Reasoning and thinking: keys to Research and writing from a social Science in the service of life

Abstract

This article differentiates and connects thinking (compass) and reasoning (path) as key competencies for research and writing in the social sciences. Through comparative analysis and conceptual articulation, it presents five styles of reasoning (deductive, inductive, analogical, abductive, and experiential), six styles of thinking (critical, creative, systemic, lateral, convergent, and divergent), and five philosophical methods (dialectical, hermeneutic, phenomenological, Cartesian, and Socratic), showing their integration to produce situated, rigorous, and relevant knowledge. The results demonstrate their practical usefulness in undergraduate, graduate, and grassroots settings. The section "In the Service of What?" demonstrates, with historical and current examples, how social science can serve necropolitics or life. The central conclusion affirms that, oriented from and toward life, science flourishes in meaningful knowledge, providing strategies to transform communities and strengthen People's Power.