Processes of Scholarly Research

Knowledge may be viewed as existing in either a static or a dynamic state (Kuhn, 1970, pp. 1034; Conant, 1951, pp. 2425 ). The static view perceives knowledge as a body of systemized information that includes connected principles, theories, and laws (Emory, 1992, p. 22). In this view, knowledge is the cumulative result of past investigations, to which contemporary scholars add blocks of information to an existing base. The dynamic view presents knowledge as a process, and suggests that scientific theories and principles "would soon become a dogma if not subjected to constant investigation and development. In the dynamic view, knowledge is a body of generally accepted rules by which one deals with information; that is, it is the scientific method" (Emory, 1992, p. 23). Through application of the scientific method, scholars treating knowledge as a processthe dynamic perception of sciencecreate scientific revolutions (Kuhn, 1970, pp. 5291).

The foundations of the scientific method are concepts, definition, hypotheses, and theory (Kaplan, 1964, pp. 2436). Concepts are basic to all thought and communication. Hypothesis statements are d

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des the investigator with the basis for developing a perspective from which to consider current practices and future developments. This approach is particularly to the conduct of scientific inquiry in the field of law enforcement. Historical research systematically and objectively locates evidence, evaluates that evidence for relevance with respect to the problem at hand, and synthesizes the relevant evidence into factual findings, from which, in turn, are drawn conclusions relative to past performance (Barzun and Graff, 1977, pp. 166190). These conclusions drawn from the findings of historical research provide the investigator with an enhanced understanding of a problem, procedure, or process. This enhanced understanding forms a basis from which the investigator can both evaluate current events, and plan future actions. Historical research tends to tie together the past, present, and future, a process that is highly useful in the field of law enforcement. The philosophical orientation of historical research, thus, is not solely in the past, present, or the future. It is, rather, directed to the past to develop conclusions as a means of being better able to understand the present, and of being better prepared to plan for t
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Barzun Graff, Reason Rowan, Peters Armstrong, Cohen Manion, Research Knowledge, Sampling Random, Pfaffenberger Patterson, Straits McAllister, Goldstein Goldstein, Scholarly Inquiry, law enforcement, scholarly research, experimental research, historical research, formal scholarly, formal scholarly research, scholarly inquiry, field law, field law enforcement, positive inquiry, barzun graff 1977, graff 1977, emory 1992, graff 1977 pp, ott 1993 pp,
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Approximate Pages = 27 (250 words per page)

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