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Ontology Ontology is concerned with the assumptions made by different beliefs about reality.4,6 I am asking an ontological question when I ask, “In what ways is something really there?” If I believe that a stone has a discrete, enduring existence separate from everything else, and a smile has a transient existence that marks a meaningful transaction between people, I am making an ontological distinction. Epistemology Epistemology seeks to define knowledge within a particular belief about reality.6 I am asking an epistemological question when I ask, “What is the relationship between the knower and the known?”4 If I believe that a patient can subjectively experience the effect of a drug differently from a claim made by scientific evidence, I am making an epistemological distinction. Methodology Methodology is the study of ways of knowing within a particular belief about reality.6 I am asking a methodological question when I ask, “What approach to knowledge generation will provide a reliable answer to my question?” I make different methodological choices when I invite respondents to (1) score a pick-list of options, (2) speak in their own words, or (3) participate in a focus group.
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The Article in Brief
Background When general practitioners and family physicians listen, reflect, and diagnose, they use 3 different theories of knowledge: postpositivism (which views the world as orderly and predictable), critical theory (which believes that truth exists, but may be hidden by other truths), and constructivism (which believes that there is no single truth but that people create truth and share meanings). Each of these theories is necessary because each highlights different aspects of the complex and changing world; together they help make sense of everyday experience. These theories serve as lenses and as guides to action. Understanding them can help clinicians learn, practice, and conduct research.
What This Study Found .
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