15 Sep 2022

ARCHITECTURAL
RESEARCH METHODS

Presented by:
Arch. Juanito Y. Sy, uap, aacep, earoph, same
MA Architecture

Module 2: Introduction to Research

WHAT IS RESEARCH?

• The systematic investigation in order to establish facts

and reach new conclusions.

[Oxford Concise Dictionary]

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WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN?

Research…
 the application of the scientific method

Research Methods (Methodology)…

 the ways one collects and analyzes data

WHY UNDERTAKE RESEARCH?

• To investigate existing situation or problem

• To provide solutions to a problem
• To explore and analyse more general issues
• To construct or create a new procedure or system
• To explain a new phenomenon
• To generate new knowledge

(Hussey and Hussey 1997)

CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH

• objective
• precise
• verifiable
• empirical
• logical

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KEY CONCEPTS AND ISSUES

• time in research
• variables
• types of relationships
• hypotheses
• types of data
• fallacies
• structure or research
• deduction and induction
• ethics
• validity

TYPES OF RESEARCH

Exploratory research

Takes place where there is little or no prior knowledge of a

phenomenon.

Descriptive research

Describes a particular phenomenon, focusing upon the

issue of what is happening, or how much of it has
happened, rather than why it is happening.

Explanatory research

This type of research is involved in explaining why

something happens, and assessing causal relationships
between variables.

Predictive research

Forecasts future phenomena, based on the interpretations

suggested by explanatory research.

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RESEARCH CLASSIFICATION

Pure research takes place to explore a particular concept,

or issue, without regard for a specific problem, and may be
carried out to simply gain a better understanding of the
overall concepts.

Applied research is undertaken to solve a specific

problem or provide a solution to a practical question.

PRIMARY AND SECONDARY RESEARCH

Primary research

Refers to research that has involved the collection of

original data specific to that particular research project, for
example through using research methods such as
questionnaires or interviews.

Secondary research

Refers to research where no such original data is collected,

but the research project uses existing (or secondary)
sources of data, for example census or archive data.

THEORETICAL AND EMPIRICAL RESEARCH

Theoretical research generally uses the findings from

existing works to develop new ideas through analysing
existing theory and explanations.

Empirical research supports the development of new

ideas through the collection of data

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Questions or Comments?

Module 3: Research Design

References

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Wang, David and Groat, Linda. (2013) Architectural Research Methods.

New York: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Emmitt, Stephen (2013). Architectural Technology Research & Practice.

England: Wiley Blackwell.

C.R. Kothari. (2004). Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques.

New Age International Publisher, 2nd edition.

Fink, Arlene (1995). The Survey HandBook. USA: SAGE Publications,

Inc.

Lois Johnson Reid, Bedford. (1993) Introduction to Technical Writing:

Process & Practice: St.Martin's.

Calderon, Jose F. and Gonzales, Expectacion C. (1993) Methods of

Research and Thesis Writings. Manila: National Book Store, Inc.

Good, Carter V. And Scates, Douglas E. (1954) Methods of Research.

New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts, Inc.

Wire Research:

http://wire.rutgers.edu/research_assignments_empirical_link.html

http://www.chssc.salford.ac.uk/healthSci/rem99/resmeth/planning.htm

http://www.io.com/~hcexres/tcm1603/acchtml/otherep.html#primresch

http://www.slideshare.net

RESEARCH DESIGN refers to the plan,

structure, and strategy of research--the
blueprint that will guide the research process.

Intriguing Observation, More Careful Studying Defining Research

Intellectual Curiosity of the Phenomenon Problem & Objectives

Building the Theoretical

Refinement of theory
Framework and the
(Inductive Reasoning) THE PROCESS OF Research Model
EMPIRICAL RESEARCH
Testing Hypo.:
Data Analysis & Developing Research
Interpretation Hypotheses

Data Coding, Developing Operational

And Definitions for
Editing Research Variables

Data Collection Sampling Design

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PURPOSES OF RESEARCH DESIGN

• to provide answers to research questions

• to control variance

Strictly speaking, design does not “tell” us precisely

what to do, but rather “suggests” the direction of
observation-making and analysis

The designing decisions happen to be in respect of:

 What is the study about?
 Why is the study being made?
 Where will the study be carried out?
 What type of data is required?
 Where can the required data be found?
 What periods of time will the study include?
 What will be the sample design?
 What techniques of data collection will be used?
 How will the data be analyzed?
 In what style will the report be prepared?

Research design must, at least, contain —

 a clear statement of the research problem;

 procedures and techniques to be used for gathering
information;
 the population to be studied;
 methods to be used in processing and analyzing data

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Split the overall research design into the following parts:

 sampling design
 the method of selecting items to be observed;

 observational design
 the conditions under which the observations are to be

made;
 statistical design
 the question of how many items are to be observed
and how the information and data gathered are to be
analyzed;
 operational design
 the techniques by which the procedures specified in
the sampling, statistical and observational designs can
be carried out.

The important features of a research design

 a plan
 specifies the sources & types of information
relevant to the research problem
 a strategy
 which approach will be used for gathering and

analyzing the data.

 the time and cost budgets
 most studies are done under these two constraints

COMPONENTS OF RESEARCH DESIGN

Define the Information Needed

Design the Exploratory, Descriptive, and/or

Causal Phases of the Research

Specify the Measurement and Scaling

Procedures

Construct a Questionnaire

Specify the Sampling Process and the Sample

Size

Develop a Plan of Data Analysis

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RESEARCH DESIGNS & METHODS

A Research Design provides a framework for the collection

and analysis of data. Choice of research design reflects
decisions about priorities given to the dimensions of the
research process.

A Research Method is simply a technique for collecting

data (how the research is carried out). Choice of research
method reflects decisions about the type of instruments or
techniques to be used.

DIFFERENT RESEARCH DESIGNS

1. Exploratory research studies

 also termed as formulative research studies
 The main purpose
 formulating a problem for more precise investigation

 of developing the working hypotheses from an

operational point of view
 The major emphasis is on the discovery of ideas
and insights

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Uses of Exploratory Research

• Formulate a problem or define a problem more precisely

• Identify alternative courses of action
• Develop hypotheses
• Isolate key variables and relationships for further
examination
• Gain insights for developing an approach to the problem
• Establish priorities for further research

2. Descriptive and diagnostic research studies

 Descriptive research studies
 describing the characteristics of a particular
individual, or of a group
 Diagnostic research studies
 determine the frequency with which something
occurs
 or its association with something else

Uses of Descriptive Research

• To describe the characteristics of relevant groups, such

as consumers, salespeople, organizations, or market
areas.
• To estimate the percentage of units in a specified
population exhibiting a certain behavior
• To determine the perceptions of product characteristics
• To determine the degree to which marketing variables are
associated
• To make specific predictions

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3. Hypothesis-testing research studies

 known as experimental studies or design of
experiments
 tests the hypotheses of causal relationships
between variables
 Usually experiments meet this requirement

Three basic principles of experimental designs

 the Principle of Replication;

 the Principle of Randomization;

 Principle of Local Control.

The Principle of Replication

 the experiment should be repeated more than once
 The statistical accuracy of the experiments is increased
 For example, if an experiment requiring a two-way
analysis of variance is replicated, it will then require a
three-way analysis of variance since replication itself
may be a source of variation in the data

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The Principle of Randomization

 Design or plan the experiment that the variations caused
by extraneous factors
 For instance, if we grow one variety of rice, say, in the
first half of the parts of a field and the other variety is
grown in the other half, then it is just possible that the
soil fertility may be different in the first half in comparison
to the other half. If this is so, our results would not be
realistic.
 In such a situation, we may assign the variety of rice to
be grown in different parts of the field on the basis of
some random sampling technique i.e., we may apply
randomization principle and protect ourselves against
the effects of the extraneous factors.
 The principle of randomization, have a better estimate of
the experimental error.

The Principle of Local Control

 Plan the experiment for performing a two-way analysis
of variance
 In other words,
 first divide the field into several homogeneous parts,
known as blocks,
 then each such block is divided into parts equal to
the number of treatments.
 Then the treatments are randomly assigned to these
parts of a block.
 the principle of local control can eliminate the variability
due to extraneous factor(s) from the experimental error

A COMPARISON OF BASIC RESEARCH DESIGNS

Exploratory Descriptive Causal

Objective: Discovery of Describe market Determine

ideas and characteristics cause and effect
insights. or functions. relationships.

Character-
istics: Flexible. Marked by the Manipulation of
Versatile. prior formula- one or more
Often the tion of specific independent
front end of hypotheses. variables.
total research
design.
Preplanned and Control of other
structured mediating
design. variables.

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A COMPARISON OF BASIC RESEARCH DESIGNS

Exploratory Descriptive Causal

Methods: Expert surveys. Secondary data Experiments.

Pilot surveys. (quantitative).
Case Surveys.
studies Panels.
Secondary data Observational
(qualitative). and other data.
Qualitative
Research.

EFFECTIVE RESEARCH DESIGN

The test for the quality of a study’s research design is the

study’s conclusion validity.

➢ CONCLUSION VALIDITY refers to the extent of researcher’s ability

to draw accurate conclusions from the research. That is, the degree
of a study’s:
a) Internal Validity—correctness of conclusions regarding the
relationships among variables examined
Whether the research findings accurately reflect how the
research variables are really connected to each other.
b) External Validity –Generalizability of the findings to the
intended/appropriate population/setting
Whether appropriate subjects were selected for conducting the
study

How do you achieve internal and external validity (i.e.,

conclusion validity)?
➢ By effectively controlling 3 types of variances:

•Variance
of the INDEPENDENT & DEPENDENT variables
(Systematic Variance)

•Variability
of potential NUISANCE/EXTRANEOUS/
CONFOUNDING variables (Confounding Variance)

•Varianceattributable to ERROR IN MEASUREMENT (Error

Variance).

How?

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➢ Guiding principle for effective control of variances (and,

thus, effective research design) is:

The MAXMINCON Principle

 MAXimize Systematic Variance

 MINimize Error Variance
 CONtrol Variance of Nuisance/Extraneous/
Exogenous/Confounding variables

MAXimizing Systematic Variance:

Widening the range of values of research variables.

➢IN EXPERIMENTS?
(where the researcher actually manipulates the independent
variable and measures its impact on the dependent variable):
Proper manipulation of experimental conditions to ensure high
variability in indep. var.

➢IN NON-EXPERIMENTAL STUDIES?

(where independent and dependent variables are measured
simultaneously and the relationship between them are examined):
Appropriate subject selection (selecting subjects that are
sufficiently different with respect to the study’s main var.)--avoid
Range Restriction

➢CONtrolling Variance of Confounding/Nuisance

Variables:
FIRST, what are Nuisance/Confounding Variables?
✓ May or may not be of primary interest to the researcher,
✓ But, can produce undesirable variation in the study's dependent
variable, and cause misleading or weird results
✓ Thus, if not controlled, can contaminate/distort the true relationship(s)
between the independent and dependent variable(s) of interest
• i.e., confounding var. can result in a spurious-- as opposed to
substantive--correlation between IV and DV. Example?
Age

Hearing Blood
Problem Pressure

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HOW TO CONTROL FOR CONFOUNDING/

NUISANCE VARIABLES?

➢ In Experimental Settings (e.g., Fertilizer Amount Rate of Plant Growth) :

Some Potential Confounding Variables?

 Conducting the experiment in a controlled environment (e.g., laboratory),

where we can hold values of potential confounding variables constant.
 Subject selection (e.g., matching subjects in experiments)
 Random assignment of subjects (variations of confounding variables are
evenly distributed between the experimental and control groups)
➢ In Survey Research:
 Sample selection (e.g., including only subjects with appropriate
characteristics—using male college graduates as subjects will control for
potential confounding effects of gender and education)
 Statistical Control--anticipating, measuring, and statistically controlling
for confounding variables’ effects (i.e., hold them statistically constant, or
statistically removing their effects).

MINimizing Error Variance (measurement error):

Minimizing the part of variability in scores that is
caused by error in measurement.

➢ Sources of error variance:

 Poorly designed measurement instruments
(instrumentation error)

 Error emanating from study subjects (e.g., response error)

 Contextual factors that reduce a sound/accurate

measurement instrument’s capacity to measure accurately.

➢ How to Minimize Error Variance?

 Increase validity and reliability of measurement
instruments.
 Measure variables under as ideal conditions as possible.

Questions or Comments?

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