Combining Pragmatism and Critical Realism in ICT4D Research: An e-Resilience Case Example

摘要

ICT4D research is strongly oriented to practice but hardly ever explicitly uses the research paradigm of pragmatism. We argue that, though highly-relevant to ICT4D, pragmatism suffers some shortcomings in terms of its philosophy of the world, explanatory power, truth-testing, and values. We suggest that "pragmatist-critical realism" - a novel research paradigm combining pragmatism and critical realism - can address these shortcomings and provide a valuable foundation for ICT4D research; particularly action-oriented research. We outline a four-step operational methodology for pragmatist-critical realism based on a research project that created an "e-resilience" action plan applying ICTs to strengthen resilience of farming communities in Uganda. We hope other action- and design-oriented ICT4D researchers will be encouraged to assess whether pragmatist-critical realism could form a useful basis for their future research.