Working in or out? Normative or causal?

I think I would prefer to study any phenomenon by both working in and out.  I think a good balance of both can be beneficial in studying. The theories would give you great ideas and experimenting and testing will prove those theories further. I think I would prefer to take a normative approach to studying the phenomenon. I am very intrigued on how humans act based on their meaning systems or cultures. I think that it is unfair to take to humans only in a casual sense. Humans are much more complex, so we cannot simply just choose one. A balance of both would be ideal.