techniques that are an abstraction of reality and which are used in an orderly manner to reveal the dimension of reality’ (Creswell, 2003, p.6). It is a wider research framework which may be inclusive of research design, theoretical frameworks, the selection and analysis of relevant literature, and justified preferences for particular types of data-gathering activities (Saunders et al., 2003). Identifying an appropriate research methodology will help researchers in developing a clear research framework which will provide the advantages of achieving the research aims and objectives set out in Chapter 1.
In social research, methodologies can be broadly classified into quantitative methodology and qualitative methodology, and each carries different epistemological and ontological considerations (Bryman, 2004). In this research, qualitative research methodology is adopted.. As mentioned earlier, the focus of this research is to ascertain the impacts of Islamic microfinance in Thailand, exploring people’s attitudes, behaviours, and motivation based on the conventional theories on the subjects. Various aspects of impacts which have been greatly examined in microfinance literature are to be tested and explained. The results provide qualitative explanation of different aspects of impacts and demand for Islamic microfinance in Thailand. It is therefore said to utilise qualitative methodology and employed a combination of quantitative method and qualitative methods of data collection and analysis.
102 Research philosophy relates to paradigms, ontological and epistemological considerations and assumptions of researchers. As such, the way researchers think about the developme nt of acceptable knowledge in a discipline affects the way they conduct their research. Three views on the research process are predominant: positivism, realism and interpretivism (Bryman, 2004, Easterby-Smith et al., 2008). Positivists believe that the authentic and acceptable knowledge about social reality must be based on sense, experience and positive verification. They tend to ‘assume the role of an objective analyst, coolly detached interpretations about those data that have been collected in an apparently value-free manner’ (Saunders et al., 2003, p.83). They rely heavily on structured methodology, facilitating replication and on quantifiable observations in which statistical analysis can be employed. Thus, the methods of the natural sciences are applicable to the study of social sciences and beyond (Bryman and Bell, 2003).
Proponents of realism believe that there are a number of social forces and processes which may have a significant influence on people’s behaviours and interpretations. These social forces and processes are external to individuals in society (Schlick, 1948). This implies that realists share this philosophical vision with positivists but they reject the notion of the similar style of natural sciences (Bryman, 2008). They rather ‘recognise the importance of understanding people’s socially constructed interpretations and meanings, or subjective reality, within the context of seeking to understand broader social forces, structures or processes that influence, and perhaps constrain, the nature of people’s views and behaviours’ (Saunders et al., 2003, p.85).
Interpretivism argues that in order to understand a social reality, researchers must uncover the details of situations or a reality working behind them (Easterby-Smith et al., 2008). They develop subjective meanings of their experiences that are varied and multiple, guiding them to the complexity of views of participants. These meanings are formed through interaction of individuals in society and through individual values and norms. The researchers’ background affects the way they interpret the meanings expressed by others about the world. They hence generate a theory or pattern of meaning, rather than testing a
103 theory. Qualitative enquiry is often employed by interpretivists in studying social reality (Creswell, 2003).
As stated by Saunders et al. (2003), research rarely falls neatly into only one of these philosophical domains. The choice of philosophical application will be influenced by the research questions the researchers seek to answer. In this research, a post-positivism or critical realism stance is applied. This stance recognises that researchers cannot be positive about their claims to knowledge of human beings’ actions and behaviours. The main focus of the study is the demand for and impacts of IsMFIs on the lives of people in Thailand. Their knowledge, behaviour and perception of the Islamic financial services they have received from the IsMFIs form a major part of the objectives of this re search. Some related theories are used in the formulation of variables, which reflects the orientation of positivism. The attitudes and perceptions of participants are considered to be socially constructed and influenced by their social process and structure.
Bryman and Bell (2003) maintain that research methodology and research approach are interrelated and cannot be studied in isolation. Two research approaches comprise the deductive approach and the inductive approach (Black, 1999). In the deductive approach, researchers aim at testing theories by deducing them into hypotheses. These hypotheses are then operationalised and tested to confirm or modify a theory in the light of the findings. This approach is associated with quantitative research and positivism (Bryman, 2008). The inductive approach ‘involves drawing generalisible inferences out of observations. Collection of further data may be carried out in order to establish the conditions in which a theory will or will not hold’ (Bryman, 2004, p.9). This is the process of generation of theories. This approach is associated with qualitative research and interpretivism (Easterby- Smith et al., 2008). In order to study clients’ perceptions and attitudes, this research relies on both approaches. The deductive process is employed when testing theories on impacts of microfinance i.e. household income, productive assets, housing, employment etc. The inductive approach is utilised mainly to find out the possible religious aspects of the impacts and other hidden elements of demand and impacts which may not be found in the previous literature.
104