FINAL NSPP Research Guide - 3rd Ed (Feb 2023) - 230427 - 110520

RESEARCH GUIDE
for MCMC & SMC

Third Edition
National School of Public Policy

Lahore, Pakistan
NSPP Research Guide (3rd Ed.)
RESEARCH GUIDE
For MCMC & SMC
(Third Edition)
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electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the National
Institute of Management (NIM), Lahore and the National School of Public Policy (NSPP).
Faculty members and course participants of the NSPP & its Constituent Units are authorised
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than the authorised persons, inside or outside the NSPP/Constituent Units is prohibited.
National School of Public Policy, Lahore
(February 2023)
i
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
This Research Guide is authored by Dr Faheem Jehangir Khan, Senior Research Economist at
the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) and former Directing Staff–
Research, National Institute of Management (NIM) Islamabad. The Guide is reviewed by Dr
Safdar Ali Sohail, former Dean, National Institute of Public Policy at National School of Public
Policy (NSPP) and former Director General, National Institute of Management, Islamabad.
Above all, the continuous support from the NSPP headquarter, particularly, by the Honourable
Rector, Dr Ijaz Munir, has been a great source of inspiration and motivation. We also express
our deep gratitude to Mr Azmat Ali Ranjha, former Rector of NSPP, who guided and
encouraged the development and initial implementation of this Guide at selected Constituent
Units of NSPP during 2018 and 2019.
This edition benefited from the feedback and valuable suggestions of the worthy Director
Generals, Chief Instructors and Faculty of all the Constituent Units of the NSPP. We thank
them all for their support and constructive comments to make it more relevant and useful for
the course participants. We are also grateful to the Mid-Career Management Course (MCMC)
& Senior Management Course (SMC) participants who used this Guide (during 2018-2019) in
conducting their research assignments at NIM Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi, and shared
their views and user feedback that have informed the revision of this Guide, making it more
useful for practitioners.
Last, but not least, this Research Guide benefitted from the previous Research Manual of the
NSPP/NIM Lahore, written by Dr Sikandar Hayat (former Directing Staff–Research, National
Management College, Lahore). We are grateful for his admirable contribution and
encouragement to the author in producing this document.
ii
PREFACE
At the National Institute of Management (NIM), National School of Public Policy (NSPP), the
aim of research skill development of civil officers is to promote deeper understanding and
greater utility of research-based evidence in public sector management and public policy
process. Learning by doing research at NIM will:
▪ Enable the participants to plan, design and conduct policy research, evaluate the quality
and utility of results, and, raise valid questions about the research process and policy
implications.
▪ Improve the knowledge and intellectual abilities of the participants by critically
evaluating the observations and complex reasoning.
▪ Advance participants’ analytical and critical thinking needed to analyse, evaluate, and
compare research/policy arguments, and manage problem-solving situations by
consolidating what works, why, and why not.
▪ Enhance personal and professional effectiveness in managing public policy-decisions.
Keeping in view the above-mentioned research training objectives, the purpose of this
‘Research Guide’ is to provide the participants of the Course (MCMC & SMC) a detailed
orientation, instructions, and guidelines on research methodology for planning, designing,
conducting and writing research.
This ‘Research Guide’ is divided into three parts: (Part I) Research Orientation highlights the
importance of research in policy and practice, and briefly explains the stages involved in a
research process; (Part II) Research Methodology presents what are research methods,
compares quantitative and qualitative research, and describes case study research and action
research; and (Part III) Planning and Conducting Research provides detailed instructions about
planning research, research design, data collection, data analysis and writing research.
A number of individual and group research activities are planned for each MCMC & SMC
training. These include Individual Research Paper (IRP), Current Issue Presentations (CrIP),
Case Study Research (CSR), Simulation Exercises (SE) and Tutorial Discussions (TD).
Keeping in view the technical assistance required for the participants to conduct these research
assignments, annexes are included at the end of this Research Guide to provide detailed
guidelines for IRP, CrIP, CSR, and SE. Annexes on citation & referencing style, policy on
plagiarism, and essentials of good quality research have also been included for participants’
guidance.
iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .......................................................................................................................... ii
PREFACE ......................................................................................................................................... iii
TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................................................................ iv
PART I: RESEARCH ORIENTATION .................................................................................. 1
1.1. RESEARCH IN POLICY AND PRACTICE ................................................................................ 1

1.2. THE RESEARCH PROCESS ......................................................................................................... 2
PART II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ............................................................................... 4
2.1. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH ............................................................. 4

2.2. CASE STUDY RESEARCH ............................................................................................................ 6
PART III: PLANNING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH ................................................. 9
3.1. PLANNING RESEARCH ............................................................................................................... 9

A.1. Research Idea .............................................................................................................. 9
A.2. Review of the Literature ....................................................................................... 10
A.3. Research Scope ......................................................................................................... 11
3.2. RESEARCH DESIGN .................................................................................................................... 15

B.1. Adopt Research Method........................................................................................ 15
B.2. Choose Sampling Technique ............................................................................... 16
B.3. Select Method of Data Collection ....................................................................... 17
B.4. Select Data Analysis Method ............................................................................... 18
B.5. Managing Time and Resources .......................................................................... 19
3.3. DATA COLLECTION ................................................................................................................... 19

C.1. Secondary Data Collection ................................................................................... 20
C.2. Primary Data Collection ........................................................................................ 20
3.4. DATA ANALYSIS .......................................................................................................................... 24

D.1. Secondary Data Analysis....................................................................................... 24
D.2. Primary Data Analysis ........................................................................................... 25
3.5. WRITING RESEARCH ................................................................................................................ 26
iv
RECOMMENDED READINGS & ONLINE SOURCES ..................................................................... 28

ANNEX I: GUIDELINES FOR INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PAPER (IRP) ......................... 29
ANNEX II: GUIDELINES FOR CURRENT ISSUE PRESENTATION (CrIP) .................... 36
ANNEX III: GUIDELINES FOR CASE STUDY RESEARCH (CSR) ....................................... 41
ANNEX IV: GUIDELINES FOR SIMULATION EXERCISE (SE) ........................................... 44
ANNEX V: GUIDELINES FOR CITATION AND REFERENCING (APA Style – 7th
Edition) ........................................................................................................................ 48
ANNEX VI: AVOIDING PLAGIARISM ......................................................................................... 55
ANNEX VII: ESSENTIALS OF A GOOD QUALITY RESEARCH ............................................. 56
v
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
List of Tables
Table 1: Contrasts between quantitative and qualitative research ........................................... 4

Table 2: Types of interviews ............................................................................................................... 22
List of Figures
Figure 1: Stages and steps involved in a research process ........................................................... 3

Figure 2: Mixed methods approach ..................................................................................................... 6
Figure 3: Contents of a research design ........................................................................................... 15
Figure 4: Data collection process ...................................................................................................... 21
vi
LIST OF ACRONYMS
APA Style American Psychological Association Style

BISP Benazir Income Support Programme
CI Chief Instructor
CrIP Current Issue Presentation
CrIW Current Issue Writeup
CSP Case Study Research
DS Directing Staff
FPSC Federal Public Service Commission
IRP Individual Research Paper
IST Inland Study Tour
LFV Local Field Visit
MCMC Mid-Career Management Course
NIM National Institute of Management
NSPP National School of Public Policy
PSDP Public Sector Development Programme
SE Simulation Exercise
SMC Senior Management Course
T&C Training & Coordination
TD Tutorial Discussion
TNR Times New Roman
TVET Technical and Vocational Education Training
vii
PART I: RESEARCH ORIENTATION
Research is a systematic collection, analysis, and presentation of information in order to

establish facts and generate knowledge by reaching a new understanding. It entails a careful
and detailed investigation into a specific problem, concern, or issue using an appropriate
research strategy.
1.1. RESEARCH IN POLICY AND PRACTICE
Research is a key component of knowledge resource which is often used to inform, and
sometimes to influence, policy decisions. The purpose of research is often to inform the public
policy process. From agenda-setting to policy-formulation, decision-making, policy
implementation and evaluation, research studies inform the broader audience – including the
policy-makers and practitioners – about what went wrong, why, and how to improve it. It is a
known fact that knowledge generated through evidence-based research could benefit the
government and other stakeholders to devise/review policy initiatives and practices and make
right decisions when designing/revisiting policy interventions. Gaining this knowledge often
requires research to define and understand the key issues as well as to develop constructive
ideas to advance a policy implementation plan. However, for research to have an impact, the
results must inform policies, shape programmes, and be translated into practice.
Policy research is a type of research that aims to provide answers and evidence that can
contribute to the improvement of policy and policy-making process. Policy-oriented research
is not only limited to find solutions to policy problems, but also concerned to improve better
practices and interventions by informing organisations, policy-makers and decision-makers
with pragmatic, action-oriented useful recommendations.
Literature suggests that policy-makers, practitioners, and researchers live on different planets.
This notion of disconnect between different sets of actors involved in managing different stages
of a policy process is referred to research-policy gap. This gap is prevalent due to several
barriers on research and policy sides. On the research side: the research topics are not always
relevant to the policy needs, conclusions are not definitive, and/or policy implications often
lack the perspective and feasibility aspect. Lack of adequate research and development funding,
lack of expertise, poor quality data, and poor dissemination of research also undermine the
value and effectiveness of research. By contrast, on the policy side: policy-makers and
practitioners (civil administration) have short time horizons due to which they often look for
quick fixes. They are too busy to read lengthy research papers or reports, hence rely on practical
solutions. Instead of the technical soundness of the research, policy-makers and practitioners
are often more concerned about the development priorities, completion time, expenditure,
visibility and reputation, political risks and possible backlash from the opposition.
Figure 1: Research-policy gap
Source: Khan (2022)
In a changing world – such as demographic, social, economic, political, and climate change –
this disconnect can be disastrous for effective management of public policy and sustainable
development. To bridge the research-policy gap, primarily, there is a need for researchers and
policy-makers/practitioners to interact more frequently and understand the policy process and
policy needs. Further, in order to mitigate the impact of ever changing political and policy
environment, the practitioners (civil officers) must learn and understand the research process
and its utility in managing policy decisions.
1.2. THE RESEARCH PROCESS
Before starting a research study (or project), it is important to understand main steps involved
in a research process. Figure 1 outlines the five stages and multiple steps involved of a typical
research process: (1) planning research, (2) research design, (3) data collection, (4) data
analysis, and (5) writing research. 1
This process is usually followed in all forms of research and evaluation projects, regardless of
the method used such as quantitative, qualitative, mixed method, evaluation research and/or
case study research. Researchers must follow this process and document the study in such a
way that a reader can understand the investigation clearly (i.e., research objectives,
methodology, data, findings, and conclusion) and/or another researcher can conduct/replicate
the same study again.2
1
Depending on the research topic and familiarity with the policy area and existing literature, researchers may
want to rearrange these steps, but need to go through all these stages to complete a research assignment.
2
Annex VII highlights some key considerations for producing a good quality research.
2
Figure 1: Stages and steps involved in a research process
Source: Khan (2022)
⟹ A step-wise discussion about the research process is presented in Part III: Planning and
Conducting Research.
3
PART II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
As a researcher, the participants will consider what research method(s) might be most
appropriate for achieving the overall research objective by answering the questions under
investigation. Selection of research method(s) depends on the question(s) that a researcher
wishes to answer, and the scope that may include a range of additional considerations such as
problem under examination, understanding of the policy sector and policy processes, time and
space, source of knowledge, methods of data collection and analysis, and sampling and ethical
considerations. This section (part II) sets out some possible research methods/approaches to
study policy issues and/or explore complex public policy problems.
2.1. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
There are a variety of considerations in the process of doing policy research. Among these, the
distinction between quantitative research and qualitative research must be understood to
devise an appropriate research methodology. The quantitative and qualitative research
distinction represents a useful means of classifying different methods of investigation. Table 1
presents a contrast between these approaches.
Table 1: Contrasts between quantitative and qualitative research
QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE
Numbers and statistics (Quantity) Words/Language/Expression (Quality)
Interest/point of view of researcher Interest/point of view of participants
Researcher distant Researcher close
Theory testing (Deductive) Theory emergent (Inductive)
Test pre-set hypothesis Explore complex societal/policy issues
Static Process
Structured Unstructured
Generalisable results Contextual understanding
Hard, reliable data Rich, deep data
Macro Micro
Behaviour (or trends) Meaning (of actions)
Artificial settings Natural environment
Answer more mechanistic ‘what?’ questions Answer ‘why?’ and ‘how?’ questions
Distribution; Correlation analysis; Statistical Thematic analysis; content analysis; discourse
significance; ANOVA; Regression etc. analysis; Grounded theory; Conversation
analysis
Source: Khan (2022)
Quantitative research aims to test pre-determined hypotheses and produce generalisable

results which are often useful to answer more mechanistic ‘what’ questions. A quantitative
4
research method emphasises objective measurements and quantification in the collection and
analysis of data based on hard and reliable statistics. This research methodology usually uses
numerical data to study incidence and trends at macro-level and employs statistical models to
examine causal and correlative relationships between variables.3 This requires structured
information from large numbers of people, usually through random or probability sampling,
followed by collection of primary data through surveys. Other sources of data may include
collection and analysis of secondary data; often published and/or official statistics.
Qualitative research aims to provide in-depth understanding of human behaviour/ actions and
complex societal/policy issues that are often useful to answer ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions. This
research method usually collects and interprets rich description and deep data (words) rather
than quantification in the information collection process and analysis. This requires semi-
structured or unstructured information from small numbers of people, usually through non-
random (or non-probability) sampling, followed by collection of primary data through
fieldwork. Qualitative research methodology has a strong basis in the field of policy studies,
social and political sciences. Common methods used for qualitative research include interviews
and focus group discussion. This method allows researchers to explore a situation/phenomenon
in-depth (with a smaller group) in a specific context, hence provide rich contextual description
and analysis.4 Researchers can also record and analyse qualitative data from observations (or
ethnography5) and interactions, in such a way that the researcher becomes a part of the situation
rather than an outside observer.
Although quantitative and qualitative research methods have contrasting approaches and
application, it is important to understand that these are not contesting methodologies! Instead,
both complement each other: a quantitative method is useful to investigate the incidence of a
problem or status of a policy initiative at macro-level,6 whereas a qualitative method is
considered suitable to study human behaviour, context-specific cases, and explore complexities
in policy processes at micro-level.7 A combination of both research strategies may help to
comprehend a deeper understanding of the issue or policy problem.
Sometimes researchers combine quantitative and qualitative research methods within a single
research strategy, called mixed methods approach. For instance, combination of structured
interviewing with structured observation or focus group discussions, or semi-structured
3
Many statistical packages/programmes are available to handle and process large numerical (primary) data sets
such as PASW (SPSS), EViews and Stata.
4
Unstructured data (text) is often handled and analysed manually, however for bigger data set, NVivo programme
can be used to manage the record.
5
Ethnography is the recording and analysis of a culture or society, usually based on participant-observation and
resulting in a written account of people, place and/or institution (Simpson & Coleman, 2017).
6
Such as incidence of poverty in Pakistan; status of education enrolment in Punjab; impact of BISP, etc.
7
Such as political economy of PSDP; implementing education sector reform; electoral reform process; managing
international relations; criminal investigation and judicial process; eliminating terrorism, etc.
5
interviewing with closed-ended questions,8 ratings and rankings of quality and performance.9
The ‘mixed methods’ research is often used to triangulate findings. This means that qualitative
and qualitative data are to be collected on the same topic and timeframe in order to mutually
corroborate (see figure 2). This approach is considered more effective in research projects
where findings generated by one method can be explained by the other (Khan, 2022). Although,
mixed methods approach is getting popular these days, researchers should be mindful that the
quantitative & qualitative data and findings deriving from mixed methods research should be
mutually illuminating.
Figure 2: Mixed methods approach
Quantitative Data
Interpretation based on
QAUN + QUAL results
Qualitative Data
2.2. CASE STUDY RESEARCH
A case study entails a detailed, intensive, and context-specific analysis of a single case. The
prime objective of a case study is to develop as full understanding of a researched case as
possible by providing multiple perspectives rooted in a specific context.10 In this approach, the
basic idea is to study one case in detail such as a person, policy, project or intervention, process
or institution, organisation, community, location or an event (as subject of case analysis), using
single or multiple research method(s). This research approach is often recommended where no
single method can provide an in-depth account or explanation of the policy problem, and where
understanding of the issue needs to be holistic, comprehensive and contextualised.
The case study approach is often associated with qualitative research, but it is more of a mixed
methods approach. This may involve collection and processing of qualitative and quantitative
data, the use of multiple (data collection and analysis) methods – such as document analysis,
8
Closed-ended questions require a simple response such as ‘yes’ or ‘no’, while open-ended questions need more
thought which require more than a simple one-word response. More detail in Section 3.3 (C.2.).
9
Description of these data collection tools is discussed in Section 3.3.
10
See Bryman (2014); Flick (2009); Ritchie & Lewis (2003); and Silverman & Marvasti (2008)
6
semi-structured or unstructured interviews, participants observations, focus group discussion,

and/or analysis of official statistics.
In most cases, the case study research design11 is structured around the context rather than
sample cases (individual research participants). In such circumstances, the subject of a case
analysis might be, for example, a person (e.g., Imran Khan being a cricketer or a politician), a
policy (e.g., trade policy, madrassa reform, or Vision 2025), a project, programme or
intervention (e.g., BISP Waseela-e-Sehat initiative), a process (e.g., a legal proceeding or
electoral reform process), an institution (such as role of FPSC in civil service reform), or an
organisational context (such as a university or a hospital, involving their management,
beneficiaries and stakeholders). Less complex case study designs might involve only two
individuals in a case, such as a professional lawyer and his client.
According to its research design, case studies can be divided into three categories: explanatory,
descriptive and exploratory. The explanatory case studies primarily focus on exploring ‘how’
or ’why’ questions. The descriptive case studies mainly analyse the sequence of interpersonal
(cultural) events after a certain period of time to discover the key phenomena. And the
exploratory case studies usually help to answer the ‘what’ or ‘who’ questions.
Although not always common, multiple cases can be examined under a case study research
design to study a particular phenomenon, referred as comparative-case studies. The research
methodology for single and comparative-case studies are similar, but the latter approach
requires more extensive conceptual, analytical and synthesising examination of cases, due to
which the scope of the study expands exponentially – over time, within and across contexts.
Nevertheless, the comparative design enables to better understand the phenomena/situation
when meaningfully contrasting cases are compared. This research method is often used to
conduct cross-cultural research; study of nations, casts, ethnicity etc. However, this method
can also be applied to identical studies, known as multiple-case studies. For example, Ayub &
Hussain (2016)12 researched organisational performances in nine case studies of Pakistani
institutions from the public and private sectors. In both, comparative and multiple-case studies,
consistency and comparability (of data, instruments, variables, and characteristics of sample)
are the most important considerations in the research design.
The rationale for selecting this method would require clear operational definitions of the
concepts, key evaluation questions, and selection of comparable cases and indicators for
comparative analysis. An in-depth understanding of each case is critical to establish the
foundation for the analytic framework that would then be used in the cross-case comparison.
This approach helps to understand the casual questions such as how and why particular policy
or intervention worked or failed to deliver. For instance, motivational level of a group of people
(such as officers or staff) or performance of different departments within a university can be
11
See Section 3.2: Research Design
12
Ayub, M. A., & Hussain, S. T. (2016). Candles in the Dark: Successful Organizations in Pakistan’s Weak
Institutional Environment, Oxford University Press.
7
examined as comparative case studies. In this case, unlike single case study approach, the
sample (e.g., group of people or departments) would be the subject of case analysis.
8
PART III: PLANNING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH
3.1. PLANNING RESEARCH
Planning a research study/project is the first step of the research process (see figure 1). Every
research assignment has specific requirements and instructions concerning different features
such as: scope, structure/contents, format, citation and referencing style, word limit, plagiarism,
deadlines etc. You are required to comply with all specific instructions provided for each
activity. This section provides instructions about planning your research that includes:
identifying area of interest, reviewing the literature, and developing research scope.
⟹ NOTE: The importance of this stage is often underestimated, but negligence might cost you
time and/or revisions at the later stage of the research process. Detailed guidelines for
individual research paper and citation & referencing style are presented in Annexes I & V,
respectively.
A.1. Research Idea
To develop your research idea, for instance ‘what do I want to research?’, you first need to
explore whether there are any topics or researchable questions that might interest you. Think
about a policy sector, published research work, a case from your professional life or a recent
event/phenomenon which came under discussions with friends or colleagues.
⟹ NOTE: in the beginning, do not worry if you end up considering more than one area of
interest to be researched. Try to shortlist your areas of interest (keep it to minimum) and start
working on them simultaneously. Your task here is to pick one research area, ASAP!
Select a research area keeping in view your professional and personal interest.13 To finalise
your research topic, discuss your ideas with your colleagues and/or experts in the field. An
interesting research topic and refined research scope (see Section A.3) guarantee much easier
process of data collection, analysis and research writing. Once the topic of interest is identified,
the next step is to review the literature (see Section A.2), work on the research problem and
formulate the research scope (see Section A.3).
Do consider managing time and resources! There is no point in working on a research topic
which you cannot complete in given time and available resources. It is therefore recommended
to work on managing your time and assess what resources are available to you (see Section
B.5).
13
Interest in a research area is often recommended so that both intrinsic and extrinsic motivations keep you on
the right track. An area or topic which is popular but may not match your interest or expertise might lead you to
an unpleasant research journey.
9
⟹ REMEMBER: You can always amend your research scope and make necessary changes in
research design before proposal submission. So, do not invest too much time and energies in
finding a perfect research idea at the very beginning of your research. This will evolve and be
refined as you go through the steps in a research process.
A.2. Review of the Literature
Review of the literature is an important step in the research process. In this step you would
search and select, get access, read through and explore high quality recent published material
relevant to your research interest/topic. The principal objectives of the survey of literature are
as follows:
▪ You must know what is already known about the topic.

▪ What is the status of the debate on the topic.
▪ What theories, methods and strategies have been applied to study the topic.
▪ What evidences have been presented and whether there are inconsistencies and
controversies relating to the topic.
▪ What concepts, theories and/or public policy decisions are relevant to the topic.
An initial survey of literature would enable you to formulate the research scope, articulate
research argument, and refine research questions.14 A systematic and well-planned review of
the literature will help you to get yourself familiar with the topic and identify unanswered
questions where research is needed.
The culminating point of the initial survey of literature is the identification of the gap in the
existing literature where you could claim your contribution by conducting research. Once the
objectives of research are well defined and the key research questions are formulated, the main
survey of literature would begin in the light of the scope, objectives and research questions,
leading to the key hypothesis for which the evidence would be marshalled by further research.
⟹ NOTE: Literature review is not just a summary of the published material that you have
consulted for your research. The review of literature must be relevant, thematically evaluated,
and organised, and expected to be constructively critical.
It is expected that, at the early stages of your research, a great deal of time will be consumed
in exploring the existing literature and debate on the topic. It is important to get most out of it,
since you would not need this only for writing a section on literature review but must revisit
the relevant literature while writing your findings and policy recommendations at the later
stage; relating your findings and observations with others. To execute this exercise in a better
way, try to do the following:
14
Or set hypotheses in case you intend to conduct a quantitative research.
10
▪ Search and identify the relevant information using academic database, online
scholarly sites, knowledge networks, relevant government and think tanks websites,
official statistics and library.15
▪ Shortlist the relevant literature. Not every research paper, report or dataset is relevant.
While searching and reading material, evaluate the material according to quality,
content and relevance to your topic.
▪ Read actively and critically and take notes about: the research objectives; the leading
research questions posed; the context of the research; type and source of data; the
research strategy adopted; and the key contribution/message(s) drawn.16
▪ During this exercise, keep working on formulating your research scope/design:
develop your research argument, list/refine your research questions, and think about
the research strategy.
▪ Start managing your reference list. You can do it either manually using APA Style (7th
Edition) of referencing and citation or use MS Word ‘References Tab’ to manage
your referencing and citation automatically.17
▪ Avoid plagiarism at all costs! It is strongly recommended that you cite and reference
the material properly as per the given instructions in your research assignment.18
It has been observed that some researchers want to avoid the literature review at the beginning
by stating that there is ‘no’ or ‘limited’ material available on the subject. This is a naïve
approach! Participants need to develop skill in searching and exploring the relevant material
for their research assignment.19
⟹ NOTE: The role of the supervisor (Faculty Advisor) is critical. The supervisor will make it
sure that the participants should invest sufficient time and energies in exploring the existing
literature, following the debate, and developing the research scope in light of this exercise.
A.3. Research Scope
The research scope delimits the research efforts to meet the overall objective of a research
study and underscores the significance of your research. It must be developed at a preliminary
stage of the research process and articulated in such a way that it provides detailed descriptions
about the direction and dimension of the research. Failing to do so means ambiguity about the
15
There are a variety of resources available such as Google Scholar, ResearchGate, e-Journals, Government
documents (policies, plans, reports, official statistics), websites of academic institutes/think tanks (research
papers, lectures, presentations and policy briefs), newspapers, books, magazines etc.
16
Some researchers develop summary table to manage the literature they explore.
17
Detailed instructions on Citation and Referencing are provided in Annex V.
18
Brief guidelines on Plagiarism are presented in Annexes VI.
19
A number of resources are available for literature search. These include Google Scholar; ResearchGate; RePEc;
World Bank Open Data; UN Data; Pakistan Bureau of Statistics; PIDE; SDPI; Government policy documents,
annual reports, status reports, books, newspapers etc., to name a few.
11
research objectives, and eventually would not lead to the desired expectations set by the
participant and faculty. In order to develop a comprehensive research scope, you need to:
▪ Set objective of your research

▪ Work on research problem of your research (Statement of Problem)
▪ Identify the problem through situation analysis
▪ Formulate research questions to examine the problem
▪ Establish link with theory and/or public policy debate
▪ Define the boundaries of your research
▪ Highlight the limitations of the study
The scope, which will be presented in the Introduction section of both the research proposal
and final IRP, must include objective(s) of your research with clear thoughts and arguments
based on the existing literature search and debate in a public policy context. A research
objective is a one-sentence statement indicating the direction and dimension of your research
idea, for example:
✓ To examine the utility of Metro Bus System in female mobility in Islamabad-

Rawalpindi.
✓ To explore the impact of TVET in realising social empowerment of young women in
Pakistan.
✓ To examine the influence of aid proliferation on managing foreign economic
assistance in Pakistan.
⟹ NOTE: While formulating your research objectives, pick a workable research area,
consider the originality aspect, deliberate upon the requirements of your research assignment,
and keep the scope of research focused – should not be too broad or too narrow.
The knowledge gained through the literature review will guide you to work on the research
problem. This may include collection of background information, critical analysis of the
existing debate, review of published material and assessment of contextual factors. This will
help you to write the Statement of Problem. A statement of problem (or research problem) is
a short description of the issue that needs to be assessed and addressed. A well-thought and
well-articulated statement will set the main argument and establish the foundation of your IRP.
To identify the research problem, and write the statement of problem, you need to think and
work on the following:
▪ What is to be investigated?
▪ Which aspect is worth exploring?
▪ Why it is important?
12
▪ Is the problem likely to continue?

▪ Challenge existing beliefs and observations!
▪ How large is the population affected by the problem?
▪ Would this study revise or extend existing knowledge?
▪ Is there evidence or authoritative opinion from others to support the need for this
research?
While working on it, do not hesitate to raise questions, identify gaps, challenge the existing
beliefs and observations, explore different dimensions and try new approaches. This will help
you to clarify the problem and formulate research question(s).
Once the topic is assigned, you must start working on the situation analysis. Although a
comprehensive situation analysis is an integral part of the case study research method, it is a
good approach to develop your research scope, especially in case of policy research; whether
you intend to conduct a quantitative and/or qualitative study. The knowledge gained through
the literature review will guide you to identify the research problem. The analysis may include
collection of background information such as official statistics and status/direction of debate,
mapping the network of actors, resource mobilisation, and assessment of contextual factors.
This will assist you to:
▪ Understand the nature and scale of the problem.

▪ Identify root causes and risk factors.
▪ Define terms and concepts.
▪ Explore knowledge, attitude, and behaviour of actors.
▪ Examine resource exchange and constraint.
While working on the situation analysis, do not hesitate to raise questions, identify gaps,
challenge the existing beliefs and observations, and try new approaches. This will help you to
clarify the problem and formulate research question(s).
A research question is an explicit statement of purpose indicating what it is the researcher

wants to explore.20 Formulating clear, intelligible, and unambiguous research questions is
extremely important in the research process, because it defines the basis of the research. The
whole research process revolves around the research question(s) because it will guide your
literature review and research scope, influence your choice of research methodology, data
collection and analysis approach, and guide the writing-up and presenting your research
findings and policy recommendations. Typically, all steps of the research process are designed
20
In quantitative research, you need to develop hypotheses instead of research questions, depending on your
research scope.
13
and completed in such a way to answer the research question. In other words, poorly formulated
research questions would lead to a difficult research journey.
There are broadly four steps in formulating research questions: (a) identifying concerns in the
research area, (b) consider variations in concerns, (c) list all questions you find thought-
provoking while developing your research idea, reviewing the literature, and refining your
research objective, and (d) select specific research questions; must relate to the research topic,
research objective, and should have some connection with established research and/or public
policy. Each research question must be a single sentence statement, not too broad and not too
narrow, and end with a question mark. Following are some examples of research questions:
✓ How the female travellers perceive Metro Bus System in term of accessibility, safety,
affordability, and reliability?
✓ Does TVET give young women the confidence to interact, argue and bargain in social
interactions?
✓ How does aid proliferation affect the capacity of the Pakistan government to manage
foreign aid?
⟹ NOTE: In case of more than one research question, make sure that they should be linked to
each other in such a way that they collectively address the research objective.
⟹ REMEMBER: Research questions are not always easy to formulate. If you find yourself
stuck about how to formulate research questions, it is recommended that you must read more
published material on the topic. Think about personal experiences, consult your advisor and
colleagues, and look for a few interesting articles and assess if that research might be tested in
a new setting.
Once you are done with the research objectives and situation analysis, there are three important
considerations remaining which you must not ignore to complete the research scope:
▪ Establish link between your research objectives and public policy: Clearly state why
your research is worth reading/considering; and what contribution your research
would make to the public policy.21
▪ Define boundaries of your research! Describe in detail what your research will be
about such as population, context, aspect of an issue, time and space, etc. This will
allow you to execute your research on specific issue or aspect of a policy.
▪ Share research limitations: It is recommended that you should not hesitate to share
the limitations of your research. It might include time and resource constraints,
challenges related to access and dependence, non-availability of quality or complete
21
In academic research, conceptual framework is considered as a key feature of the research design. It comprised
of concepts, assumptions, beliefs, theories and relevance to public policy that inform your research. Here you are
only required to establish link of your research with public policy.
14
secondary data, or some aspect of the research you missed to include in the research
scope but found it interesting enough to be included at the later stage.
3.2. RESEARCH DESIGN
Research design is the second step of the research process (see figure 1). It refers to the
research structure of an enquiry that integrates the method of data collection and analysis of
data in a coherent and logical way. In simple words, it means how to plan your research study.
Any study needs a well-developed research design comprised of well-thought research
method(s), sampling of cases, method of data collection (e.g., questionnaire, observation,
document analysis), and data analysis approach (e.g., content analysis, thematic analysis,
narrative analysis).
Figure 3: Contents of a research design
Source: Khan (2022)
This enables the participants to meet the research objectives, find answers to the research
questions, and address the research problem in a systematic manner.22 An early decision about
preferred research method(s), data collection approach(es) and analysis technique(s) is highly
recommended.
This section provides instructions about formulating the research design (see figure 3) that
includes: (B.1) adopting research strategy, (B.2) choosing sampling technique, (B.3) selecting
method of data collection, (B.4) selecting data analysis approach, and (B.5) managing time and
resources.
B.1. Adopt Research Method
To carry out a research study, the research design demands a decision to adopt a holistic
research methodology. A good research design entails a coherence between the research scope
22
It is important to understand that the research scope determines the type of research design a researcher should
use, not the other way around!
15
and the research methodology.23 Once you know what you want to find out (as you would
outline this in your research scope), the methodology about how you will get that information
would help to describe your research design. For instance. if structured (numerical) information
is required to answer the more mechanistic ‘what’ question, quantitative research methodology
seems the right approach. By contrast, if an in-depth and contextual understanding is required
to answer ‘why’ and ‘how’ questions, then qualitative research methodology is recommended.
Similarly, if you want to conduct a detailed, intensive, and context-specific analysis of a case
(or phenomena/situation in a policy process) to develop a holistic understanding of a subject,
the case study research – often mixed methods approach – would be the most appropriate
methodology.
⟹ REMEMBER: There are no right and wrong strategies. The aspect worth consideration is:
how appropriate your research methodology is to your research topic and scope? To get more
clarity on this, search and read online/published material, consult your advisor (sponsor DS),
and seek feedback from your colleagues and/or people from academia.
⟹ NOTE: You must describe in detail your ‘research methods’ in the research proposal and
justify why the proposed method was considered appropriate to answer the research question(s)
posed in your study.
B.2. Choose Sampling Technique
Sampling is a process of selecting units24 from a target population and/or policy sector of
interest. Since studying a whole population or policy sector is highly unlikely due to time and
resource constraints, a (representative) sample helps to study phenomena which fairly allows
to generalise the results back to the population. The selection of sampling technique depends
on the research objective. Some select samples to maximise in-depth contextual understanding,
while others are concerned to make inferences about a whole population using a representative
sample. In the latter case, the decision about the sample design demands probability (random)
sampling to study a larger sample (used in quantitative research), while in the former case it
requires non-probability (non-random) sampling to study a smaller sample more intensively
(used in qualitative research).
⟹ REMEMBER: Sampling is mostly required if your research design includes collection and
analysis of primary data. If your research design seeks to collect and analyse secondary data
or document analysis, then you may skip sampling from your research plan. Nevertheless, it is
important to identify/cite the source and authenticity of secondary data.
23
Research design and research method are often used as synonymous, but are distinct terms. Research design
represents a structure that guides the execution of a research method and the analysis of the subsequent data
(Bryman, 2012).
24
The type of object of interest, e.g., individuals, households, universities, cities, firms, etc. The term ‘unit’ is
used because it is not necessarily people who are being sampled.
16
Once you have defined/selected your research population, there are two important
considerations underlining sampling: sampling approach and level of sampling.
▪ Sampling approach denotes whether you need to collect primary data using
probability sample or non-probability sample; for quantitative or qualitative research,
respectively.
▪ Level of sampling refers to the context of sample (e.g., location, group, entities) and
sample participants (individuals, actors, households).
Sampling techniques in quantitative research primarily involve random selection (or

probability sampling) approach in order to draw a representative sample and generalise results
back to the population. Some popular probability sampling techniques25 used worldwide
include: Simple random sampling; Stratified random sampling; Systematic sampling; Cluster
sampling; and Multi-stage cluster sampling.
Sampling techniques in qualitative research revolve around the notion of purposive sampling
(or non-random selection). Purposive sampling technique is preferred when a specific (limited)
number of individuals carry the most relevant information that is sought. Adopting this
technique allows the researcher to select the most productive sample to answer the research
questions. It involves individuals who are best placed in the system to provide the required
information based on their expert knowledge and position in the system.26
⟹ NOTE, you must describe in detail the ‘sampling technique’ used to draw the sample in
your research and justify why the proposed technique was considered appropriate to meet the
research objective of your study.
B.3. Select Method of Data Collection
It is essential that the researcher identifies the type of evidence27 required to answer the research
question(s) in a convincing way. Once it is clear what kind of information is required, the
selection of data collection method (or instrument)28 should be selected and designed to
complete the research design. The research design would be incomplete without knowing what
method will be used to collect the required information.
The decision about the selection of data collection methods primarily depends on the research
question of your study, but it may also be influenced by the research design such as context,
methodology and timing of the study.
25
For details, see Khan (2022).
26
For details, see Khan (2022).
27
Documents, published material, official statistics, primary and/or secondary (quantitative and/or qualitative)
data.
28
Such as survey (structure) questionnaire, semi-structured questionnaire, topic guide interview or focus group
discussion. These instruments are discussed in Section 3.3 (C.2).
17
The most important consideration in selection of an appropriate method is ‘where’ the required
data exist: policy documents, research reports, official correspondence and proceedings,
official statistics, or carried by specific community, households and/or individuals. The second
consideration is ‘how’ to access and/or record that required information. In the case of
secondary data, you may need to seek access to the data files owned by respective organisation
such as education enrolment, child mortality rate, or Pakistan Social and Living-Standards
Measurement (PSLM) survey data. It is important that you should consider the following
criteria while selecting your secondary data:
▪ Date of publication: should not be too old, otherwise lack relevance

▪ Reliability of the source: should be hosted/published by a known organisation
▪ Quality of data: should have adequate coverage/rich discussion available
▪ Relevance of data: should carry relevant information for your study
▪ Credibility of data: should be validated, if required
In the case of primary data collection, you would need to draw sample from the target
population and get close to the sample to be able to record the first-hand information
(raw/primary data). Two considerations would be required: selection of probability or non-
probability sampling technique, and selection of the level of sampling (context and participants
of your research). These considerations will help you to choose the most appropriate method
of data collection. A detailed discussion about the methods of secondary data collection and
primary data collection is presented in Section 3.3.
⟹ REMEMBER: Primary data collection is not compulsory for all types of research studies.
For instance, if you plan to do a desk study such as document analysis, you will skip this step
from your research plan.
⟹ NOTE: In your research, you must describe in detail the ‘method of data collection’ selected
to collect the primary data and elaborate why the proposed method was considered appropriate
to meet the research objective of your study. In case of secondary data, justify selection of type
and source.
B.4. Select Data Analysis Method
Analysis of data plays crucial role in reaching conclusions and stating recommendations. At
the research design stage, before proposal submission, the researcher needs to select and
specify the method to analyse the data. There are a number of methods to analyse the data
depending upon whether the data were secondary or primary, as well as whether it is qualitative
or quantitative. A detailed discussion about the secondary data analysis and primary data
analysis is presented in Section 3.4.
⟹ NOTE: In your research, you must describe in detail the ‘data analysis method’ selected to
process the primary data and elaborate why the selected method was considered appropriate
to meet the research objective of your study.
18
B.5. Managing Time and Resources
Most research activities are constrained by time and resources. There is no point in working on
a research topic (or assignment) which you cannot complete in given time and available
resources. Having said that, it does not mean that research assignments cannot be conducted
and completed in a given timeframe. The challenge here is to manage the time and resources
available to you.
To manage the time, it is recommended that you should workout the timeframe at the outset of
your research assignment. A Gantt chart can be useful here. The timeframe should indicate all
the different stages of your research, and the weeks/dates each activity would start and finish.
Once you generate the timeframe of your research, it is essential that you should monitor the
performance so that there is an early warning of slippage.
⟹ NOTE: Deadlines (dates/time) of activities for IRP such as research scope, proposal
submission, first and second drafts submission, and final paper/presentation submission will
be communicated by the T&C Section.
To manage the resources, it is of foremost importance to know what resources are available to
you, and whether they are at your disposal or not? For instance, access to workstation, printing,
and photocopying, stationary, telephone and recording equipment, and travel funding. These
will enable you to establish how financially feasible and practical your research design would
be. In addition to these, it is suggested that you should also work on the human and intellectual
support aspect.
⟹ REMEMBER: Try your level best to formulate a convincing and well-planned research
design keeping in view your research question(s) and methodology adopted. From an
examiner’s point of view, the research design (or methodology) section of your research
proposal/research paper would be the most crucial part. A well-designed methodology
confirms the validity, reliability, and credibility of any research.
3.3. DATA COLLECTION
Data collection is the third step of the research process (see figure 1). This is a critical stage of
the research process in collecting the information needed to answer the research question. Data
mainly include numerical values (quantitative data) and textual record (qualitative data). It can
be raw information (primary data) or presented as facts and figures (secondary data).
Processing of data leads to the generation of knowledge and understanding of the phenomena
under examination. This section provides instructions about secondary data collection and
primary data collection.
19
C.1. Secondary Data Collection
Secondary data are type of data that has already been collected, processed, and published by
someone else for a purpose other than yours. Studies in which secondary data are required to
answer the research question, researchers need to:
a) identify the type, such as documents and/or official statistics,

b) locate the data, knowing the source of data and access options,
c) evaluate the relevance of data, considering background details of data such as
population, sample size, time of data collection, collection mode, questions asked, and
form of data, and
d) assess the credibility of data, exploring if the data were collected, processed and used
by a credible published research, and whether it can be validated.
Secondary data collection is time and cost effective as compared to the primary data which
requires a lot of effort, time and finances. The secondary data may be of higher quality,
depending on the sampling technique, size, statistical precision, and may contain a wide variety
of variables. By contrast, the researcher has no control over its quality, the data may not help
to address a particular research question, or lack depth and knowledge about the survey
strategy.
There is an abundance of data sources available on most of the mainstream topics. These
include Pakistan data portal; population census, Pakistan social and living standard measure
(PSLM), national accounts, social statistics, agriculture statistics and labour force survey of the
Pakistan Bureau of Statistics; Pakistan economic survey of the Ministry of Finance; Status of
public sector development expenditure of the respective planning ministry/departments; world
development indicators of the World Bank; human development index of the UNDP, etc.
C.2. Primary Data Collection
Primary data collection needs different methods to collect quantitative and qualitative data.
Quantitative data collection methods aim to collect numerical values using structured
questionnaire with closed-ended questions. Qualitative data collection method records non-
quantifiable observations such as words, behaviour, feelings, etc., using semi-structured or
unstructured interview schedule. The choice of quantitative or qualitative methods of data
collection depends on the area and scope of your research. Nevertheless, it needs a great deal
of preparations: instrument development, piloting, resource management. Figure 4 presents
four steps involved in data collection process.
20
Figure 4: Data collection process
Source: Khan (2022)
⟹ NOTE: Primary data collection is NOT compulsory. If you plan to conduct a desk study and
your research design does not include collection of primary data, then you will skip this from
your research plan.
In studies involving primary data collection, researchers need to develop a well-thought data
collection instrument such as questionnaire, interview schedule or topic guide.29 This is the
first step of the data collection process. Interviews are the most widely used method of data
collection. Three major categories of interviews can be identified: the structured (formal or
standardised) interview; the unstructured (informal or un-standardised) interview; and, the
semi-structured (semi-standardised or focused) interview.
Structured interview is similar in format to a ‘pencil-and-paper’ survey. It is designed to collect

standardised numerical data in large surveys using closed-ended questions. Unstructured
interview comprises of a ‘topic guide’ including a list of themes, sub-themes, and issues to be
discussed in a free-flowing discussion with an individual or group. The semi-structured
interview is a mix of both structured and unstructured interview. It mainly consists of both
closed and open-ended questions, and topics. Table 2 presents distinctions between these.
It is always desirable to test the instrument (questionnaire) prior to conduct the

survey/fieldwork so that any limitations could be addressed, or desirable changes be made in
advance. This testing is called piloting. The main objective of piloting is to observe whether
the questions asked were clear and understandable to the respondent, flowed well in the
discussion, and allowed the researcher to collect the required data.
29
Questionnaire are used in survey research to collect quantitative data, while Interview schedule or topic guide
are the formats used in the fieldwork to collect qualitative data.
21
Table 2: Types of interviews
STRUCTURED INTERVIEW SEMI-STRUCTURED UNSTRUCTURED

INTERVIEW INTERVIEW
Used to collect Quantitative data Used to collect Qualitative Used to collect Qualitative data
(and Quantitative) data
Instrument: Instrument: Instrument:

Survey Questionnaire Interview Schedule Interview/Topic Guide
Data collection mode: Data collection mode: Data collection mode:

Survey, Census, Online Face to Face Interview, Fieldwork, Face to Face Interaction, Focus
Online Survey Group Discussion, Observations
Interviewer follows scripted Asymmetrical structure; Questions Completely unstructured; Free-

questions; No deviation from may be reordered during the flowing conversation; No set
question order. interview; order to any question; → Open-
→ Closed-ended questions → Both open and closed-ended ended questions
questions
Working of each question asked Interviewer initiates questions and Both interviewer and interviewee
exactly as written poses probes in response to initiate questions and discuss
Interviewee’s descriptions topics
No adjusting of level of language Level of language may be adjusted Level of language may be
adjusted
No clarifications or answering of Interviewer may answer questions Interviewer may answer questions
questions about the interview and make clarifications and make clarifications
No additional questions may be Interviewer may add or delete Interviewer may add or delete
added probes to interview between questions between interviews
subsequent subjects
Source: Khan (2022); Berg (2004).
⟹ REMEMBER: It is suggested that you organise your questionnaire/interview thematically

(in different sections) and arrange questions in a flowing discussion order. This will help you
to conduct the interview efficiently and enable you to manage the raw data for further
processing (analysis).
Once the instrument is ready, planning the fieldwork is the second step of the data collection
process. A number of considerations are required here. It is suggested that you must research
the site of your data collection: explore the locality, language, social and cultural norms, history
and politics, and the climate. Research your participants: explore their background, expertise,
and their social/professional networks. Evaluate the feasibility of your fieldwork: calculate time
and resources, and plan travel and logistics.
⟹ NOTE: It is expected that your fieldwork might take longer duration and require more
resources as you planned. So, do think about a contingency plan beforehand.
22
The next step is to conduct the fieldwork. The biggest challenge here is to negotiate access to
the social setting such as office or household. Access refers to the ability of the researcher to
get close to people and situations, to be able to find out what is really happening below the
rhetoric. Negotiating access is most difficult in case of expert interviewing.30 Arranging
interview sessions and conducting face-to-face interviews with experts is often quite
challenging. In such scenarios, to negotiate access, you may want to send a formal request for
an interview to the potential research participants. An approach letter and the participant
information sheet would be required to approach your participant.31
⟹ REMEMBER: Experts/senior officials are quite busy individuals and often have tight
schedules. It may be quite challenging to convince them to schedule an appointment. You may
face lack of interest from some officials. Some might turn down your request straightaway,
while others may delay scheduling interview and later stop answering your phone calls or
emails. It is therefore suggested that you should utilise your contacts in the network to facilitate
the process. In qualitative research, you may want to replace cases (participants) using
snowball sampling technique, even when you have chosen your initial sample purposively;
purposive-snowball sampling. Do indicate this in your methodology.32
Audio recording is often recommended during the interviews with the consent of the
respondents. However, field notes can be used where the participants refuse to give consent
due to whatever reason. Recordings are used to promote accuracy and detail in transcripts.
Interviews without audio recording take longer duration and are of lesser quality as compared
to the audio files; since writing notes sometimes led to losing concentration, missing interesting
points, or capturing exact phrases and language used by the respondents.
Although data management is the final step of the data collection process, it begins as the
fieldwork starts. Data management means that the researcher must check whether there are any
obvious flaws in the information collected. It is suggested that a status file must be developed
to keep a track record of every conversation and commitment during the fieldwork – such as
invitation letter, follow-up telephone call, email reply, interview schedule status, date and time
of interview, and location of interview. Data management requires documenting the data. This
includes recording the data; transcribing the (qualitative) data; and summarising the data in
such a way to construct a new reality.33 Data files must be saved and organised in separate
folders according to sample groups. This will allow the researcher to track the data
file/transcript for further cross-referencing and analysis. After the data are collected, you will
be ready to proceed to the next step of the research process: the data analysis.
30
In expert interviewing, the interviewees are of less interest as a person than their knowledge and capacities as
an expert in a specific field of activity.
31
The participant information sheet usually describes: the purpose of the study; areas covered in the research; a
request for a face-to-face interview; and clearly stated policy on confidentiality.
32
Published material and online resources are widely available on interviewing skills and techniques.
33
Summarising means synthesising the information collected in the interview such as recording the data, writing
up interview notes as soon as possible, identify key responses/issues highlighted by the majority, capture verbatim
quotes, and group similar results under themes/sub-themes.
23
3.4. DATA ANALYSIS
The data analysis stage is fundamentally about data reduction. Without reducing the large
volume of gathered information, it is highly unlikely to interpret the material, make sense out
of it, and generate knowledge for better understanding. Although this remains a challenging
stage of the research process, it is also exciting considering the raw information is to be
transformed into facts and knowledge; revealing the results.
⟹ NOTE: It is critically important that you must compare your research findings to the
existing findings of the literature review; for both qualitative and quantitative research. This
comparison will confirm or contradict the existing beliefs and observations. This is the main
rationale of conducting any research.
The consideration in data analysis is that it refers to the analysis of either primary or secondary
data. In the latter case, analysis may include document analysis and/or analysis of official
statistics. This section provides instructions about conducting secondary data analysis and
primary data analysis.
D.1. Secondary Data Analysis
Secondary data analysis involves further processing of existing data, collected by someone else
for a distinct purpose. This involves discussing common and contrasting patterns of beliefs and
observations within the secondary data related to the research question. Secondary data analysis
mostly involves document analysis and/or the analysis of official statistics.
Although the document analysis is not very common in social research, but it is highly relevant
in policy sciences research; studying stages of the policy process, conducting research of/for
policy. The term ‘documents’ includes a wide variety of different documentary sources: from
personal diaries, letters, and mass media material, to official documents deriving from the state
such as national development plans, sectoral policy, research reports, proceedings and official
correspondence, etc. In either case, you need to ensure the quality of documents: authenticity
and credibility. The problem with document analysis is that sometimes the necessary parts of
documents are not available, not accessible, or just missing.
⟹ REMEMBER: It is strongly recommended that you should rely on published or non-

classified official documents for your analysis. Using unpublished or classified information
would raise questions related to authenticity and credibility of data/ documents.
Official statistics are statistics published by a state agency or public organisation, such as
Pakistan Bureau of Statistics, as a public good. The usage and analysis of official statistics for
policy research and public sector decision-making has been in practice globally for centuries.
For research purpose, use of official statistics for secondary data analysis is considered time
and cost effective, and it is often reliable and credible too. You just need to ensure the quality
standard of the data.
24
⟹ REMEMBER: It is important that you rely on one (published) data set for your research as
it might lead to complexity if you try to mix/match two or more sources of data to process your
analysis. For instance, if you want to study education enrolment rate in Punjab, then rely on
either PSLM, or MICS, WDI, HDI, Alif Ailaan! It is recommended because every study selects
different sample, indicators & time.
D.2. Primary Data Analysis
After the collection and documentation of raw information, the data are to be coded and
analysed to elicit findings. In qualitative studies, data analysis involves arranging data
thematically, identifying patterns within and across responses, and analysing them critically in
order to answer the research question. Contrary to this, data analysis for quantitative studies
entail critical analysis of numerical values, interpretation of trends, and attempts to find
rationale underlining the main findings using theoretical framework. The results will then be
reviewed and summarised in such a manner that would scientifically and logically explain the
phenomena under investigation.
The process of coding is an essential first step in the analysis of primary data. Coding is the
operation by which data are broken down, conceptualised, and put back together in a new way.
Coding in qualitative research is a somewhat different process from coding in relation to
quantitative data. With the latter, coding is more or less solely a way of managing data using a
statistical programme; whereas, in qualitative data analysis, coding is an important first step
towards the generation of theory.34
In qualitative research, the coding process begins with the text, coding categories, and moving
on to identify trend and themes. The purpose of this is to simplify the transcript data and to
achieve simple conceptual schema. Initially the data is to be transcribed and reviewed line by
line. A close reading through the transcripts would help to identify themes or categories to
which the data related, and which is relevant to the research focus. It is necessary to evaluate
and explore the data in relation to the distribution of opinion across groups and individuals;
groups often carry different opinions and viewpoints. It is critical to capture these distinctions
in order to explore the dynamics of the social setting. Besides this, the interview questions and
conceptual framework can also be used to generate a number of pre-existing themes, subthemes
and codes.
Unlike quantitative data analysis, there are a no clear rules and procedures for analysing
qualitative data. The preference of analysis method selection depends on the nature of
qualitative enquiry and rationale developed in the research scope. A number of qualitative data
analysis methods are available for consideration. Here, we discuss the most commonly used
thematic analysis, narrative analysis, and content analysis for qualitative research.35
34
See Bryman (2012)
35
See Bryman (2012); Khan (2022); Ritchie & Lewis (2003)
25
Thematic analysis: is the most common approach to analyse the qualitative data. The method
involves the identification of key themes, concepts or categories. In this approach, the
researcher starts with some general themes derived from the literature review and add/merge
themes and sub-themes as he/she goes along. This method of data analysis is highly
recommended to study qualitative cases and phenomena in policy and social sciences.
Narrative analysis: identifies the basic story, which is being told, focusing on the way an
account or narrative is constructed, the intention of the teller and the nature of the audience as
well as the meaning of the story or plot. In simple words, the narrative analysis focuses on the
attention shift from what actually happened to how do people make sense of what happened,
and to what effect.
Content analysis: is an approach that analyse both the content and context of documents and
texts. In this method, researcher identifies themes, seeks to quantify content and the frequency
of its occurrence. The content analysis helps to present the processed information in
percentages, averages and in ranges.
The application of content analysis comprised of three distinct approaches: conventional,

directed, or summative. In conventional content analysis, coding categories are derived directly
from the text data. The directed approach starts with a theory or relevant research findings as
guidance for initial codes. While, a summative content analysis involves counting and
comparisons, usually of keywords or content, followed by the interpretation of the underlying
context.36
3.5. WRITING RESEARCH
Writing research is the final stage of a research process. Through this, you will disseminate the
findings of your research and convey policy recommendations to the relevant audience. The
foremost thing you would need to do is to start organising your material and create the outline
of your research. Once the tentative structure of your study is in front of you, start filling the
sections with the material. This will lead you to your zero draft. You then need to work in and
across sections, critically reviewing and formatting your material and produce the draft. Get
feedback on that from your Faculty Advisor and make revisions towards the final product and
submit.
Detailed guidelines for writing research proposal and individual research paper is presented in
Annex I. The annex provides specific guidelines about: proposed contents/structure of the
research document, writing & presentation style to be followed, procedure to complete and
submit the research assignment, and criteria based on which the evaluation will be made.
Guidelines for Current Issue Presentation, Case Study Research, and Simulation Exercise are
presented in Annex II, III and IV, respectively. Detailed guidelines for Citation and Referencing
36
See Hsieh & Shannon (2005)
26
style, both manually and automatically using MS Word, are presented in Annexes V, followed
by Annex VI that briefly outlines Avoiding Plagiarism. Finally, Annex VII highlights some key
considerations for producing a good quality research.
27
RECOMMENDED READINGS & ONLINE SOURCES
RECOMMENDED READINGS
▪ BECKER, S., BRYMAN, A. & FERGUSON, H. (eds). 2012. Understanding

Research for Social Policy and Social Work: Themes, Methods and Approaches.
Bristol: The Policy Press.
▪ BERG, B. L. (ed.). 2007. Qualitative research methods for social sciences. New
York: Pearson Education, Inc.
▪ BRYMAN, A. 2012 & 2021. Social Research Methods (4th & 6th Editions), Oxford:
Oxford University Press.
▪ FLICK, U. 2009. An Introduction to Qualitative Research. London: Sage.
▪ KHAN, F. J. 2022. Policy Research Methods: A Step-by-Step Guide from Start to
Finish for Students and Practitioners. Islamabad: PIDE-RASTA. Available online:
https://pide.org.pk/research/policy-research-methods-a-step-by-step-guide-from-start-
to-finish-for-students-and-practitioners/
▪ RITCHIE, J. & LEWIS, J. 2003. Qualitative Research Practice. London: Sage.
▪ SILVERMAN, D. 2005. Doing Qualitative Research. London: Sage.
RECOMMENDED ONLINE RESOURCE
▪ Research process
https://research-methodology.net/research-methodology/research-process/
▪ Research methods
https://research-methodology.net/research-methods/
▪ Sampling
https://research-methodology.net/sampling-in-primary-data-collection/
▪ SAGE research methods
http://methods.sagepub.com/
▪ APA, MLA, Chicago Style – Automatically format bibliographies
https://support.office.com/en-us/article/apa-mla-chicago-%E2%80%93-automatically-
format-bibliographies-405c207c-7070-42fa-91e7-eaf064b14dbb
▪ QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH: GLOSSARY OF KEY
TERMS—WRITING@CSU (COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY)
https://writing.colostate.edu/guides/guide.cfm?guideid=90
28
ANNEX I: GUIDELINES FOR INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PAPER (IRP)
ACTIVITY TYPE Individual activity
PROCESS / ▪ Each participant will be allocated a RESEARCH TOPIC during

PROCEDURE the initial weeks of the course.
▪ A Faculty Advisor (Syndicate DS) will be allocated to all
participants for research supervision.
▪ Each participant will be required to submit the following
deliverables:
o Research Scope
o First Draft
o Second Draft *
o Final IRP
▪ Your initial tasks will be to submit a RESEARCH SCOPE (500-
800 words max) to your Faculty Advisor. Once reviewed and
approved by your Faculty Advisor, you will be allowed to work on
your IRP data collection, analysis and writeup.
▪ Participants are encouraged to interact with guest speakers and
sector specialists, and also consult experts during Local Visits and
Inland Study Tour wherever relevant to the topic/ subject of their
IRP.
▪ The FIRST IRP DRAFT should be able to share the preliminary
findings of your research.
▪ The SECOND IRP DRAFT should be able to share the key
findings of your research, draw main conclusions and
recommendations, and identify key messages coming out of your
research.
NOTE: For MCMC, the T&C may decide to skip submission of the
second IRP draft due to time constraint.
▪ Before submitting the FINAL IRP, revise the first and second
drafts in light of the comments suggested by your Faculty Advisor.
Revisit your Introduction section to make any final changes and
write an Abstract.
A good ABSTRACT includes: purpose of research (objectives);
main phrases from your Introduction section (scope); very briefly
state your research methodology; share key findings (conclusions)
and important policy recommendation. You can divide the abstract
in two paragraphs. In the first para, include abstract from the
introduction, scope and methods used. In the second para,
articulate the key findings and recommendations coming out of
29
your research. Make sure that there is consistency between the

information presented in the abstract and in the research write up.
Before the final submission, please make sure that you have edited
the whole IRP carefully for an effective, harmonious, and an error-
free copy. It should be coherent in structure, systematically
organised, and free of errors of expression, spellings, punctuation
and grammar. Finally, make sure that your final IRP is within the
prescribed word count. You are now ready to submit your final
IRP.
NOTE: Submission deadlines (dates/time) of IRP deliverables such as
research scope, research proposal, first and second drafts, and final
paper/presentation will be communicated separately by the respective
T&C Section.
CONTENT / SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF AN INDIVIDUAL

STRUCTURE OF RESEARCH PAPER (IRP)
INDIVIDUAL
RESEARCH PAPER The structure of a research paper can be divided into four parts: (i)
preliminary matter, (ii) main body, (iii) references, and (iv) annexure.
The Title Page or Cover Page is the first page (face) of your paper that
is usually designed according to a specified specimen of the publisher
(see Annex I-A). This is followed by the preliminary matter that includes
abstract, dedication (optional), table of contents, list of abbreviations,
tables and figures. The main body part of your research paper is the
longest part starting from the Introduction section to the conclusion and
policy recommendation sections. The main body is followed by a list of
references and annexures, if any.
▪ Preliminary matter (Initial pages)

o Abstract (300-400 words max)
o Dedication (optional)
o Table of Contents
o List of abbreviations/Definition of terms
o List of tables/figures
▪ Introduction (approx. 20% of main body text)

✓ Introduce your topic; briefly talk about the background/
context; clearly state your research argument, why this
research is important and what’s new about it – present some
evidence (existing debate or secondary data) to support your
argument.
✓ Research Scope must include aim/objective(s) of your
research; statement of problem; research question(s); establish
link/relevance with the existing public policy debate;
30
significance of research, and define boundaries of your

research.
▪ Review of Literature (approx. 10% of main body text)
✓ See Section 3.1 (A.2)
▪ Research Methodology (approx. 20% of main body text)
✓ State your research methodology in detail. Tell why the
chosen method(s) was considered appropriate for your study.
See Section 3.2 (B.1)
✓ In case primary data collection was involved in your research
methodology, share the sampling technique used in your
study. State how the sample was drawn from the target
population, and what was the criteria of selection. See Section
3.2 (B.2)
✓ Clearly indicate the data sources (especially in case of
secondary data) and/or state in detail the data collection
process (especially in case of primary data). See Section 3.2
(B.3) & 3.3, respectively.
✓ Indicate how did you plan to manage the data and what data
analysis approach was used to elicit findings. See Section 3.2
(B.4) & 3.4, respectively.
▪ Findings and Discussion (approx. 40% of main body text)
✓ This section is your data interpretation and analysis section;
can be divided into sub-sections as per your research
requirements. See Section 3.4.
Where needed, divide/arrange your analysis thematically into
more than one section. In each (thematic) section, arrange
your findings and discussion under subthemes.
▪ Conclusion (approx. 5% of main body text)
✓ It is suggested to briefly restate your objective/research
questions and reemphasise the contribution of your research.
✓ The conclusion of your research should be a brief of ‘key
messages’ coming out of your research, rather just a summary
of your study. State clearly ‘what did your research find’ and
‘how relevant are your findings with the existing
debate/understanding’.
✓ Avoid writing new information, data or source in your
conclusion. Stick to your scope, key findings and the
takeaway.
▪ Policy Recommendations (approx. 5% of main body text)
31
✓ Based on your research findings, make (actionable)

suggestions keeping in view the ‘how’ part. For instance, you
may like to suggest “there is need to improve governance in
the public sector”, but this statement lacks “how to improve
governance in the public sector.”
✓ Instead of creating a long wish-list, concentrate on a few, but
concrete policy recommendations. They should be actionable,
with precise, practical implementation strategy.
▪ References
✓ Add a List of References at the end of the paper, after the
Conclusion and Recommendations. Follow the APA style.
(See Annex V for APA Citations and Referencing guidelines)
NOTE: Adding annexes at the end of IRP are not recommended.

However, if unavoidable, add only the relevant material such as data,
tables, questionnaire/interview schedule/ topic guide of your research.
WRITING & WRITING STYLE FOR IRP (AND OTHER REPORTS) WRITE
PRESENTATION UP USING MS WORD
STYLE
TEXT FONT: Times New Roman (TNR)
TEXT SIZE & ALIGNMENT:
▪ Heading 1: TNR 16 Bold, Centre aligned

▪ Sub-Heading 2: TNR 14 Bold, Left aligned
▪ Sub-Heading 3: TNR 12 Bold, Italic, Left aligned
▪ Text (main body): TNR 12, Justified
▪ Text (bullet points): TNR 12, Left aligned
▪ Text (table): TNR 11, Left aligned/Justified
▪ Text (footnote): TNR 10, Left aligned
▪ Text (table/figure source): TNR 10, Italic, Left aligned
LINE SPACING:
▪ 1.5 Line spacing for main body text
▪ 1.15 Line spacing for text in table
▪ 1.0 (single) Line spacing for text in footnote
PARAGRAPH SPACING:
▪ 12 before & 12 after for main body text
▪ 6 before & 6 after for bullet points and table
▪ 0 before & 0 after for text in footnote
NOTE: Although main Headings (Heading 1) and Sub-headings
(Heading 2) must be numbered (such as 1 and 1.1), other sub-
headings (Heading 3, 4, etc.) and paras must NOT be numbered!
32
TABLES & FIGURES:

Tables and figures (such as map, flow chart or diagram) should be
numbered consecutively, but separately in their own categories. In
case of more than one table and/or figure inserted, separate lists of
tables and figures must be added at the beginning (after the list of
contents) in the document. Sources should be given immediately
below the table and figures. Like any other kind of secondary data
source, these need to be properly cited.
USE OF ACRONYMS:
Acronyms are usually used to avoid repeating the same word or phrase
throughout the same piece of writing. It is recommended that when
you use an acronym in your document for the first time, complete
words or phrase should be written out with a short-form placed in
brackets immediately after. For example, Ministry of Foreign Affairs
(MOFA) or National School of Public Policy (NSPP). This way, it
would be clear to the readers exactly what the letters ‘MOFA’ and
‘NSPP’ mean. In case of technical terminology or concept, you may
want to briefly define/explain it in the footnote when used first time.
REMEMBER: In case of using more than 4-5 different acronyms in a
single document, a list of abbreviations/acronyms must be added.
FOOTNOTES:
A footnote is a reference, brief explanation, or brief explanatory
comment placed at the bottom of a page corresponding to the item
cited in the main body text above. Participants may use footnotes (not
Endnotes) to define a concept/terminology, explain a phenomenon,
and/or add an explanatory comment. For citations in the paper, in-text
citations are suggested; please follow instructions for Citations given
in Annex V.
PAGE NUMBERS:
Page numbers must be used for all the pages (at the bottom of the
page, center aligned) except the title page. Roman numerals must be
used for all the pages in preliminaries/initial pages, except the title
page.
MARGINS & PAGE SIDES
Select ‘normal’ margins for your paper/report:
▪ Top 2.54 cm
▪ Bottom 2.54 cm
▪ Left 2.54 cm
▪ Right 2.54 cm
NOTE: Take print on both sides of the page.
CITATION & REFERENCING:
33
Detailed guidelines are provided in Annex V.

DATE & TIME FORMAT:
Two ‘DATE’ formats are recommended: [01 January 2019] and
[January 01, 2019]. Similarly, two ‘TIME’ formats are recommended:
[3:10 PM] and [1510 Hrs].
NOTE: Whichever date and time format/style you choose, it should be
used consistently throughout the document.
PRESENTATION STYLE FOR IRP WRITE UP
(USING MS POWERPOINT)
Follow presentation instructions given in Annex II.
34
ANNEX I-A: SAMPLE TITLE PAGE OF INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PAPER
Use respective
NIM NIM Logo
Logo
14 TNR, Centre
aligned,
UPPERCASE Text
INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PAPER
TITLE OF THE INDIVIDUAL RESEARCH PAPER

18 TNR, Centre
aligned,
UPPERCASE Text
by
16 TNR, Centre Full Name of the Participant

aligned, Sentence
case Text
Service Group
Number of your
MCMC/SMC 99th Mid Career/Senior Management Course City of your
respective NIM
Course National Institute of Management, City
A paper submitted to the Faculty of the National Institute of Management, Lahore, in partial fulfilment
of the requirements of the 99th Mid Career/Senior Management Course.
I declare that this paper is the end-product of my own efforts, research and writing and has not, in whole
or in part, been submitted elsewhere for assessment and its contents are not plagiarised. The paper
reflects my own views and are not necessarily endorsed by the Faculty or the Institute.
11 TNR, Justified,
Sentence case Text Signature:
12 TNR, Left aligned,
Date:
Sentence case Text Paper Supervised by:
Full Name of Faculty Advisor
Designation, Institute
Title page should

NOT be numbered
35
ANNEX II: GUIDELINES FOR CURRENT ISSUE PRESENTATION

(CrIP)
ACTIVITY TYPE Individual Activity
PROCESS / ▪ The aim of Current Issue Presentation (CrIP) is to encourage the

PROCEDURE participants analysing a current issue impinging upon the socio-
cultural, economic, political and/or any other facet of life in
Pakistan which has serious policy implications with a view to
promote their understanding about the strategizing the
implementation of public policy.
▪ CrIP topic should relate to Pakistan and to a policy issue in current
public debate.
▪ Each participant will be allocated a CrIP topic during the first term
of the course.
▪ Participants are required to submit the soft and hard copies of the
Current Issue Write-Up (CrIW) and the Current Issue Power Point
Presentation (CrIP) to the T&C Section positively before the
specified date and time.
▪ Schedule of the presentations will be reflected in the weekly
programme. T&C Section will issue the schedule and instructions
accordingly.
▪ Participants are required to make PowerPoint facilitated
presentations before the participants and faculty in the classroom.
▪ Duration of each CrIP will be of 30 minutes including 20 minutes
for the presentation and 10 minutes for review/Q&A.
▪ Participants are required to take notes of the comments/
suggestions made by the reviewer.
CONTENT / SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF CrIP

STRUCTURE OF CrIP PRESENTATION
▪ Title Slide (see Annex II-A)
▪ Sequence of presentation (Contents slide; see Annex II-B)
▪ Currency of the topic (news clipping)
▪ Introduction
▪ Scope (including Statement of Problem)
▪ Analysis of issues & challenges
▪ Conclusion
▪ Recommendations
NOTE: Rehearsal prior to the final presentation is recommended.
36
SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF CrIW (WRITE UP)

▪ Title Page (see Annex II-C)
▪ Introduction
▪ Scope (including Statement of Problem)
▪ Analysis of Issues & Challenges
▪ Conclusion
▪ Recommendations
▪ References
NOTE: The page limit for CrIW is 5-6 pages. This does not include the
title page. There is no need to include Table of Contents and Annexes.
WRITING & STYLE FOR CrIP PRESENTATION

PRESENTATION (USING MS POWERPOINT)
STYLE
▪ The presentation should be in line with the write up submitted.
▪ Text on the slides should be clear & legible.
▪ Font size 28-30 for TEXT (in slide) and 32-36 for HEADINGS
(top of the slide) should be used. Stick to one Text Font/Theme
throughout the presentation. ‘Times New Roman’ (TNR) font is
recommended.
▪ Suitable colour scheme and background should be used. Avoid
dark and/or shocking colours. Avoid too many Animations and
Transitions.
▪ Give proper citation wherever required. Adopt in-text or use
Footnotes to add citation.
▪ Insert ‘Slide Number’ and ‘Date’ at the bottom of all slides,
except for the Title Slide.
STYLE FOR CURRENT ISSUE WRITE UP (CrIW)
(USING MS WORD)
▪ Follow writing instructions given in Annex I.
INSTRUCTIONS ▪ CrIP should be based on the CrIW, and vice versa.

▪ The issue has to be current, evident from the newspaper clipping
– one is enough – that is not more than 60 days old, counted from
the last date of submission of the CrIP topic as notified by the
T&C Section.
▪ APA citation and referencing style (7th Edition) should be
followed both in the CrIP and CrIW.
▪ Facts, figures and important statements/claims should be properly
cited/referenced. Participants are advised in their own interest that
giving facts and figures or making statements and claims without
37
giving reference of the source(s) will adversely affect the

grading/evaluation of the CrIP/CrIW.
▪ Use ‘Times New Roman’ text font throughout the CrIP & CrIW.
38
ANNEX II-A: SAMPLE TITLE SLIDE OF CrIP (PRESENTATION)
Slide Size: Use respective

Widescreen NIM NIM Logo
Logo
National Institute of Management, City

99th Mid Career/Senior Management Course
32 TNR, Bold, 32 TNR, Bold,
Centre aligned,
Sentence case Text
TOPIC OF YOUR CrIP Centre aligned,
UPPERCASE Text
28 TNR, Centre Presented by:

aligned, Sentence Name & Service Group of the Participant 28 TNR, (Bold),
case Text Centre aligned,
Sentence case
Sponsor DS: Text
Name of your Syndicate Directing Staff
ANNEX II-B: SAMPLE CONTENT SLIDE OF CrIP (PRESENTATION)
32-36 TNR, Bold, Left

Title of Slide aligned
Slide Size:
Widescreen
 Text level 1 30 TNR, Left aligned
▪ Text level 2 28 TNR, Left aligned
18 TNR (placement of date, footnote, and

slide numbers accordingly)
DD/MM/YYYY Footnote Slide #
39
ANNEX II-C: SAMPLE TITLE PAGE OF CrIW
Use respective
NIM NIM Logo
Logo
14 TNR, Centre
aligned,
UPPERCASE Text
CURRENT ISSUE WRITEUP
TITLE OF THE CURRENT ISSUE

18 TNR, Centre
aligned,
UPPERCASE Text
by
16 TNR, Centre Full Name of the Participant

aligned, Sentence
case Text
Service Group
Number of your
MCMC/SMC 99th Mid Career/Senior Management Course City of your
Course National Institute of Management, City respective NIM
12 TNR, Centre
aligned, Sentence Sponsor DS:
case text
Name of your Syndicate DS
Title page should

NOT be numbered
40
ANNEX III: GUIDELINES FOR CASE STUDY RESEARCH (CSR)
ACTIVITY TYPE Group Activity (Syndicate)
PROCESS/PROCEDURE ▪ Case Study Research (CSR) training material (Participants’

Guide) will be given to all participants as per the weekly
programme issued by the T&C Section.
▪ All participants will be required to assemble in their respective
Syndicates and read the Participants’ Guide thoroughly.
▪ The Sponsor DS of respective Syndicates will administer the
initial group discussion. Detailed instructions and submission
deadline will be provided in the Participants’ Guide.
▪ Individual report of each participant/sub-group should not
exceed two pages, while the final CSR report should not exceed
3,000 words or seven (07) pages, excluding title page, table of
contents, and references.
▪ Each Syndicate (Case Study Research Group) will be required
to submit the following deliverables:
o CSR Report (to be compiled and edited by the Secretary and
Chairperson)
o Original reports of all Sub-groups or individuals (to be
submitted by the Chairperson, along with the final CSR
Report)
CONTENT / SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF A CASE STUDY

STRUCTURE OF CSR RESEARCH REPORT
REPORT
▪ Initial pages
o Title page (see Annex IV-A)
o Table of Contents
o List of abbreviations
o List of tables/figures
▪ Introduction
o Background and Introduction
o Situation Analysis (based on document analysis/ literature
review)
▪ Research Methodology
o Research design
o Data sources and collection method/process
o Data analysis technique
▪ Case Study Analysis
o Question 1/Thematic analysis (sub-group I)
o Question 2/Thematic analysis (sub-group II)
o Question 3/Thematic analysis (sub-group III)
41
o Question 4/Thematic analysis (sub-group IV)

▪ Conclusions & Policy Recommendations
▪ References
NOTE: The word limit of a CSR Report does not include initial
pages and references. The ‘Case Study Analysis’ section is your
thematic analysis section. This section should be divided into sub-
sections as per the number of sub-groups assigned as per specific
(CSR) research questions.
CONTENT / ▪ Title slide

STRUCTURE OF CSR ▪ Composition of CSR Group
PRESENTATION ▪ Sequence of Presentation
▪ Introduction
▪ Scope
▪ Analysis of Issues, Challenges & Response
▪ Conclusion
▪ Policy Recommendations
NOTE: All CSR group members be given equitable chance to present
parts of the report and/or to respond to the questions.
WRITING & Follow the writing instructions given in Annex I.

PRESENTATION
Follow the presentation instructions given in Annex II, II-A & II-B.
STYLE
42
ANNEX III-A: SAMPLE TITLE PAGE OF CSR REPORT
Use respective NIM

NIM Logo
Logo
City of your
respective NIM
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, CITY

16 TNR, Centre aligned,
NIM: Bold, Uppercase
Text; Course: Sentence 14 TNR, Centre
case text aligned, Sentence
Case Study Research # case text, Add #
TITLE OF THE CASE STUDY RESEARCH

(From DD/MM/YYY to DD/MM/YYY) 18 TNR, Centre
aligned, Sentence UPPERCASE text
case text, Date
underlined
Composition of the CSR Group

Sr.# Name Service Group Role Assigned
1 Name Service Group Role assigned
2
3 12 TNR, Left
4 aligned, Sentence
case text
5
6
7
8
12 TNR, Centre
aligned, Sentence Sponsor DS: Name of your Syndicate DS
case text
Title page should
NOT be numbered
43
ANNEX IV: GUIDELINES FOR SIMULATION EXERCISE (SE)
TYPE Group Activity (assigned Syndicates & RGs)
PROCESS / ▪ Simulation Exercise (SE) training material will be given to all

PROCEDURE participants on the day as per the schedule issued by the T&C
Section.
▪ The Sponsor DS will brief the participants about the aim,
objectives, scope, requirements, and timeline of the Simulation
Exercise. Detailed instructions will be provided in the training
material.
▪ Participants will be allocated specific groups (Syndicate and
Research Group-RGs) and assigned specific roles as per the
requirement of each research group activity.
▪ Syndicates and RGs will be allocated to Faculty members
(Supervising DS), who will supervise the research activities.
▪ After the SE briefing, all participants will be required to
assemble in their respective Syndicates and RGs, and read/
discuss the training material thoroughly. Respective Syndicate/
RG leaders are required to plan their activities accordingly.
REMEMBER: Every participant is required to fully understand and
adopt the role assigned to him/her.
▪ Each Syndicate/RG will be required to submit the following
deliverables:
I. Individual Writeup: Each member of the Syndicate/RG shall
submit his/her Individual Report to the concerned Chairman of
the Syndicate/RG and to the concerned DS.
II. Group Report: The Chairman of the Syndicate/RG shall do
the following with regard to the individual reports:
(a) Consolidate all individual reports into a final group
report and submit it to T&C with a copy to the Covering
DS both through email and/or e-portal, and
(b) Forward through email all individual reports to the T&C
and the Covering DS well before the cut-off date & time.
III. Group Presentation: Each Syndicate/RG shall prepare and
deliver a PowerPoint Presentation before the whole MCMC/
SMC batch in the presence of the faculty and review panellist.
The duration and schedule for each presentation will be
available in the Guidelines for each SE to be issued by the T&C
Section at the start of the SE.
44
IV. Post Presentation Final Submission of the SE Write Up:

The Group leaders shall submit the final report of the SE after
incorporating the comments/suggestions/observations of the
review panellist, and of the faculty, along with the compliance
report highlighting the changes made in the final report.
CONTENT / SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF A SIMULATION

STRUCTURE EXERCISE REPORT
▪ Title page (see Annex IV-A)
▪ Executive Summary (one page)
▪ Table of Contents
▪ List of abbreviations
▪ List of tables/figures
▪ Section I: Introduction
o Introduction and Background
o Review of literature/Document analysis
o Scope (TORs)
o Organisation of the Report
▪ Section II: Research Methodology
o Research design
o Data sources and collection method/process
o Data analysis technique
▪ Section III: Situation Analysis
o Historical evolution
o Policy and Institutional Arrangement
o Status and Comparison (Secondary data analysis)
▪ Section IV: Analysis (of Issues & Challenges) & Findings
▪ Section V: Way Forward
o Strategy Formulation
o Action Plan
(Goals, Targets, KPIs, Executing Agency, Timeframe,
Costing and Assumptions for solving problems)
o Contingency Plan (Shift of Focus)
▪ References
▪ Annexures
NOTE: Length of the Report must NOT exceed 20 pages. Length of

individual reports should not exceed four (04) pages. Title page,
initial pages and references pages will NOT be counted. Annexes
are NOT encouraged, nevertheless if used, will be counted towards
page limit. Report and presentation should be properly cited and
referenced.
SAMPLE CONTENTS / STRUCTURE OF A SIMULATION

EXERCISE PRESENTATION
▪ Title slide
45
▪ Composition of Syndicate/RG
▪ Sequence of Presentation
▪ Introduction
▪ Scope
▪ Situation Analysis
▪ Analysis of Issues, Challenges & Response
▪ Key Question
▪ Action Plan
▪ Contingency Plan
NOTE: All Syndicate/RG members be given equitable chance to

present parts of the report and to respond to the questions.
NOTE: The schedule of SE presentations will be issues separately

by the T&C Section.
REMEMBER: Time management is an important performance

indicator during the SE. Meet the deadlines and group presentation
rehearsal prior to the final presentation is recommended.
WRITING & Follow the writing instructions given in Annex I.

PRESENTATION STYLE
Follow the presentation instructions given in Annex II, II-A & II-B.
46
ANNEX IV-A: SAMPLE TITLE PAGE OF SIMULATION EXERCISE REPORT
Use respective NIM

NIM Logo
Logo
City of your
respective NIM
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF MANAGEMENT, CITY

NIM: Bold, Uppercase
Text; Course: Sentence 14 TNR, Centre
case text aligned, Sentence
Simulation Exercise # case text, Add #
TITLE OF SYNDICATE / RG ASSIGNMENT

(From DD/MM/YYY to DD/MM/YYY) 18 TNR, Centre
aligned, Sentence UPPERCASE text
case text, Date
underlined
Composition of the Syndicate / RG #

Sr.# Name Service Group Role Assigned
1 Name Service Group Role assigned
2
3 12 TNR, Left
4 aligned, Sentence
case text
5
6
7
8
12 TNR, Centre
aligned, Sentence
Sponsor DS: Name of your Syndicate DS
case text
Title page should

NOT be numbered
47
ANNEX V: GUIDELINES FOR CITATION AND REFERENCING

(APA Style – 7th Edition)
This section presents the guidelines related to citation and referencing. Referencing is an
acknowledgement that you have used a published or unpublished material belonging to other authors in
your assignments or written work. This serves two purposes: (a) acknowledgement of the source, and
(b) allows the reader to trace the source. When you use another author’s work, referring to ideas and/or
findings, you must include the author’s or editor’s surname and indicate the year of publication in the
text of your work. This acknowledgement is called Citation.37 At the end of your assignment or written
work, you must add a list of all the relevant sources of information that you have used to complete your
study.
NOTE: APA (American Psychological Association) Style 7th Edition is the recommended style
of citation and referencing at the NSPP/NIM for all written/presentation submissions.
Online support for APA Style is available here: https://aut.ac.nz.libguides.com/APA7th
REMEMBER: Strictly follow the instructions of your faculty (CI & DS T&C) regarding the
Citation and Refencing style recommended at the Institute! Use APA style for all research
activities including the current issue presentations, individual research paper, case study
research, simulation exercises, LFV and IST reports/presentations, and tutorial discussions. It
is important to understand that if you ignore other authors’ work in your study, you could be
accused of plagiarism.
Proper citation and referencing are crucial to carry out a successful research, hence it is important to
know how to cite and reference a source. You can either insert citations and references manually or use
EndNote and/or MS Word (References Tab) to insert your citations and produce a reference list within
no time; the latter is recommended at NSPP. This annexure presents both approaches: to cite and
reference manually (using APA), and to manage sources in MS Word.
V-A. Managing Citations Manually (APA Style)
You are required to adopt the following rules for APA Style relating to citations depending on the
number of authors, and if you are citing a direct quotation.
A.1. Citing one author ▪ A recent study investigated the effectiveness of micro-
finance tools in alleviating poverty (Aslam, 2015).
▪ Aslam (2015) has investigated the effectiveness of micro-
finance tools in alleviating poverty.
37
Citations are usually in-text and are different from the Footnotes and Endnotes; the former are placed at the
bottom of the page while the latter are placed at the end of the document.
48
A.2. Citing two or three ▪ The aid architecture has changed fundamentally since the
authors aid landscape now includes new players (Fengler &
Kharas, 2010).
▪ Recent research indicates that the extent of poverty has
decreased substantially over the last decade (Nayab, Khan
and Siddique, 2016).
A.3. Citing four or more If the source has four or more authors, the abbreviation ‘et al.’
authors should be used after the first author’s surname. This can also be
used in the case of use three authors.
▪ Acharya et al. (2006) used the OECD-DAC data on net
official development assistance to measure aid
proliferation.
▪ Civil service reform is crucial for improving the public
sector capacity and performance in Pakistan (Haque, et al.,
2007).
A.4. Citing group authors ▪ EAD (2020) used the State Bank of Pakistan data on
project loans and grants to measure debt sustainability.
▪ The State Bank of Pakistan published the data on project
loans and grants to measure debt sustainability (EAD,
2020)
A.5. Citing more than one ▪ Policy network theory provides theoretical groundings to
work by the same explore how actors interact and exchange resources to
author(s) in same year achieve broader network objectives (Khan, 2016a; Khan
2016b).
A.6. Citing more than one ▪ The aid literature has rarely considered the policy process
work by the same and the influence of complex networks on managing
author(s) in different decisions in an aid recipient country (Khan, 2016; Khan
years 2017).
A.7. Citing short quotation You should add double quotation marks (“) and page number if
(fewer than 40 words) you quote directly from a published work, paraphrase specific
ideas or explanations, or use a media file in your own work
such as image, illustration, diagram, table, photograph or
figure from a source.
▪ Mavrotas (2010, p. 4) states “In the early 1990s, following
the collapse of the Soviet Union and the end of the Cold
War, many observers predicted an end of history for aid.”
▪ “In the early 1990s, following the collapse of the Soviet
Union and the end of the Cold War, many observers
predicted an end of history for aid” (Mavrotas, 2010, p. 4).
49
▪ A low tax-to-GDP in Pakistan was also noted and

highlighted by the International Development Committee
(IDC, 2010) of the House of Commons in their Tenth
Report of Session 2012-13:
“If the Pakistan Government is unwilling to take action to
increase its revenues and improve services for its people, it
cannot expect the British people to do so in the long run.”
(p. 43)
NOTE: when citing a single page, use ‘p.’ For a range of
pages, use ‘pp’, for example: ‘p.7’ or ‘pp.20-29.’ If the page
numbers are in Roman numerals, do not include ‘p.’, for
example: (Asim, 1998, iv).
A.8. Citing long quotation Specific editing is required for long quotation. The long direct
(40 or more words) quote must be presented in a double-spaced, indented block
(with no quotation marks). Example:
Other studies provide evidences of positive social
responsiveness: A rich paradigm in developmental
psychology is based on the stranger reaction. The
children diagnosed with autism between two and five
years old were compared with non-autistic children of the
same age. In view of the general belief of the inability of
autistic children to form attachments, they were surprised
to find no differences in the behaviour of both groups
with strangers. (Frith, 2001, p. 146).
A.9. Citing from works with To cite a piece of work which does not have an obvious author,
missing information: mostly happens in the case of government policy and/or other
author and/or date official documents, you should use a ‘corporate’ author (name
of the organisation) or use ‘Anon’ for anonymous author.
▪ In Pakistan the tax-to-GDP ratio is very low: it varied
between 8.5 and 9.5 percent during 2008-2009 to 2013-
2014 (Economic Survey of Pakistan, 2013-2014).
▪ A study by the World Bank (2012) notes that Pakistan’s
tax-to-GDP ratio was one of the lowest globally, primarily
due to an inefficient tax administration, complex and
obsolete legislation, and a non-transparent tax system.
To cite a piece of work which does not have an obvious date
(year), simply write “n.d.” for no date. For example, Khan
(n.d.)
50
V-B. Managing Referencing Manually (APA Style)
A reference list is a list of citations used in the body of your work. A reference list should be organised
alphabetically by the surname of the author(s)/editor(s).
To develop a list of references, you need different bits of information about each work used in your
research work. These bits of information are called ‘references’. For all types of references, you need
to start with author(s)/ editor(s) name, date of publication, and title of the work used/consulted.
Depending on the type of material, you will also need more information such as: journal title, journal
issue and volume number, page numbers, report number, title of report or conference proceeding, book
or conference title, book editor, publisher, place of publication, website address, date of access, etc.
The reference list must be inclusive showing all the reference materials listed alphabetically in one list,
NOT in separate lists according to source type. If you have to reference more than one piece of work
by the same author(s), arrange sources in date order, beginning with the most recently published work.
The reference list should be on a new page (at the end of the document) after the main text of the report.
All lines following the first line of each reference should be indented 0.5 inch from the left-hand side
of the page. For the main text, use 12pt and Times New Roman Font throughout the whole document.
Illustration of APA Reference Style
Proper referencing is an important part of your research work. To develop a reference list, you are
required to adopt the following rules using APA Style:
STYLE CITATION REFERENCE

Book & ebook with DOI (Ewert et al., 2014) Ewert, E. W., Mitten, D. S., & Overholt, J. R.
or (2014). Natural environments and human health.
According to Ewert et al. CAB International.
(2014) https://doi.org/10.1079/9781845939199.0000
Book & ebook without (Foxall, 2018) Foxall, G. R. (2018). Context and cognition in
DOI, ebook without DOI or consumer psychology: How perception and
from research databases According to Foxall (2018) emotion guide action. Routledge.
Article with DOI from (Washington, 2014) Washington, E. T. (2014). An overview of
research databases or cyberbully in higher education. Adult Learning,
Washington (2014) stated 26(1), 21–27.
that https://doi.org/10.1177/1045159514558412
Article without DOI: (Moody, 2019) Moody, M. S. (2019). If instructional coaching
From research databases, or really works, why isn't it working? Educational
or From a Print journal Moody (2019) Leadership, 77(3), 30–35.
Open access journal (Dayton, 2019) Dayton, K. J. (2019). Tangled arms: Modernizing
article without DOI or and unifying the arm-of-the-state doctrine. The
Dayton (2019) University of Chicago Law Review, 86(6), 1497–
1737. https://bit.ly/2SkWwcy
Webpage, no date, (Athletics New Zealand, Athletics New Zealand. (n.d.). Form a new club.
n.d.) http://www.athletics.org.nz/Clubs/Starting-a-New-
or Club
51

Athletics New Zealand
(n.d.)
Webpage, with a date (Monaghan, 2019) Monaghan, E. (2019, December 10). 5 reasons
or modern slavery at sea is still possible in 2019.
Monaghan (2019) Greenpeace. https://bit.ly/2PIXjqc
YouTube video or other (MSNBC, 2020) MSNBC. (2020, January 7). Julián Castro
streaming video or endorses Elizabeth Warren [Video]. YouTube.
MSNBC (2020) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Uk2Tzc8H5po
Conference paper ….act of curation works Mason, I., & Missingham, R. (2019, October 21–
with unique set of factors 25). Research libraries, data curation, and
(Mason & Missingham, workflows [Paper presentation]. eResearch
2019) Australasia Conference, Brisbane, QLD,
or Australia. https://bit.ly/2RGcFdn
… according to Mason and
Missingham (2019) After the title, include a label in square brackets
that matches the description of the presentation
e.g. [paper presentation]. Create a short URL using
https://bitly.com
One author ….(Pilger, 2006) Pilger, J. (2006). Freedom next time. Bantam.
or
Pilger (2006) stated that …
Two authors (Shaw & Eichbaum, 2008) Shaw, R., & Eichbaum, C. (2008). Public policy in
or New Zealand: Institutions, processes and
Shaw and Eichbaum (2008) outcomes. Pearson Education.
…
3 or more authors, up to (Watson et al., 2019) Watson, S., Gunasekaran, G., Gedye, M., van Roy,
20 authors. or Y., Ross, M., Longdin, L., & Brown, L. (2003).
Watson et al. (2019) stated Law of business organisations (4th ed.). Palatine
that … List the first author Press.
followed by et al.
List all authors up to and including 20. The last
author’s surname is preceded by an ampersand
(&).
21 or more authors (Loannidis et al., 2016) Loannidis, N. M., Rothstein, J. H., Pejaver, V.,
or Middha, S., McDonnell, S., Baheti, S. Musolf, A.,
Loannidis et al. (2016) Li, Q., Holzinger, E., Karyadi, D., Cannon-
stated …. List the first Albright, L., Teerlink, C. C., Stanford, J. L.,
author followed by et al. Isaacs, W. B., Xu, J.,Cooney, K., Lange, E.,
Schleutker, J., Carpten, J. D., … Weiver, S.
(2016). Revel: An ensemble method for predicting
the pathogenicity of rare missense variants.
American Journal of Human Genetics, 99(4), 877–
885. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ajhg.2016.08.016
List the first 19 authors, then insert three dots

(ellipsis …) and add the last author’s name
Group (corporate) author First citation: (New New Zealand Health Information Service. (2003).
with abbreviation Zealand Health Information Report on maternity: Maternal and new-born
Service [NZHIS], 2003).
52

inequalities in Aotearoa New Zealand. Otago
Subsequent: (NZHIS, 2003) University Press.
… Use the full name
throughout in your in-text Do not include an abbreviation for a group author
references if there is no in a reference list entry.
formal abbreviation of the
group author.
Author in secondary … showed in the study Coltheart, M., Curtis, B. Atkins, P., & Haller, M.
citations (Seidenberg & McClelland, (1993). Models of reading aloud: Dual-route and
1990, as cited in Coltheart parallel-distributed-processing approaches.
et al., 1993) Psychological Review, 100, 589–608.
or
Seidenberg and McClelland Enter the reference list for the source you have
(1990, as cited in Coltheart read (secondary source).
et al., 1993) showed …
Include the original work
and the date, and the
citation for the source where
you found the information.
V-C. Manage Citations & References Digitally (using MS Word)
Managing sources using MS Word is a modern and convenient way to insert citations and produce
references list.38 To manage your sources in MS Word, follow the instructions given below:39
Add a Citation (using MS Word)
1. On the References tab, in the Citations & Bibliography group, click the arrow next to Style.
2. Click the (recommended) style that you want to use for the citation.40
3. Click at the end of the sentence (in text) that you want to cite.
38
Visit this link for more detailed instructions: https://support.office.com/en-us/article/apa-mla-chicago-
%E2%80%93-automatically-format-bibliographies-405c207c-7070-42fa-91e7-
eaf064b14dbb#ID0EAABAAA=Newer_versions [Accessed on 2nd August 2019]
39
Instructions are available on MS Office Support website for both newer, older and web versions.
40
Available style options include APA, MLA, Chicago, Harvard, Turabian etc. Select the one which is
recommended by your faculty, i.e., APA Style!
53
4. Click Insert Citation and then select Add New Source.
5. In the Create Source box, type in the citation details, and then click OK. Remember to fill in
complete details of the source by checking the box ‘Show All Bibliography Fields’.
When you have completed these steps, a citation is added to the list of available citations. The next time
you need this reference, you don't have to insert all details of the source again, just click Insert Citation
and select the citation from the list you want to use. Repeat this from step 1-5 for all new sources to
manage your list of sources. You can always edit/update and/or delete your sources.
Add Reference List (using MS Word)
With cited sources in your document, you can

create a list of references anytime. To
automatically generate the Reference list using
MS Word, do the following:
1. Click the place in the document where
you want to insert a bibliography.
Usually, it is at the end of a document.
2. On the References tab, in the Citations
& Bibliography group, click
Bibliography and choose a format or
simply click References.
54
ANNEX VI: AVOIDING PLAGIARISM
Plagiarism is an intellectual theft! You cannot simply copy-paste published material (ideas and
thoughts of another author) into your piece of work without acknowledging it properly. So, it is essential
that you do not just copy-paste anything. Either you write it in your own words, or you cite and reference
the material used accordingly (Khan, 2022). In research, plagiarism is a common (and often
misunderstood) problem that is often the result of a lack of knowledge and skills.
It is also important to understand the difference between ‘Plagiarism’ and ‘Similarity Index’. Plagiarism
refers to the use of ideas/work of another author without referring (citing) and presenting that in a way
that these ideas/work are your own. This is a serious crime under intellectual property rights. All sources
used should be cited/referenced properly in your work. In this context, Plagiarism is never allowed even
1%. Whereas, the Similarity Index means similarities in text, which you have produced, to other
material in the database. This may vary according to the standards required by different entities. For
instance, most research journals and universities accept similarity of 15% or lower similarity.
To understand ‘what is plagiarism’ and ‘how to avoid it in your research’, participants are recommended
to visit and explore the following websites:
▪ The Little Book of Plagiarism: What It Is and How to Avoid It
http://hec.gov.pk/english/services/faculty/Documents/Plagiarism/Little%20Book%20of%20Plagia
rism.pdf [Accessed on 14th October 2022].
▪ Higher Education Plagiarism Policy
http://hec.gov.pk/english/services/faculty/Documents/Plagiarism/Plagiarism%20Policy.pdf
[Accessed on 14th October 2022].
At the National School of Public Policy, participants are strongly recommended to avoid plagiarism at
all costs! Plagiarism is an intellectual theft, and there are penalties and disciplinary action(s) for it –
against the individual found guilty of the offence. It is therefore suggested that you must cite and
reference the material properly in all research products such as Individual Research Paper, Current Issue
Presentation (Write Up and Presentation), Case Study Research Report, Simulation Exercise Report
etc.
For any further guidance on the topic, please consult your Syndicate DS and/or DS (T&C).
55
ANNEX VII: ESSENTIALS OF A GOOD QUALITY RESEARCH

To qualify as good policy research, the research process must have certain standards and characteristics
to be followed. Some characteristics of a good quality research are listed below:
CLARITY A research work must be free of ambiguities and should have clarity
in all aspects. In simple words, the research problem should be well-
formulated, and the purpose of study should be clear enough. It is one
of the main essences of research, without which all efforts are useless.
USEFULNESS A good research should have some practical relevance (or linkage) to
the existing debate and/or public policy problem. Identifying what
exactly the research is about and what impact/contribution it could
make are critical to its usefulness.
Researchers are therefore suggested to clearly state the research
problem and spell-out how in practice they expect their research work
to contribute towards a problem-solving situation.
USE OF DATA/ Collection and use of primary/secondary data and information are key
INFORMATION inputs to research and analysis. Researchers are suggested to clearly
cite sources and specify methods of data-collection and indicate
limitations in the quality of available data. Secondary sources such as
official statistics and/or existing public policy debate may be used to
build the research argument and formulate the scope.
RESEARCH ETHICS Principles of research ethics ask that researchers should avoid
harming participants involved in the research process by treating all
equally and respecting and taking into account their values and
decisions (Flick, 2009). Following ethical considerations must be kept
in mind during research process:
▪ HONESTY: Honestly report data, results, methods and
procedures, and publication status. Do not fabricate, falsify,
or misrepresent data.
▪ OBJECTIVITY: Strive to avoid bias in research design, data
analysis, data interpretation, peer review, personnel decisions,
and other aspects of research.
▪ CAREFULNESS: Avoid careless errors and negligence;
carefully and critically examine your own work and the work
of your peers. Keep good records of research activities.
▪ OPENNESS: Share data, results, ideas, tools, resources. Be
open to criticism, feedback and new ideas.
▪ RESPECT FOR INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY: Honour
copyrights and other forms of intellectual property. Do not
use unpublished data, methods, or results without permission.
56
Give credit (cite the source) where credit is due. Never

plagiarise!
▪ RESPONSIBLE PUBLICATION: Publish in order to
advance research and scholarship, not to advance just your
own career. Avoid wasteful and duplicative publication.
▪ HUMAN SUBJECTS PROTECTION: When conducting
research on human subjects, minimise harms and risks and
maximise benefits; respect human dignity, privacy, and
autonomy.
▪ RESPECT: Respect the opinions of your colleagues and
research participants, and treat them fairly. Be respectful
towards their views knowing that those are subject to their
own experiences and perceptions.
In addition to the above, researchers are suggested to take every care
to ensure respondents’ confidentiality and anonymity of individuals
and their institutional affiliations. CONFIDENTIALITY is an active
attempt to remove from the research records any elements that might
indicate the subject’s identities, while ANONYMITY means that the
subjects remain nameless. In the former case, protect confidential
communications, such as personnel records, government/military
secrets, and official (classified) records.
NOTE: As part of the requirement, participants may be asked to list
the name/designation/organisation of respondents who took part in
research activities such as CSR and Simulation Exercise.
CONCLUSION & A good research must implicate the key messages (what went wrong,
POLICY why and how) in the ‘conclusion’ section and articulate ‘policy
RECOMMENDATIONS recommendations’ (what should be done and how) in a way that do
not require too much further interpretation. These should be expressed
in a rather simpler language and related to the audience's known
concerns. Policy recommendations should not be a wish-list, rather
actionable steps that should also highlight the implications.
57

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RESEARCH GUIDE

for MCMC & SMC

National School of Public Policy

No part of this document may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, distributed, or

National School of Public Policy, Lahore

1.1. RESEARCH IN POLICY AND PRACTICE ................................................................................ 1

2.1. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH ............................................................. 4

3.1. PLANNING RESEARCH ............................................................................................................... 9

A.2. Review of the Literature ....................................................................................... 10

A.3. Research Scope ......................................................................................................... 11

3.2. RESEARCH DESIGN .................................................................................................................... 15

B.2. Choose Sampling Technique ............................................................................... 16

B.3. Select Method of Data Collection ....................................................................... 17

B.4. Select Data Analysis Method ............................................................................... 18

B.5. Managing Time and Resources .......................................................................... 19

3.3. DATA COLLECTION ................................................................................................................... 19

C.2. Primary Data Collection ........................................................................................ 20

3.4. DATA ANALYSIS .......................................................................................................................... 24

D.2. Primary Data Analysis ........................................................................................... 25

3.5. WRITING RESEARCH ................................................................................................................ 26

RECOMMENDED READINGS & ONLINE SOURCES ..................................................................... 28

LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES

Table 1: Contrasts between quantitative and qualitative research ........................................... 4

Figure 1: Stages and steps involved in a research process ........................................................... 3

APA Style American Psychological Association Style

Research is a systematic collection, analysis, and presentation of information in order to

1.1. RESEARCH IN POLICY AND PRACTICE

Figure 1: Research-policy gap

Source: Khan (2022)

1.2. THE RESEARCH PROCESS

Figure 1: Stages and steps involved in a research process

Source: Khan (2022)

PART II: RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

2.1. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

Table 1: Contrasts between quantitative and qualitative research

Quantitative research aims to test pre-determined hypotheses and produce generalisable

Figure 2: Mixed methods approach

2.2. CASE STUDY RESEARCH

semi-structured or unstructured interviews, participants observations, focus group discussion,

PART III: PLANNING AND CONDUCTING RESEARCH

3.1. PLANNING RESEARCH

A.1. Research Idea

A.2. Review of the Literature

▪ You must know what is already known about the topic.

A.3. Research Scope

▪ Set objective of your research

✓ To examine the utility of Metro Bus System in female mobility in Islamabad-

▪ Is the problem likely to continue?

▪ Understand the nature and scale of the problem.

A research question is an explicit statement of purpose indicating what it is the researcher

3.2. RESEARCH DESIGN

Figure 3: Contents of a research design

Source: Khan (2022)

B.1. Adopt Research Method

B.2. Choose Sampling Technique

Sampling techniques in quantitative research primarily involve random selection (or

B.3. Select Method of Data Collection

▪ Date of publication: should not be too old, otherwise lack relevance

B.4. Select Data Analysis Method