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Research Journal of the University of Ruhuna, Sri Lanka- Rohana 12, 2020

Research Methodology

The present study is based on the analysis of secondary data which the authors have
collected for the doctoral thesis on civil war in Sri Lanka during the period from

1983 to 2009 and Reconciliation Process: Role of Memory and Interpretation in
Ethnic Relations.

The authors found that the positivist epistemology alone is not sufficient to

understand the impact of the war memory on a meaningful reconciliation process of

any fragmented society. The major lacuna of the positivist approach in the study of
this kind of complex and complicated social phenomena requires serious

consideration of the ontic reality of the study subjects (Creswell, 2009). Further, the
study of such phenomenon through a positivist perspective tends to design dictated

studies preventing the researcher exploring the multi-dimensionality of the issue.

The said doctoral study was initially intended following a positivist epistemological
position. However, later, because of understanding, i.e., understanding of the

feelings of the war-affected people are of equal importance, researchers decided to
adopt a mixed methodology. The rationale for changing the approach was informed

by the Weberian Notion of Empathetic understanding (Creswell, 2009). It was
aimed at the objectification of the objectified. This paper is based on that rationale.

The authors found that there exists a rich pool of secondary sources. However, the

authors themselves did collect such written documents and audio and visual sources

as well (five videos on war victory memorial celebrations and publications). The
thematic analysis was used to analyse the collected secondary data. The reflexive

thematic methods were used in analysing the context as well as in the formulation of

the interrelationship of data. Since the research was based on the secondary data, the
researcher discourses formatted over the core issues of the study, which were also

explored in the form of findings. In this connection, tools of critical discourse
analysis were the threads that bound the data into a reflexive thematic analysis.

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