Marxist Social Research Method?

[Dodo]

Hi,

I was wondering how Marxist dialectics fit into contemporary social research methods. What is its stance towards qualitative/quantitive or mixed methods? I know that Marxism has serious issues with positivism and as a result probably quantitive research which can also be dealing with "causality" rather than correlation.
Then again, qualitative methods are a whole lot more subjective and interpretivist, might go against the materialist understanding of an objective reality.

Any ideas?

[blake 3:17]

There isn't a good(?) Marxist method. The best work generally comes from asking questions others wouldn't bother asking.

[Hit The North]

Some argue that Marxism is an ontological realism, viewing reality as stratified, complex and in motion, combined with a critical epistemology arguing that prevailing social knowledge is constituted by material power. Dialectically it seeks to show the interconnectedness of objective and subjective factors in social life with the objective factors tending to dominate or condition the subjective.

To take Capital as the template, Marx summons up the rich empirical data provide by British empiricism but applies a critical approach to its interpretation. To that extent, Marx pursues a mixed method approach but one in which there is a logical order of interpretation imposed.

[Dodo]

Some argue that Marxism is an ontological realism, viewing reality as stratified, complex and in motion, combined with a critical epistemology arguing that prevailing social knowledge is constituted by material power. Dialectically it seeks to show the interconnectedness of objective and subjective factors in social life with the objective factors tending to dominate or condition the subjective.

To take Capital as the template, Marx summons up the rich empirical data provide by British empiricism but applies a critical approach to its interpretation. To that extent, Marx pursues a mixed method approach but one in which there is a logical order of interpretation imposed.

I see. I read a mini-article about this as well
http://www-personal.umd.umich.edu/~delittle/Marxism%20and%20Method%203.htm

It is not exactly completely independent of contemporary social research. It utilizes, naturally the same tools. It does not necessarily side with one method over the other either.