We explain what the study is, how it is carried out and its importance for the individual and for humanity. Also, what is a case study.
What is the study?
Generally, we talk about study when we refer to the efforts that an individual makes to understand a subject or fully analyze an aspect of reality that is of interest to you. Thus, studying implies being interested in understanding a topic, to the point of becoming immersed in its different aspects and in this way add new knowledge about it.
This is the original meaning of the word, already present in its Latin root studiumtranslatable as “application” or “care.” However, today we associate the term with the school and academic world, given that during childhood and youth, individuals dedicate themselves to studying, that is, to understanding reality from its different possible aspects, and thus accumulating knowledge that later allows them to contribute to society.
All study is carried out through a method or methodologythat is, a series of ordered steps whose purpose is to systematize understanding.
The guidance of a teacher or professor is usually available, except in cases where an individual is a professional or self-taught in a subject, and can therefore guide himself or herself, or even rethink certain study methods for the benefit of the students. future generations. The very idea of study is linked to that of academia and learning.
Study normally involves reading and writing, as basic ways of capturing new ideas and recording one's own. Therefore involves certain amounts of concentration and effortespecially when it comes to complex knowledge. In this way, it is also possible to use the term study or study as a synonym for these qualities: concentration, attention, effort and/or dedication.
Importance of the study
In general terms, the study is much more than mere preparation for the performance of a work activity. The study It is a complex process of incorporating knowledge, exploring talents and training the psyche. of individuals, carried out systematically to build people who can later contribute their grain of sand to the world and the species.
On the other hand, studying is essential to satisfy curiosity and passion for knowledge. Studying (formally or not) is a research activity, intended to answer the questions that one asks oneself, and that motivate us to observe the world around us with interest.
In this way, the study Its goal is to allow human knowledge to accumulate from generation to generation.. It is what has allowed our species to discover the fundamental laws of the universe, the manufacture of increasingly complex machinery and tools, or the production of abstract, complex and brilliant ideas.
Case study
A “case study” It is a research tool proposed by the social sciences for qualitative research. It is used in different disciplines, such as medicine, psychology, sociology and/or education.
The case study consists of the evaluation and investigation of a single person or a small group of them, in a particular, specific and exclusive context, in order to reach the depths of the case, without getting lost (yet) in the need for generalizations.
Case studies are specific tools to develop inductive thinking, that is, they consist of investigating a single case to find ideas in it. that then allow speculation or elaboration of general range hypotheses. Thus, they are equivalent to going into detail about things, instead of dealing with them in statistical and superficial terms.
For example, an investigation into the impact of a new medicine on the population of a country can take different specific and specific cases to study them separately, and thus find the minimum common (or contrasting) features of the problems that arise: what type of people were affected, at what time, leading what type of life, etc. Thus, you can then think in more generic terms to solve these problems.
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References
- “Study” in Wikipedia.
- “Study” in the Dictionary of the language of the Royal Spanish Academy.
- “Case study” on Wikipedia.
- “The importance of study and training” in the Center for Culture and Knowledge (Spain).
