THE 10 MOST IMPORTANT PARADIGM TYPES - CULTURE VOCABULARY - 2025

The most prominent types of paradigm are the behaviorist paradigm, the historical-social paradigm or the quantitative paradigm, among others. Paradigms are ways of interpreting reality and from them the world or an area of ​​science is investigated, studied and observed. For example, from the behavioral paradigm of psychology, consciousness is rejected and the behavior that can be observed is studied.

Etymologically, the word paradigm has its origin in Ancient Greece, derived from the term Paradeigma which translates as a model or example. This is precisely the meaning that is given to it today, since when the word paradigm is mentioned, it speaks of examples, patterns or models to follow.

Therefore the word paradigm is used to refer to the set of beliefs, examples and norms as an ideal to be followed, whether of a culture, rule or society.

Since the 1960s, the term was coined in scientific research as well as in epistemology, pedagogy, and psychology studies.

Origin of paradigms

The Greek philosopher Plato was one of the first historical figures to use this term to refer to ideas or examples to follow, as long as it is used within a context where there is inspiration.

For his part, the American philosopher Thomas Kuhn was the one who introduced the term to describe the group of activities that define the guidelines of a scientific discipline within a temporal space.

In science, the paradigm is conceived from a more practical point of view that raises the discovery of new research spaces, other ways to obtain the necessary training and data that allow solving the problems posed in a given situation.

However, it should be noted that this term can be applied in other fields, besides the scientific, linguistic, and social sciences.

The paradigm is everything related to the way in which the world is understood, the experiences and beliefs of a society and everything that affects how the individual perceives the reality that surrounds him within the social system.

Depending on the field in which it is used, there is a typification of the paradigms. Next, you will be able to see in a summarized way the most used ones.

Main types of paradigm

In the education sector, the formulation of new paradigms implies an evolution to achieve the improvement of available knowledge, being considered as new instruments to solve unknowns (Luna, 2011).

- Educational paradigms

Based on this precept, within education various types of paradigms are recognized, of which the behavioral, constructivist, cognitive and the historical-social stand out.

1- Behavioral paradigm

Framed in the behaviorist theory, this model estimates that learning should be focused on observable and measurable data, where the teacher is perceived as "a person endowed with learned competences, who transmits according to a planning carried out based on specific objectives" (Hernández, 2010, p. 114).

The teacher must provide, through principles, procedures, and behavioral programs, the tools to students to achieve the proposed learning objectives (Chávez, 2011).

The student or student, within this paradigm, acts as the receiver of the instructions programmed by the teacher, even before knowing him, so he is conditioned to be a passive actor in an active world.

It is recognized that student performance and school learning can be influenced or modified from outside the educational system.

2- Constructivist paradigm

Unlike the previous model, this paradigm conceives the student as an active and changing entity whose daily learning can be incorporated into previous experiences and already forged mental structures.

In this constructivist learning space, the student must internalize, transform and rearrange new information to adapt it to previous learning, which will allow them to face reality situations.

3- Historical-social paradigm

Also known as the sociocultural model developed in the 1920s by Lev Vigotsky, in which the main premise is that the individual's learning is influenced by their social environment, personal history, opportunities and historical context in which it develops.

Structurally, this paradigm is perceived as an open triangle, which is nothing more than the relationship that exists between the subject, object and instruments in which the vertices develop within the sociocultural context, this playing a fundamental role in the construction of knowledge.

4- Cognitive paradigm

Developed in the 1950s in the United States, this paradigm is interested in emphasizing that education should be oriented towards the development of learning skills, not just teaching knowledge.

The cognitive model is derived from the combination of three fields, considered the antecedents of this paradigm: information theory, linguistics, and computer science.

From the educational point of view, the primary objectives of the school, according to the cognitive approach, should focus on learning to learn and / or teaching to think. The cognitive dimensions that are developed in this paradigm are attention, perception, memory, intelligence, language, thought, among others.

- Research paradigms

Within the framework of social research, levels and perspectives are developed in which two main paradigms arise: the quantitative and the qualitative.

These differ in the type of knowledge that is expected to be obtained in the research carried out, according to the reality, object of study and the techniques used in the collection of information (Gray, 2012).

5- Quantitative paradigm

Directly related to the distributive perspective of social research, which aims to accurately describe the social reality under study. To achieve its objective, this approach relies on statistical and mathematical techniques, such as the use of surveys and the respective statistical analysis of the data obtained.

In this way, a knowledge attached to objectivity is built, avoiding distorting information or generating distortions derived from subjectivity. With this paradigm laws or general norms of human behavior are established from the elaboration of empirical concepts.

6- qualitative paradigm

For its part, the qualitative approach is closely related to the dialectical and structural perspectives of reality, focused on analyzing and understanding the responses of individuals to social actions and behaviors.

Unlike the quantitative paradigm, it uses other techniques based on language analysis such as interviews, thematic discussions, social creativity techniques, among others.

With this paradigm, we want to understand the structures of society rather than quantify them, focusing on the subjectivity of people and their perception of reality (Gray, 2012).

7- Positivist paradigm

Based on the philosophical approach of positivism, this paradigm was developed to study phenomena in the field of natural sciences. It is also called hypothetical-deductive, quantitative, empirical-analyst or rationalist.

Its origin dates back to the 19th century and is also applied in the area of ​​social sciences, without affecting the differences that exist between the two fields of study.

In positivist research the existence of a single reality is affirmed; starting from the principle that the world has its own existence, independent of who studies it and that it is governed by laws, with which phenomena are explained, predicted and controlled.

According to this approach, the sciences have the objective of discovering these laws, reaching the theoretical generalizations that contribute to enriching universal knowledge about a given area (González, 2003).

9- Interpretive paradigm

Derived from the qualitative approach, this precept of interpretation poses the researcher as a discoverer of the meaning of human actions and social life, describing the personal world of individuals, the motivations that guide it, and their beliefs.

All this with the intention of studying in depth what conditions behaviors. This paradigm applied in the social sciences starts from the concept that people's actions are always determined by the subjective burden of a reality, which cannot be observed or analyzed with quantitative methods (González, 2003).

In the framework of the interpretive paradigm, the research presents the following characteristics:

1. Naturalistic research. Study real world situations and their natural development without manipulating information.
2. Inductive analysis. The exploration is done through open questions emphasizing the details to prove the hypotheses raised by deduction.
3. Holistic perspective. It is based on knowing the cause and effect considering the complex system that represents the interdependent relationship of the parties involved.
4. Qualitative data. Capture personal experiences with an accurate description of the information collected.
5. Contact and personal insight. The researcher has direct contact with the reality studied and its protagonists.
6. Dynamic systems. The changing processes in the individual or society are described during the research, understanding change and evolution as a fundamental part of the study.
7. Orientation towards the single case. Each research is considered unique in its category due to the subjectivity of the individuals and the reality studied.
8. Sensitivity to the context. The research is located in the historical, social and temporal context to place the discoveries made.
9. Empathic neutrality. It is recognized that full objectivity is impossible. The researcher develops empathy towards the situation studied and the perspective of the individuals.
10. Design flexibility. The research is not framed in a single design but adapts to the combination of different designs to understand the situation and respond to emerging changes.

10- Empirical-analytical paradigm

In this approach, objectivity is prioritized over other elements. Assuming in this way the replicability in the investigations which allows to verify the knowledge generated.

Derived from the quantitative paradigm, this model uses tools such as the deductive method and the application of quantitative strategies and techniques.

The objective of the investigations under this approach is to generate theories and laws that are not definitive, based on experimentation, empirical logic combined with the observation and analysis of phenomena, at the same time that it is supported by positive theories and rationalism.

References

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4. Gray, J. (2012) Evolution of science: 4 paradigms Retrieved from 2.cs.man.ac.uk.
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