Beyond the empirical and the discursive: The methodological implications of critical realism for street harassment research

Given its substantial emancipatory and explanatory power, critical realism (CR) is a unique and valuable philosophy of science. Despite its strengths, however, there are few examples of applied CR in which the researchers clearly explain how critical realist philosophy informed their choice and use of methods. In what follows, we offer an integrated discussion of critical realist philosophy and praxis, one that threads critical realist philosophical underpinnings and applied research together through the topic of street harassment. We aim to illustrate the unique potential and promise of CR for the investigation of social reality, offering an accessible exemplar of applied CR in the form of a research proposal on street harassment. The paper is mostly directed towards novice researchers, offering a simple yet comprehensive discussion that concretely ties “high-level” philosophical discussion to practical research application through an illustrative example that can be adapted to differing political, social, economic, and cultural contexts.