SOCIOCRITICAL RESEARCH PARADIGM: HISTORY, CHARACTERISTICS - PHILOSOPHY - 2025

The sociocritical paradigm in research is one of the four main models of research, along with the positivist paradigm, the historical hermeneutic and the quantum. Specifically, the sociocritical paradigm emerged in response to the positivist, promoting individual action and reflection.

The main objective of the socio-critical paradigm is the vision of the past in a rational and objective way, in such a way that all the limiting ideas received from it can be overcome. It was promoted mainly by the so-called Frankfurt School, whose greatest exponents were, among others, Theodor Adorno and Max Horkheimer.

Max Horkheimer and Theodor Adorno, the greatest exponents of the sociocritical paradigm

The creators of this model of thought wanted to better understand how society affects the behavior of individuals, in order to carry out changes in our way of life. He also tried to understand the human being without falling into reductionism and conformism, like the positivist approach.

History of the sociocritical paradigm

The sociocritical paradigm, also known as critical theory, is a current of thought that gives great importance to the analysis of culture and society through the application of the discoveries of the social sciences. In this way, the intention of the current was to free humans from the circumstances in which they lived.

Critical Theory first emerged with the Frankfurt School, a neo-Marxist philosophy that appeared in Germany in the 1930s. Based on ideas from Marx and Freud, the sociocritical paradigm believed that ideologies were the main obstacle to human liberation.

The main exponents of the Frankfurt School were Theodor Adorno, Herbert Marcuse, Erich Fromm and Marx Horkheimer. His ideas, despite not being widely known by the general public, have been transmitted and have a relative importance within the field of social sciences.

Although in principle they arose as another current of Marxism and Communism, Critical Theory soon realized the importance of their ideas both in research and in communication with society.

Due to the belief that everything is determined by the society in which it occurs, in the 1960s and 1970s critical researchers decided that it is not possible to know reality objectively.

Therefore, they adopted a qualitative research system, based more on understanding each situation in depth than on finding patterns and systems of cause and effect.

From this period on, the most influential thinker of critical theory has been Jürgen Habermas, who defends ideas such as the subjectivity of communication. He has also introduced the concept of "reconstructive science," an attempt to mix the subjectivity of the social sciences with the objectivity of the pure.

Initial Marxist foundation

The ideas of the founders of the Frankfurt School, the first proponents of Critical Theory, were in principle based on Marxism. Due to their rejection of existing capitalist ideas in society, but also of classical communist systems, these thinkers tried to find an alternative to both.

Another of his main ideas was the rejection of positivism, materialism and determinism, the philosophical currents that were most widely accepted at the time. To do this, they tried to return to more classical systems of thought, such as Kant's critical philosophy or Hegel's German idealism.

Main features

Vision of culture as a cause of inequalities

Building on Marxist theories, the thinkers of the Frankfurt School believed that all inequalities between people had to be explained by the society in which they lived, rather than by individual differences.

This was opposed to several of the prevailing psychological currents at the time, such as theories of intelligence or personality.

Due to this belief that culture is what creates inequalities, the followers of the socio-critical paradigm believed that it was necessary to change the social discourse in order to achieve absolute equality between people and classes. For example, its researchers focus on issues such as race, sex, sexual orientation, and nationality.

Some researchers of this current reject ideas that are contrary to this way of thinking, such as, for example, the anatomical differences in male and female brains.

They argue that it is impossible to know objective reality and that, instead, all science is strongly influenced by the culture in which it is created. This is a form of scientific subjectivism.

Relativism

In addition to science, the socio-critical paradigm also promotes relativism in other areas of knowledge. For example, in critical sociology one of the predominant ideas is the need to abandon all ancient traditions and lifestyles due to their toxicity.

In this way, what is known as Postmodernism is created: the inability to discover the truth about any situation due to the influences that society has on them.

On the contrary, researchers who follow the socio-critical paradigm focus on studying phenomena such as language or symbols, which allow studying the subjective truths of people.

In this way, they focus more on qualitative research - which allows us to know a phenomenon in depth - than on quantitative research.

Criticism of Western Civilization

Due to the belief that traditional culture is the cause of all equalities and injustices, sociocritical paradigm theorists believe that Western society is an oppressive system that causes a great deal of trouble.

Due to their rejection of capitalist ideas, the early scholars of the Frankfurt School believed that the exploitation of resources in exchange for money was a violent act and against the freedom of the people. For this reason, his ideas were closer to those of the Communists.

However, after seeing the results of communism in the former Soviet Union, critical theorists decided that it was necessary to first educate the population through the use of cultural symbols so that they would accept Marxist ideas.

For this they rejected all Western traditions, dismissing them as harmful, and praised ideas such as multiculturalism and globalization.

Examples of applications of the sociocritical paradigm

In environmental education studies

The socio-critical paradigm has been used in environmental education, since it seeks to know environmental realities in a practical way and, based on this knowledge, promote reflection and positive action on the part of the student.

In scientific teaching

In the field of science there is also room for the socio-critical paradigm, because through this it is possible to approach experimentation and generate social transformations from reflection on the phenomena studied.

In medicine

The main object of study of medicine is the human being. The socio-critical approach is fundamental in medical sciences, since all research within this field must aim to provide physical and, by extension, social well-being. The social vision becomes the driving force behind medical practice.

References

1. "Critical Theory" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: February 22, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
2. "Cultural Marxism" in: Metapedia. Retrieved on: February 22, 2018 from Metapedia: en.metapedia.org.
3. "Frankfurt School" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: February 22, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.
4. "The sociocritical paradigm" in: Acracia. Retrieved on: February 22, 2018 from Acracia: acracia.org.
5. "Cultural Studies" in: Wikipedia. Retrieved on: February 22, 2018 from Wikipedia: en.wikipedia.org.