The purpose of science is to study the field of factual knowledge. Science is defined not by its subject matter but by its method. Economics as a social science employs the familiar methods of science to derive laws of general nature. But while physical sciences deal with objects, such as atoms, social sciences like economics deal with human beings, singly or in groups. In general, the basic tool of physical sciences is a laboratory experiment but such experiments are not possible in social sciences since human beings, unlike inanimate objects, cannot react to events in a uniform manner that is unfailingly predictable. It is also generally believed that social sciences are basically different form physical sciences because the question of ‘values’ enters the former but not the latter. This book examines th issue of what is "scientific" in the study of economics and how it differs from the core sciences. In doing so it analyses the different kinds of methods used in economics, the strengths and pitfalls of each of them, and raises some very relevant questions about the nature of method in economics and its evolution. Research methodology in economics has both inductive and deductive dimensions. Purely deductive research begins with a developed theoretical system. In a sense deductive researchers hope to find data to match a theory. Inductive researchers hope to find a theory that explains the data. Purely inductive research begins with collection of data, empirical observation or measurements of some kind. It is on this basis that theoretical categories are built and relationships discovered. Both these approaches–the deductive and the inductive, have evolved greatly over the years, as also the application of economics in various fields. Research methodology as a subject is taught at the graduate and post-graduate levels of economics in many Universities of India. This book would serve the needs of students in these courses. The primary of objective of this book is to provide an elementary but comprehensive introduction to the methodological problems faced by students of economics in general. Methodological issues in economics are not cut and dried. There are disputes over basic issues. The disputes and difference have to be understood by students before they undertake any project of thesis or write their dissertations. Therefore, it would serve the needs of those who aspire to write theses and dissertations, and who are often a loss about the methodology to employ in doing so. Finally, it would be a relevant and valid contribution to economics studies in general.
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