The role of hypotheses in science

Establishing hypotheses is the most important way of thinking for researchers, and it is also a very important means of intellectual activity in research work.

Any human activity has a predetermined purpose. All activities in the process of understanding and transforming the world are not simply passive processes that depend on the outside world, but are a proactive and creative process. When we are doing something or solving a problem, even though we are not completely sure at the beginning how to solve it or how to do it. However, based on our own experience or knowledge, or by investigating and studying relevant information, we first form a preliminary guess or idea to solve the problem in our minds, which is a scientific hypothesis.

Hypothesis is a hypothetical explanation of unknown facts (including regular connections between phenomena, the existence or causes of things, and the occurrence of future events) based on existing factual materials and scientific principles. Scientific hypotheses have the following salient characteristics:

1. Hypotheses are speculative in nature

Any hypothesis is a guess about various external phenomena and has not yet reached a precise and reliable understanding, so it needs to be tested or confirmed through further scientific experiments.

2. Hypotheses are based on facts and scientific knowledge

Scientific hypotheses are based on real factual materials. Scientific hypotheses are fundamentally different from superstitious nonsense or unfounded nonsense.

3． Hypothesis is the way people understand and approach objective truth

Although it is still doubtful whether the explanation of unknown facts by hypothesis grasps the objective truth, hypothesis is a well-founded speculation about objective things. From a development perspective, the continuous revision, supplement and update of assumptions will reflect certain aspects of objective reality more and more correctly. Therefore, it is the way for people's understanding to approach objective truth.

Establishing hypotheses is an important part of research design, because hypotheses have the following functions in future research:

1. Based on the hypothesis, the types, numbers and relationships of the independent variables and dependent variables in the research are proposed and determined, thereby determining the direction and specific goals of the research.

2. Based on the hypothesis, determine the direction, scope and method of collecting data in the study.

3． Based on the hypothesis, determine the direction and scope of processing and analyzing data to verify the hypothesis.