4. WHAT IS HISTORICAL RESEARCH
Examination of past events, people, places to
arrive at account of what existed or happened in
past.
History helping to inform future decisions and to
avoid repeating past mistakes.
5. The outcomes of the historical research process
can provide useful analysis of the recent past, as
well as an evaluation of events and
circumstances that have been well-tempered by
time.
8. It’s more than facts and dates
It’s interpretative
Different writers write different “histories”
Goal: to communicate understanding of the past for
the advancement of current knowledge, and justify
the “narrative” or story through the presentation of
evidence
9. SIGNIFICANCE OF HISTORICAL
RESEARCH
Reasons for conducting historical research:
To uncover the unknown
To answer questions about the past
To identify the importance that the past in understanding the
present
To record and evaluate the accomplishments of individuals,
agencies, institutions
To aid in the understanding of the cultures in which we live
10. THE NATURE OF HISTORICAL INQUIRY
Positivist, or Neopositivist school
In this reductionist approach, the historical
method attempts to parallel empirical methods in
the natural sciences
There is an attempt to reduce history to
universal laws.
Discovery, verification, and categorization of data
are used to provide objective evidence that in and
of themselves serve as the interpretation of past
events.
11. There is an effort to quantify, to show cause-effect
relations, and to force interpretation of data through
preexisting formulas, models, and generalizations.
This school of thought concerns itself with conditions
as predictors of outcomes, rather than attempting to
discern what specific conditions caused the known
outcome.
This school of thought employs the use of hypotheses
liberally.
12. IDEALIST SCHOOL
Another school of thought that has had influence
on contemporary history.
This line of thinking posits that all events have
an inside and outside view.
historiographer must get inside the event and
rethink the thought of the originator in the
context of his or her time, place , and situation, to
make adequate historical interpretations.
13. Today, historiography is influenced by elements
of both schools.
From the Positivist school have come attention
to rigor in method, use of hypotheses, and
instruments of statistical investigation and
historical explanation.
From the Idealist school have come an
emphasis on making interpretations within an
appropriate temporal and social context and the
importance of viewing events as unique and
diverse.
14. COMMON OR POPULAR FRAMEWORKS
AND APPROACHES USED BY
HISTORIANS
Great person
This approach focuses attention on individuals
and their personal power within a social context.
It is particularly useful when the objective of the
research is a biographical study
There is a desire to emphasize the people who
make changes, rather than the changes
themselves
15. Deterministic
This approach minimizes the importance and
power of individuals in shaping history
Relies primarily on predetermined moral/ethical
or religious codes for making judgments and
explaining historical phenomena
16. Sociological
This approach emphasizes the primacy of social
forces and their influence on people and groups as
determinants of historical events.
With such a framework, historical phenomena are
explained through the use of social trends and
cultural events as instruments for the
interpretation of specific occurrences.
17. Political/economic
This approach may employ the use of an ideology
as a framework for the interpretation of
historical events and is frequently used in
combination with the "great person " approach.
The use of Marxism or other ideologies as a
framework for explaining historical events
18. Psychological
This approach requires a solid grasp of
psychology as well as facility in the historical
method of research.
It attempts to explain the thinking, motivations,
and behaviors of individuals in a historical sense,
using psychological theories as instruments for
analysis and explanation.
22. HISTORICAL RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
There is no one agreed upon method
General steps used:
1. Identify the research topic and formulate a research
problem or question
2. Data collection or literature review
3. Evaluation of materials
4. Data synthesis
5. Report preparation
23.
IDENTIFICATION OF RESEARCH TOPIC AND
FORMULATION OF RESEARCH QUESTIONS
First step—identify the topic to investigate
framing of the title is critical
Each word in the title is critical to communicating
the thesis of the study
emphasis that will be given to specific dimensions
named in the title.
Frequently, a time period will be specified, and
words in the title will become devices to delimit the
topic and determine the study's scope.
24. Early in the process, a thorough investigation
and location of sources‘ should ensue.
archives, libraries, and personal collections of
individuals can be of great value in determining
one's ability to execute the research and to
further justify the study.
Written sources and individuals can be of
significant assistance in locating data and
ensuring its adequacy for the investigation.
25. 2. DATA COLLECTION OR
LITERATURE REVIEW
Identify and locate sources of information about
topic
Key information sources:
Documents (diaries, newspapers, photos,
records, relics)
Interviews
Just about anything left behind about topic
26. 2. DATA COLLECTION (CONT)
Where to locate historical information:
Large university libraries
National Archives—for government records
Local courthouses
School board central offices
Oral histories
interviews with people who had direct or
indirect experience with the phenomenon of
interest in the past
27. 2. DATA COLLECTION (CONT)
Two major types of information sources:
1. Primary sources – original, first hand records, accounts,
or artifacts that have survived from the past; that have
direct involvement with event being investigated
Created at or very shortly after event
Examples: diary, map, letter, newspaper, pictures,
official documentary material, such as verbatim
minutes and proceedings, and interviews with
individuals who were present at an event.
28. Primary sources, either written or in the form of
individual verbal responses, provide a firsthand
account of an event by one who was present.
Although recollection can be faulty and some
documents may reflect the subjectivity of the
recorder.
Primary sources are considered to provide strength
to the discovery of truth and establishment of fact.
29. DATA COLLECTION (CONT)
.
Secondary source –accounts of the past created after the
event or created from primary sources
Provides additional information and opinions
These sources present analyses or restatements of primary
sources
Examples: history books, biographies, published books,
documentaries
Key idea: The most useful historical data are found in primary
sources
30. Some of these sources:
Articles written about an event
Notes taken at a meeting
Summaries of meetings
Narrative descriptions of events by individuals
who were not present at the occurrence
31. Guiding and important principles in selecting and
collecting available data are:
(1) take measures to ensure balance when sources
disagree.
(2) include sufficient amounts of available data to
establish reliability.
32. ESTABLISHING FACT FROM OBJECTIVE
EVIDENCE
Two important elements in the research process
are measures of validity and reliability that
form the basis for establishing fact.
In historical inquiry, validity takes on the form
of external criticism of the data .
33. Questions may be raised about authenticity,
origin, and originality of documents.
Techniques to verify the authenticity of an
author's handwriting, and the composition of
paper at various time periods, also may be
expressed in more elaborate studies
34. EXTERNAL CRITICISM
Determining authenticity of the source:
Is the source what it claims to be?
Example:
Analysis of handwriting by experts
By age of the paper on which the document is written
Signatures on documents
Carbon dating
35. INTERNAL CRITICISM
Reliability is the primary means by which fact
is established.
In contrast with validity, reliability is related to
the internal criticism of data.
Therefore, a correct understanding of language,
which itself evolves and changes over the
decades, is important
36. Strategies for internal criticism:
First, engage in positive criticism making
sure you understand the meaning conveyed
in the source
This can be difficult because meaning changes
over time
37. Second, engage in negative criticism – determining
if content in the document or source is accurate
Ways to establish the accuracy of sources:
Corroboration—comparing documents to see if
they give the same information
Sourcing—identifying the author, date of
creation, place of creation, etc.
Contextualization—identifying when and
where event took place and context of the when
and where
38. Reliability in historical research is an attempt to
establish truth.
Validity and reliability become critical elements
in the conduct of the research and in the critique
of the quality of a completed study.
39. Interviews, whether they are primary or
secondary source materials, are usually best
conducted after data collection from documents
has taken place.
This sequence provides an opportunity for
further clarification and corroboration of written
material
42. DATA SYNTHESIS AND REPORT
PREPARATION
Synthesis—selecting, organizing, and analyzing
materials collected into themes, central idea,
meaningful concepts.
A good writing outline helps to form the gestalt.
Careful reading of the data provides an
understanding of the interconnectedness of events.
Moves from analysis to synthesis and, finally, to
interpretation.
43. Historical explanation expressed:
Use of a unifying construct or framework
Narration based on the predetermined topical
chronological outline
44. objective evidence and facts provide the
foundation for understanding the past; but
interpretation by the individual investigator
provides.
perspectives and views that fill out our
understanding of the past and raise new questions
for study
45. SYNTHESIS AND REPORT
PREPARATION, CONT
Methodological problems to avoid:
Confusion of correlation and causation
Generally not a problem because historical
research focuses more on ideographic (local or
particular) versus nomothetic (general or law
like) knowledge
46. Defining and interpreting key words, terms,
phrases
Differentiating between how people should
and did behave
Maintaining a distinction between intent and
consequences
