A disconcerting finding is the fact

A disconcerting finding is the fact that 23.1% research students from science and engineering faculties (majority of respondents from the faculties) were less concerned and did not have much knowledgeable on the philosophical debates and classifications, and felt it was less crucial in their studies. This perception is more inclined to be in dis-accordant with the rest of other faculties' students (76.9%), who indicated a disentangled view describing them variously as, necessary but irrelevance vis-à-vis relevant but unnecessary, or necessary and relevant. The views of science students combined with those that were thorn in between unnecessary and relevance is in accordance with Becker's (1996) unnecessary view of differences paid to philosophies in relation to research approach. Of greater interest however, was the students' rationale for associating with research philosophies. Only 7.7% suggest that their inclination to philosophy is more of personal belief; with some 38.5% indicating that their inclination is influenced by qualitative and quantitative approaches association to a philosophy. The significant mix of students (19.2%) from science, humanities, and social science (excluding the 7.7% that never heard of the terms), claim to have been influenced by their supervisors towards a particular philosophy. Although 7.7% indicated a kind of negative enforcement towards the philosophies, it will be highly risky to assert any positive or negative influence by supervisors. Therefore, the question of supervisors' influence towards a particular philosophy remains a research question. Whereas, 30.8% claim to be influenced by a combination of self belief and research approach, a small number, 3.8%, from social science claim to be influenced by field of study.

The students' primary view of research approaches to philosophies creates intellectual dissonance, that is, in contradictory belief to Guba and Lincoln's (1994) secondary view of approaches rooted in philosophies. Interestingly, the 30.8% students who assert a combination of self belief and research approach as their motive towards research philosophy have no firm philosophical stance. Put differently, their research philosophy changes with the research approach and problem. Clearly, there is a huge disparity in research philosophies as viewed and understood by students sampled and that described by the majority of research philosophy advocates (Saunders et al., 2009; Ritchie and Lewis, 2003; Polit and Beck, 2008).