Research Box - Research and Curiosity

Research Box

Professor Annette Fillery-Travis and Dr Russell Thackeray discuss the importance of research in fostering personal growth, challenging assumptions, and advancing professional practices. They discuss the benefits of applied research, the need for an open mind, and the significance of curiosity and skepticism in the research process.

They underscore the importance of research in surpassing routine and fostering personal growth, stressing the necessity of a critical perspective towards underlying assumptions in established research projects and personal assumptions. Annette also highlights the potential of research to challenge societal norms and professional practices. Both agreed on the necessity of persistence, flexibility, and continuous examination and refinement of assumptions throughout the research process.

They cite the idea of a scientist being "free of concepts", which means being open to new ideas and not being wedded to preconceived notions. They also discuss the concept of "making the familiar strange", which involves questioning established concepts and assumptions. They further discussed how concepts could be proven incorrect despite appearing to be correct and the importance of curiosity and skepticism in research.

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