Applied Research

disciplines which focus on certain types of questions), across disciplines if it is thematic in nature, or from within one of the professions if activity-oriented in nature. It may also:

• be approached by researchers situated intellectually in any one of a number of traditions or philosophical perspectives
• relate to any of the Types of research problems
• use any of a number of research strategies or "methodologies"
• use any of a number of data gathering methods
• use primary or secondary materials
• Make use of quantititative or qualitative data
• use any of a number of analytical procedures
• .(re-)present the data and findings in any of a number of ways.

Applied research used to be conducted from a primarily "positivist" perspective, but that has changed over the past half-century, owing to the challenges to this outlook from the many "post-modernisms" which arose in the "Lit-Crit" field of the Humanities, spread through the Humanities and into the Social Sciences, and now assault the gates of the Natural Sciences themselves. [] As Dr. Ken Beesley [] noted, if one's research methodology and execution are sound and appropriate, then the results one brings to the table today are regarded valid and as bringing another perspective on a subject. Formerly, results from non-positivist perspectives were suspect or rejected outright.

Applied research may be co-ordinated through an "Institute" related to a University, which often serves as a link between Universities as well as between University and the Community.

A variety of "Tech-transfer" initiatives [link to that section] have sprung up in order to facilitate the practical application of university based pure research, and stimulate economic developent thereby.

One area of concern which has arisen in the past decades is the increasing inovlvement of business interests in the university research endevour. The problem here is that the "tail starts to wag the dog". Vested interests in making use of practical application of pure research can in turn affect the nature of the pure research undertaken. The increasing costs of pure adn applied research, and the declining resources for such research have been the primary driving force for such partnerships.

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