Aspirational trends in social science methodology.

Adaikkalam, S., Ashtiani, M, Karlberg, M., Sami, M., & Toosi, N. R.

How can we contribute to the evolving discourse on methodology in ways that en-able the social sciences to better serve the needs of humanity? How can we help those who are entering the social sciences make thoughtful choices about methodology that enable them to contribute to the betterment of the world? With these questions in mind, this paper examines six underlying trends in methodological discourse and practice that might portend a gradual maturation of the social sciences. We refer to these trends as (1) integrating diverse ways of knowing, (2) democratizing the generation of knowledge, (3) reconciling universal and contextual knowledge, (4) identifying and applying normative principles in research, (5) fostering dis-cursive reflexivity, and (6) generating knowledge for social transformation. Awareness of these trends can inform our contributions to the discourse on methodology as well as our methodological choices. Published 2025 in the Journal of Baha'i Studies