This book is an introduction to approaches and methodologies in the social sciences. ‘Approaches’ is a general term, wider than theory or methodology. It includes epistemology or questions about the theory of knowledge; the purposes of research, whether understanding, explanation or normative evaluation; and the ‘meta-theories’ within which particular theories are located. It takes in basic assumptions about human behaviour; whether the unit of analysis is the individual or the social group; and the role of ideas and interests. The first part of the book outlines some of these approaches, their development and the key issues they address. It is, in the spirit of the project as a whole, pluralistic, and readers should not expect the chapters to build into a single picture. Rather, they present different research traditions and orientations, some of which overlap while others are more starkly opposed.

The second part moves into questions of methodology, of how we turn a research problem into a workable design and of the basic choices to be made about methods. It does not go into detail on methods themselves; for this, students must turn to the numerous manuals available. The chapters should, however, help them to read and understand research based on different methodologies as well as help to guide their own choices. Readers will not find a road map leading step-by-step to their final goal.