Understanding Methods of Inquiry

When we wish to learn something about the world around us, we often begin with an inquiry or a question about something we have observed. We want to know what makes something happen or if two events are related to each other. There are several ways to investigate these questions. Let us say, for example, that we wish to know whether children who spend more time outside have higher standardized test scores. This is a good question because it is very specific. We clearly know what we intend to investigate, and both events are easily measured.

The scientific method is probably the most commonly known method of inquiry. It is also by far the most reliable method because scientists approach questions with a healthy skepticism. They try to eliminate biases in their studies and they try to present the results in an objective manner. In the scientific method, one begins with an observation. Perhaps in our case our observation is that second graders who are involved in an after school nature program seem to be getting better grades than their peers. From the observation, a scientist will form a hypothesis. Our hypothesis might be, as said before, that students who spend more time outside get higher scores on standardized tests. A scientist will then establish an experiment in which all variables except one are held constant. In our case, one might select a class of second graders and randomly assign them to one of two groups. One group would be sent outside when they returned home from school while the other group would play inside. The results of the experiment are observed and will either prove or disprove the hypothesis. Either way, the observations made in the experiment will serve to provide a basis for future inquiry and scientific study. It is important to note that some studies may determine correlation without determining causation. Smarter children may, for example, tend to spend more time outside.

A less reliable method of inquiry is the authority method. In the authority method, one takes the word of a reputable figure. Using our example, the head of your local school system's health and fitness department tells you that spending time outside can raise a child's grades on standardized tests and you believe him without doing any research of your own. Essentially, in the authority method, one takes the word of another without question.

Another method of inquiry is the tenacity method. In this method, beliefs are based on superstition or prior beliefs without question. For example, you might believe that spending time outside will raise children's test scores because fresh air is good for children. There is no room for questions or revision of beliefs in the tenacity method of inquiry.

The final method of inquiry is the intuition method, in which one believes something because it feels correct or seems to make sense. Oftentimes intuition is based on a single example. You might have a child living next door who, shortly after building a tree house, received a most improved student award from your local school. One might be tempted to believe that the time spent outside, or even the task of building the tree house, was what caused the child's academic improvement, and therefore you may believe that spending time outside will raise all children's test scores. However, this case could be the exception to the rule or other factors could have caused the result you observed. Perhaps the child received more attention from her parents while building the tree house, and afterwards improved in her studies because she was receiving that attention.

While the scientific method of inquiry is by far the most reliable of the methods presented here, it is important for students of science to understand the non-scientific methods as well. Understanding non-scientific methods allows a scientist to understand why the general public believes what they believe and can therefore make it easier to convince people to believe new findings. It is also important to understand the non-scientific methods to ensure that they do not affect any research the scientist may be performing. The scientific method of inquiry may be the preferred method, but the others are still crucial to the understanding of how people think.