Positivism
Definition
The view that social phenomena, including crime, can be studied through observation, measurement and causal explanation in the manner of the natural sciences.
Related terms
- Interpretivism
- The view that human action has to be understood through the meaning actors themselves attach to it, which requires closeness to lived...
- Operationalisation
- The process of turning an abstract concept, such as fear of crime or recidivism, into a measurable variable with a stated procedure...
- Reliability
- The extent to which a measurement procedure produces the same result when repeated under the same conditions or by a different researcher.
- Thick Description
- A detailed account of behaviour that includes its social and cultural context, so a reader understands the meaning of an act and...
- Validity
- The degree to which evidence and theory support the interpretation of test scores for a specific purpose; modern standards treat it as...