Paradigm Dilemma in Social Sciences: A Study on Postgraduate Dissertations Written in the Field

Abstract

In this study, the paradigmatic transformation of postgraduate dissertations written in the field of tourism from the quantitative methods to the qualitative methods in the scientific research methods has been examined. Depending on the purpose of the study, a research has been conducted in the National Thesis Center Database of Council of Higher Education (YÖK) through the keywords of "tourism and business", "gastronomy", "recreation and management", "travel and agency", "tourism and guidance” and 107 dissertations reached have been evaluated. Qualitative and quantitative research methods were used together within the scope of the research, and document analysis in the qualitative scope and multiple compliance analysis were used within the scope of the quantitative research. At the end of the research, it has been observed that the positivist paradigm is dominant in postgraduate dissertations written in the field of tourism. In addition, it has been determined that the use of qualitative methods have increased in the dissertations written since 2010; while qualitative methods have mostly been used in the dissertations written in the field of recreation management, quantitative and mixed methods have been used in the fields of tourism management, travel management and tourism guidance, and gastronomy.