Dear colleagues,
I’ve seen throughout my academic life a grueling discussion about when we should use propositions or hypotheses. Many researchers assume that when we formulate hypotheses, we are dealing with a measurable investigation (relationships between variables). On the other hand, when we elaborate on a non-measurable work (e.g., a conceptual model), we should formulate propositions.
However, other academics defend that hypotheses are related simply to a quantitative paper, while propositions are adequate for qualitative investigations. However, in areas as applied social sciences, we frequently need to embrace both perspectives (quantitative and qualitative). In the case, of a quali-quanti approach, we may need to use different methods that involve both, variables measurement as subjective interpretation. In this case, (and of course, if they are adequate to answer our research question), should we formulate hypotheses or propositions? Could you please give your thoughts about this question? Thanks in advance.
Kind Regards
Yves
Hi Yves,
In a logical sequence, researcher first develops propositions to explore the study phenomenon which do not have prior empirical evidences. In a proposition it is unclear about the nature of causal relationship between two variables or concepts. Hypothesis takes place after proposition, which is a testable statement about the theoretical relationship between two measurable variables. It indicates nature of relationships, sometimes direction of relationships concerning target variable. Now the question is - do we need both propositions and hypotheses in a study? Prof. David L Morgan answered this issues. In a quantitative research, hypotheses formulation is suffice provided that the study phenomenon is not out of the blue. If so, a qualitative investigation is necessary to formulate the proposition. Thanks
Yves Costa Netto - I think to answer your question, it is important to differentiate the terms "proposition" and "hypothesis". The main difference between the two is that a hypothesis must be testable and measurable, while a proposition deals with pure concepts for which no laboratory test is currently available. A proposition is a tentative and conjectural relationship between constructs that is stated in a declarative form. It is a statement about the concepts that may be judged as true or false if it refers to observable phenomena. When a proposition is formulated for empirical testing, we call it a hypothesis. Since preposition is a declarative statement it does not have to be true, but must be empirically testable using data, so that we can judge whether it is true or false.
The opposition between hypothesis and proposition is , in my opinion, flawed by the fact these two terms are not independent: we can put an hypothesis in the form of a proposition and viceversa we can arrange an hypotesisis testing of a proposition.
This is evident by the origin of the two terms: proposition comes from the Latin pro=in front, ahead and positus=to put, thus a proposition is something that I put forward, the same happens when I make a proposal (the same meaning), Putting something in front implies it can be judged by other persons.
Hypothesis instead is Greek word that has only a little difference with proposition it comes from Hypo= Under, plus Tithemi = To put , the same of the Latin verb pongo (past tense : positus). Thus by means of a Proposition I expose something (to put in front, to make a proposal) with an Hypothesis I base (a base is located under a building or a statue) my proposal on some concept (or theory, or supposition, or judgement..). That's all, thus any proposal to be rational must be based on an hypothesis, and any hypothesis I overtly express is a proposition.
From Wikipedia:
"In philosophy, a proposition is the meaning of a declarative sentence [...], [the [...] bearer of truth or falsity which makes any sentence that expresses it either true or false."
"The term 'proporition' does not refer [...] to concrete events or facts"
So it's a thing of logic in philosophy.
"A hypothesis (plural hypotheses) is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon. For a hypothesis to be a scientific hypothesis, the scientific method requires that one can test it."
"A different meaning of the term hypothesis is used in formal logic, to denote the antecedent of a proposition"
So as far as empirical science is concerend, there is no use of the term "proposition" at all. Science is about hypotheses, which are "proposed explanation[s] for a phenomenon" that are empirically testable.
Only philosophers (and possibly mathematicians) need to bother with using both terms "proposition" and "hypothesis", where "hypothesis" is used in the conceptual context of formal logic.
Dear Alessandro Giuliani
The words` etymology is an excellent form of understanding the difference between the two terms. And even more, it may explain why many researchers tend to defend that propositions are meant to be used for conceptual papers. In your words, "putting something in front implies it can be judged by other persons"). This is one of the purposes of a conceptual paper.
Thanks for your insights!
Kind regards
I was taught that hypotheses take the form "If...then..." and as such they are a specific kind of proposition. In either case, there is general some statement about how two or more things are related.
This kind of statement is essential for all but the most descriptive of quantitative research, because the usual goal is to test the existence of relationships among well-defined variables. In contrast, qualitative research is often much more exploratory, and thus does not require prior specifications of either which variables are involved in a research topic or how they related.
Hi Yves,
In a logical sequence, researcher first develops propositions to explore the study phenomenon which do not have prior empirical evidences. In a proposition it is unclear about the nature of causal relationship between two variables or concepts. Hypothesis takes place after proposition, which is a testable statement about the theoretical relationship between two measurable variables. It indicates nature of relationships, sometimes direction of relationships concerning target variable. Now the question is - do we need both propositions and hypotheses in a study? Prof. David L Morgan answered this issues. In a quantitative research, hypotheses formulation is suffice provided that the study phenomenon is not out of the blue. If so, a qualitative investigation is necessary to formulate the proposition. Thanks
Dear Moniruzzaman Sarker , David L Morgan , Jochen Wilhelm , and Dr Manzoor Hussain . Thanks for your insights on this discussion. It's essential to clarify the proper use of both concepts. In sum, we need to delve into the (I) words` etymology and (ii) in the possibility (or not) to test (quantitatively) the variables (if well-defined, as David L Morgan stated).
Kind regards
Yves
Hypothesis focuses on empirical testing while proposition deals with theory formulations.
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