Communication

for Academic
Purposes:
Research Writing
Definition of
Research
WHY DO WE HAVE TO
RESEARCH?
• People create new things,
new ways to make their
workload more
convenient. Not that these
people want an easy way-
out of life, they just want
to make life easier.
 Research is a way of finding out answers
HOW DID THEY to questions using the art of scientific
CREATE THEIR investigation (Mackey & Gass, 2005;
Khotari, 2004)
INVENTIONS? WHAT
DID IT TAKE THEM
Research contributes to a body of
TO DEVELOP THEIR knowledge that follows the scientific
INVENTIONS THAT method.
MAKE OUR DAILY
ROUTINES AND
CHORES MORE Scientific method means to investigate a
CONVENIENT? problem or phenomenon with the aim
of finding an appropriate solution.
VALUES OF RESEARCH
1. Research is a scientific approach to solve
problems.
2. Research offers accurate answers to crucial
questions or problems.
3. Research allows us to explore the unexplored
aspects of life.
4. Research is a means to verify/validate theories.
5. Research offers opportunities to formulate new
theories/principles.
CHOOSE ONE
VALUE OF
RESEARCH • COVID 19 Pandemic
THAT CAN BE • Campaign against single-use
BEST APPLIED plastic
• Electric cars
TO THE
FOLLOWING.
JUSTIFY.
RESEARCH STUDY
AND ITS RATIONALE
What is a research study?

Is a scientific means of examining the characteristics of variables to further our

understanding of a particular subject or topic (Bayot & Tenny, 2018)

Deciding on the objectives of the study.

Many (1992) states that a research study Planning the collection of the data
can be thought of as consisting of 5 Collecting the data
stages: Analyzing the data
Writing the research report
HOW WILL •a “studious inquiry or
WE KNOW examination especially an
investigation or
THAT WE experimentation aimed at the
ARE discovery and interpretation of
TREADING facts”, we immerse ourselves in
THE RIGHT a situation that requires us to
PATH? do a series of tasks in order to
attain the objective.
 Is a topic or area for which missing or insufficient
information limits the ability to reach a conclusion
for a question (Robinson, Saldanha, & McKoy, 2011)

RESEARCH basically the thing in question that you would like

GAP to know about and to answer.

In finding the research gap, you need to identify the

area of interest you would like to focus on.
EXAMPLE:
• Milly’s work recognized the importance of storage capacity
of the root zone in controlling evapotranspiration and has
the potential for assessing the catchment-scale response of
vegetation changes. However, the practical application of
this model is limited because of the complex numerical
solutions required. The purpose of this paper is to quantify
the long-term impact of vegetation changes on mean
annual evapotranspiration at catchment scales based on
data and parameters that are easily measurable at a
regional scale. (Adapted from Zhand, Dawes, and Walker, 2001)
 Information you give to your reader about the reason for your
research.

a brief explanation about the importance of your research

topic,

RATIONALE May state the significant contribution that your research study
may offer to the list of existing research studies.

Is a set of reasons offered by a researcher for conducting

research in a particular subject (Writing for Research
Rationale/Proposal for Research, n.d)

Should include your objectives to conduct the research, the

importance of your topic in your field or interest/specialization
EXAMPLE:
• Milly’s work recognized the importance of storage capacity
of the root zone in controlling evapotranspiration and has
the potential for assessing the catchment-scale response of
vegetation changes. However, the practical application of
this model is limited because of the complex numerical
solutions required. The purpose of this paper is to quantify
the long-term impact of vegetation changes on mean
annual evapotranspiration at catchment scales based on
data and parameters that are easily measurable at a
regional scale. (Adapted from Zhand, Dawes, and Walker, 2001)
GENERAL TYPES OF
RESEARCH METHODS
PURPOSE (McNabb,
2015)
 BASIC RESEARCH

• Pure or fundamental
• Conducted to increase general • EXAMPLE:
knowledge • How did the universe begin?
• is driven by a scientist's curiosity • What are protons, neutrons, and
or interest in a scientific question. electrons composed of?
• Concerned in coming up with • How do slime molds reproduce?
theories about a phenomena and • What is the specific genetic code
explains the reason behind an of the fruit fly?
event that happen the way they
happen.
 APPLIED RESEARCH
• Conducted to help solve practical
problems or to help researchers and • Researchers may investigate ways
political scientists understand past to:
behavior in order to guide them in their • Improve agricultural crop
attempts at predicting future behavior production
• Treat/cure a specific disease
• Developing theories about why • Improve the energy
something happened; causal efficiency of homes, offices,
relationships or modes of transportation
• GOAL: improve human condition
NATURE OF INQUIRY
EXPLORATORY RESEARCH

Used principally to gain a

structured, more flexible
Conducted to resolve in approach and are not
ambiguity conducted to
test/validate any pre-
conceived propositions.

Helps determine the best

Lead to testable research design, data
hypothesis collection method and
selection of subject.
The following
are some • A study into the role of social networking
sites as an effective marketing
examples for communication channel
studies with • An investigation into the ways of
exploratory improvement of quality of customer services
research within hospitality sector in London
design in • An assessment of the role of corporate
business social responsibility on consumer behavior in
pharmaceutical industry in the USA
studies:
 • Provides an accurate
portrayal of characteristics
of a particular individual
situation, or a group.
DESCRIPTIVE • Does not fit neatly into the
RESEARCH definition of either
quantitative or qualitative
research methodologies.
• EXAMPLE:
• Refers to the type or
research question, data, • What is the impact of viral marketing on
consumer behaviour in consumer
and data analysis that will amongst university students in Canada?
be applied to a given topic.
• It deals with everything
that can be counted and
studied, which has an
impact on the lives o
people it deals with.
PROCESS
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

a research dealing with phenomena that are difficult or impossible to

quantify mathematically, such as beliefs, meanings, attributes and
symbols.

Aims to gather an in-depth understanding of human and the reasons

that govern such behavior.

Investigates the why and how of decision making, not just what,
where, and when
• ADVANTAGES • DISADVANTAGES
• Enables more complex aspects • Difficult to determine the
of a persons experience to be validity and reliability of
studied
linguistic data
• Fewer restriction/assumptions
are placed on the data to be • More subjectivity involved
collected in analyzing the data
• Data overload
• Time consuming
 Refers to the systematic empirical
investigation of any phenomena via
statistical, mathematical or
computational techniques.

QUANTITATIVE Objective is to develop and employ

mathematical models, theories,
and/or hypothesis

Generally done using scientific

methods
• ADVANTAGES • DISADVANTAGES
• Allows the researcher to • the context of the study or
measure and analyze data experiment is ignored
• More objective about the • Does not study things in a
findings natural setting or discuss the
• Can be used to test meaning things have for
hypotheses in experiments different people
because of its liability to • A large sample of the
measure data statistics population must be studied for
more accurate results
 Applied or Action Research Fundamental/basic or
AS TO • refers to scientific study and
pure research

OUTCOME, research that seeks to solve

practical problems.
• Driven by a scientist’s
curiosity or interest in a
RESEARCH • Used to find solutions to scientific questions
everyday problems, cure • Main motivation is to expand
CAN BE illness, and develop man’s knowledge, not to
innovative technologies, create or invent something.
CLASSIFIED rather than to acquire • No obvious commercial
knowledge’s sake. value to the discoveries that
INTO: • May investigate way to result from basic research.
improve energy efficiency
of homes, offices,
transportations, and to
treat/cure specific disease
OTHER TYPES OF METHOD
THAT WOULD BE USEFUL
 HISTORICAL RESEARCH

Involving analysis of events that occurred in the remote or

recent past.

Steps involved:
Identification of the
research topic and Report preparation or
Data collection or
formulation of the Evaluation of materials Data synthesis preparation of the
literature review
research problem or narrative exposition
question
 CORRELATIONAL RESEARCH

Refers to the systematic investigation or statistical study or

relationships among two or more variables, without necessarily
determining the cause and effect.

Two ways in conducting this research:

Experiment survey
 GROUNDED THEORY RESEARCH

A research Four stages:

approached designed • Code
to discover what • Concepts
problems are existing • Categories
in a given social • Theory
environment and how
the persons involved
handle them
 Study using inductive descriptive research
approach developed from
phenomenological philosophy

PHENOMENOLOGICAL Aims to describe an experience as it is

RESEARCH actually lived by the person

Concerned with the study of experience

from the perspective of the individual,
bracketing, taken-for-granted assumptions
and usual ways of perceiving.
 • Non-traditional research outputs
that have been produced through
writing, making, composing,
designing, recording, performing or
curating.
CREATIVE • To be assessed as a creative work,
research must involve in new and
WORKS creative ways, included a synthesis
and analysis of previous research to
the extent that it is new and
creative, impact or work on the
discipline.
defined problem