RESEARCH

Research is an intensive and purposeful search for knowledge and understanding of social
and physical phenomena. It is a method for the discovery of true values in a scientific way.
Research may be defined as the application of the scientific method in the study of problems.
At times, the terms research and scientific method are used interchangeably.
According to Random Dictionary of English Language “Research as a diligent and systematic
enquiry or investigation into a subject in order to discover or revise facts, theories,
application etc”. Research is an activity undertaken to establish facts or principles in a
scientific way.
SOCIAL RESEARCH
Social research may be defined as a scientific undertaking by means of logical and
systematized techniques. Social research consists of the process of formulating and seeking
answers to questions about the social world. Social research is fundamentally a scientific
enterprise aims to:
 Discover new facts or verify and test old facts;
 Analyze their sequences, inter-relationships and causal explanations which are
derived with an appropriate theoretical frame of reference;
 Develop new scientific tools and theories which would facilitate reliable and valid
study of human behavior.
OBJECTIVES OF SOCIAL RESEARCH
1) Development of knowledge
2) Scientific study of social life.
3) Welfare of humanity
4) Classification of facts
5) Social control and prediction
CHARATERISTICS OF RESEARCH
1) Research is directed towards the problem.
2) Research emphasizes the dent of generalizations, principles or theories that will be
helpful in predicting future occurrences.
3) Research is based upon observable experiences or empirical evidence.
4) Research demands accurate observation and description.
5) Research involves gathering new data from primary or first hand sources or using
existing data for a new purpose.
6) Although research activity may at times be somewhat random and unsystematic, it is
more often characterized by carefully designed procedures, always applying rigorous
analysis.
7) Research requires expertise.
8) Research strikes to be objective and logical applying every possible test to validate
the procedures employed, the data collected and the conclusion reached.
9) Research involves the quest for answers to unsolved problems.
10) Research is characterized by patient and unhurried activity.
 11) Research is carefully recorded and reported.
SIGNIFICANCE OF SOCIAL RESEARCH
1) It inculcates scientific and inductive thinking.
2) It provides new ideas and insights.
3) It promotes the development of logical habits of thinking and organization.
4) It evaluates existing policies and helps to formulate new policies.
5) It solves various operational problems related to economy, politics, business and
Government.
6) It studies social relationships and helps to solve various social problems.
7) It helps to improve the level of living in the society
STEPS IN SOCIAL RESEARCH
1) Selection of the problem
2) Study of research literature
3) Formulating the problem
4) Research design
5) Formulating the hypothesis
6) Selecting the sample
7) Collection of data
8) Methods and tool for data collection
9) Analysis of data
10) Interpretation and generalizations

LITERATURE SURVEY AND EXPERIENCIAL SURVEY

The process of focusing a research question requires a knowledge of the field, an
understanding of previous research, an awareness of research gaps and knowledge of how
other research in the area has been conducted.
The literature review is a major component of the research. It is an analysis of relevant
publications that help set the context for and define the research topic. The literature review
starts with the selection of a problem for research continues Through the various stages of the
research process and ends with report writing. The task of locating previous research on a
topic has been made much simpler and faster with widespread access to the internet and the
availability of electronic data bases, electronic journals, online journals and sophisticated
search engines. The internet is useful in providing access to many types of information.
NEED TO SURVEY LITERATURE
1) The main purpose of the survey of literature is to indicate the problems that are
already investigated and those that need further investigation.
2) A critical reading of relevant literature becomes indispensable not only in locating the
research problem but also in analyzing the procedure. Ideas are generated only
through this process of reading and re-reading he works done in the chosen field.
 3) A high degree of reading ability contributes to comprehension of facts which are
useful in a consideration of the problem taken up for the study.
4) This would help the researcher to know how the same are conducted, the
methodology employed, issues covered and prescriptions suggested.
5) In order to gain maximum benefit out of this exercise of surveying the literature one
has to consider the following points: i) Reading relevant literature
ii) Reforming original works
iii) Reading with comprehension
iv) Reading in time
v) Indexing the literature
Reviews require a critical understanding of the literature that demonstrates the higher order
intellectual skills of analyzing, evaluating and creating. Use both internet and library if
possible. Be selective about information on the internet by using only formally published
material. Abstracting is a key intellectual skill for analysis and synthesis of key concepts. Set
up the word processing package or word processer in a common format for all assignments
Avoid plagiarism that is plagiarism is cheating, as is coping research papers from the internet.
Academics take intellectual honesty very seriously indeed. Give due acknowledgement by
coping material from other scholarly work with citation.
Academic experience like classroom lectures, discussions seminar discussions and out –of-
class exchanges of ideas with fellow students, scholars, experts and professors will provide
many stimulating ideas to be studied. Daily experiences, Field visits, internship training and
extension work will also provide exposure to practical problems which call for study and
such experiences help the investigator to develop new ideas about a problem.

OBJECTIVITY AND SUBJECTIVITY IN SOCIAL SCIENCE RESEARCH

Objectivity in Social Research
Objectivity is always based on the reality of the social phenomenon without any based
judgments. Although social research concentrates on social facts which have influenced the
human mind. All social scientists are part of human society and their perception regarding
any social phenomena is bound to be subjective in nature and tinted by researchers’ own
experience. The following discussion gives an explanation of the major problems or
difficulties of objectivity in social research;
1. Objectivity represents the reality of individual perception from the external
perspective. An objectivist approach taken by the Marxists, functionalists, or critical
theorists who adopted an external or transcendent viewpoint indicates the actor’s
personal or individual experience. So it is found that for objectivists neutral, external,
scientific, observers are the only ones who have access to reality whereas the
members of society are restricted to appearances.
2. The subject matter of social science research is too complex. All propositions are
limited to particular social groups and contexts. Thus objectivity is a major issue in
social science research where subjectivity is always.
 3. All members of the society have different values, social researchers will
unconsciously influence their values.
4. Social scientist fails to achieve objectivity because the respondents are human beings
have certain human problems, for example, refusal of the respondent, improper
understanding, reluctance, etc. All these problems cause biases and invalidate the
research findings and conclusions.
5. The difficulties of objectivity in social inquiries are attributed to the fact that the
researcher is a social being and is also actively participating in socio-legal affairs. In
answering this objection, we may say that the biologist is himself an organism and a
physicist also a body of given mass, interacting with other organisms and bodies. If
objectivity is not achieved in legal studies with the above objection, similar is the case
with other sciences also.
6. The failure of the researcher lacking in detachment from his social environment
generally points to the special potency of interests and emotions which are centred on
their interrelationship with other people. In this regard, one should not forget that
potent interests and emotions do not inevitably give rise to bias. They do so where
satisfaction is gained by our escaping from difficulties rather than by overcoming.
7. The future of the researcher’s lacking objectives is attributed to social prejudice and
custom-based beliefs. Considering carefully, it may be said that social prejudice does
sometimes pay and deliver social good. The custom-based beliefs generally contribute
to social stability. It is this that makes them less susceptible to challenge.

FACTORS AFFECTING OBJECTIVITY

It is very difficult to achieve objectivity in social science research. This difficulty arises out of
the adverse influences of (a) personal prejudices and bias, (b) value judgment, (c) ethical
dilemma, and (d) complexity of social phenomena.
0. Personal prejudices and biases: Prejudices and biases are like fantasies to believe what
is comforting to believe. It makes to believe something without considering the evidence. The
subjective bias in research is a result of adverse influences of personal motives, customs, and
social situations. The sources of bias are selfishness, over-ambition, friendship, relationship,
caste and community, class, religion, location, nationalism, language, political affinity,
profession, opportunism, sexual bias, business, careerism, group bias, temperament bias,
power bias, personal bias, pessimism, optimism, fanaticism, and militancy. Guarding against
such biases becomes a matter of perpetual vigilance for a true researcher.
0. Value Judgment: Value related problems arise from the social context within which
research occurs. A researcher’s attitudes towards socio-economic issues are influenced by his
values. The objective observer must strive at self-elimination in his judgments and provide an
argument that is as true for each individual mind as his own. He has to overcome his
subjective judgment. But all persons living in a society are bound to have a set of values.
0. Ethical dilemma: Research relation with other aspects of research creates ethical
problems. E.g. Relation with sponsors, relation with source data, relation with the research
subject, etc,. d. the complexity of social phenomena: Social phenomena are too complex for
easy comprehension and too vast to have the prescribed knowledge.
Achieving objectivity of an instrument or study principally requires standardization of the
ways in which data are collected, analyzed, and interpreted. This will exclude the subjective
or individual influences of the researcher or the concrete situation in which data were
collected. In the light of the above reasons, it can be said that obtaining or maintaining
objectivity in social science research is not impossible but is difficult. At any stage in
research personal motives, social situations, irrational faith, etc. would always influence the
researchers.
SUBJECTIVITY
Subjectivity of the researcher is intimately involved in scientific research. Subjectivity guides
everything from the choice of topic that one studies, to formulating hypotheses, to selecting
methodologies, and interpreting data. In qualitative methodology, the researcher is
encouraged to reflect on the values and objectives that bring to the research and how these
affect the research project. Other researchers are also encouraged to reflect on the values that
any particular investigator utilizes.
Subjectivity from a subject’s point of view is usually opposed to objectivity. The most value-
neutral definition of Subjectivity would be that it is the thoughts, feelings, beliefs, and desires
that comprise a person’s self-identity. However, in a traditional scientific discourse,
subjectivity is often presented as the polar opposite of objectivity.
Subjectivity’s role in relation to the sociological approach is crucial. Subjectivity is a
commonly used concept that has taken on a variety of meanings. The inner state of the self-
constituted by thought, experience, sentiment, belief, intentionality, self-knowledge, and the
awareness of others, is the most value-neutral concept.
Subjectivity in social research
The problem of subjectivity in social theory arises when one wants to give a central place to
actors’ understandings and motives in the concrete situations in which they act while seeking
to describe and explain social phenomena in terms of fixed categories specified in a
theoretical framework. The challenge then is to represent the actors’ subjective views within
those categories in a way which preserves that centrality. Although the problem appears in
many forms of theorizing, it is especially urgent when theoretical concepts are proposed as
universal, holding irrespective of time and place. Subjectivist approaches on the other hand
place their emphasis on the person, as they value individual experiences and aim to uncover
the meaning behind these actions.
Subjectivity is generally conceptualized as the way research is influenced by the perspectives,
values, social experiences, and viewpoints of the researcher. Traditional scientific discourse
equates subjectivity with personal biases because, according to its empirical orientation,
direct or indirect influence of the researcher on the collection, handling, interpretation, and
reporting of data invalidates the research findings. For this reason, research reports from a
scientific orientation make a claim to objectivity, a principle is drawn from postpositivism
that researchers should make every attempt to remain distanced from the phenomenon under
investigation.
It can be therefore said that obtaining or maintaining objectivity in social science research is
not impossible but it is difficult. At any stage in research personal motives, social situations,
irrational faith, etc. would always influence the researchers and subjectivity would crop in.
So, it is essential for researcher to maintain and follow the research methodology
scientifically in the research investigations.

HYPOTHESIS
Hypothesis is usually considered as the principal instrument in research. Its main function is
to suggest new experiments and observations.
Once the selection, formulation and definition of the problem have been accomplished, the
derivation of hypotheses is the most important step in the research process. It is usually
considered as the principal instrument in research.
“A hypothesis is a tentative statement of the relationship between two or more
variables.”
“A proposition which can be put to test to determinate validity” -Goode and Hatt
The hypothesis is a powerful tool in research process to achieve dependable knowledge. It
helps the researcher to relate theory to observation and observation to theory.

IMPORTANCE OF THE HYPOTHESES

 Hypotheses facilitate the extension of knowledge in an area
 Hypothesis provides the researcher with rational statements
 Hypothesis provides direction o the research
 Hypothesis provide basis for exporting the conclusions for the study

CHARACTERISTICS OF HYPOTHESES
 Hypotheses should be clearly ad precisely stated.
 Hypotheses should be empirically testable
 Hypotheses should state the expected relationship between variables
 Hypotheses should be limited on scope
 Hypotheses should be stated as far as possible in simple terms.
 The hypotheses selected should be amenable to testing within a reasonable time
 It should be simple and to the point

TYPES OF HYPOTHESES
 Descriptive hypothesis: It describes the characteristics of a variable.
 Relational hypothesis: It describes the relationship between the variables.
  Casual hypothesis: It describes the causal relationship between the variables.
 Working hypothesis: Hypotheses which are subject to modification as the
investigation proceeds.
 Null hypothesis: They state that no difference exists between the parameter and
statistic being compared to it.
 Statistical hypothesis: These are statements about a statistical population. These are
quantitative in nature in that they are numerically measurable.
 Commonsense hypothesis: It represents the commonsense ideas. They state the
existence of empirical uniformities perceived through day to day observation.

THEORY AND FACTS IN SOCIAL RESEARCH

Theory
Research is closely related to theory. Theory provides a conceptual model for research.
Research in turn contributes to theory. It is important to distinguish the modern scientific
usage of the word theory from other meanings the word may have. In common parlance,
theory is frequently identified with speculations, what is theoretical is unrealistic, visionary.
This is a wrong notion; theory is the accumulated stored facts. It may define as a set of
systematically interrelated concepts, definitions and propositions that are advanced to explain
and predict phenomena (facts).
Arnold Rose defines theory as “an integrated body of definitions, assumptions and general
propositions covering a given subject matter from which a comprehensive and consistent set
of specific and testable principles can be deducted logically.”
Fact
The concept fact has several related meanings but all imply a discrete contemporary or
historical existent phenomenon. The word “fact” derives from the Latin factum, and was first
used in English with the same meaning: a thing done or performed a meaning now obsolete.
The common usage of “something that has really occurred or is the case” dates from the
middle of the sixteenth century.
Fact refers to a piece of information that is based on observable and verifiable evidence. In
social research, facts are used to describe or explain social phenomena, human behaviour, or
societal trends. These facts form the foundation for constructing theories, making inferences
and drawing conclusions about various aspects of human society and behaviour. Facts may be
checked by reason, experiment, personal experience, or may be argued from authority.
According to Goode and Hatt, fact is “an empirically verifiable observation.”
Theory and Facts
Theory and facts are interrelated. Facts are empirically verifiable observation and theories
establish relationship between facts and order them in meaningful way. Theory summaries
facts in to empirical generalizations; and it predict facts. Facts in turn, help to initiate
theories; facts lead to the reformulation of an existing theory and modify them.
Relation Between Theory and Facts
The terms fact and theory are words with different meanings. Although both are used in many
different fields of studies, they still manage to have their own distinct definitions that separate
one from the other. One particular field, wherein both terms are commonly used is in science.
In the scientific world, facts (or scientific facts) are observations about the world around us.
For example, it’s bright outside. It can pertain to any objective and real phenomenon may it
be the falling of the ball after being thrown upwards or other simple observable occurrences.
In this regard, the fact is that the ball will fall. More so, if this test is being done repeatedly
under a controlled environment that cancels all unnecessary variables the phenomenon would
have become a very obvious and undeniable fact. It is considered a fact because it will remain
as true even after several centuries unless there is a more rigid and precise way of measuring
a certain phenomenon.
On the contrary, theories in science are likened to the explanations to what has been
observed. For example, when the sun is out, it tends to make it bright outside. It is relatively
greater in weight to what a hypothesis is. If a hypothesis (an intelligent guess) is the first base
of formulating a scientific law, then theories are placed at the second base. These are the
statements that are assumed to be true (because they seem so) even if there are no hundred
percent concrete evidence. Nevertheless, theories are always presented to be true even if the
claims in the said theories are mere speculations or a general agreement between a significant
number of experts. Moreover, theories are the statements that often undergo a series of tests
to nullify the claims made by those who propose them.
A good example between fact and theory is when a report will state that a certain cyclone
killed thousands in a particular state in India because of the reckless mass evacuation
spearheaded by the local officials. In this aspect, the fact is that many were killed by the
cyclone while the theory is the reason behind the death of these people. Was it only because
of the haphazard evacuation plan or was it also because of the intensity of the cyclone among
many other reasons? Hence, facts are really the real deal while theories are still unclear
although presumed to be true.
Role of Theory in Research
Theory helps research in several useful ways. Following are the major contributions of theory
to research.
1. Theory as Orientation: A theoretical system provides a focused orientation within a field,
narrowing down the range of facts to study. It guides the selection of pertinent facts for
examination, making the subject manageable and abstract from reality.
2. Theory as Conceptualization and Classification: Science is organized by a structure of
concepts, which are used to study major processes and objects. These terms form the “facts of
science” and change as the science develops. To organize knowledge, a system must be
imposed upon observable facts. Sociology has developed elaborate conceptual schemata,
focusing on important phenomena like invasion, succession, marginal man, status, role, class
system, socialization, mobility, and social distance.
3. Theory provides conceptual model: Theory provides a conceptual framework for a study. It
helps a researcher to develop conceptual structure for the proper formulation of the selected
problems.
4. Theory summarizes: Theory summarizes what is already known about the object of study.
From time to time in any science there will be changes in the structure of relationship
between propositions. In each area, scientist move from older systems of theory towards a
more acceptable new system.
5. Theory states universal law: Theory states a general uniformity beyond the immediate
observation. For example, a person sitting under mango tree, observe mangoes falling on
ground. But beyond this observation there is a general law of gravitation.
6. Theory Prediction Facts: Theory helps to predict further facts. For example, we may
observe low birth rate in modern societies. From this, we can predict that if modern way of
life is introduced into a traditional rural or tribal community, its birth rate would decline.
7. Theory fills gap in knowledge: Theory also points to areas which have not been explored.
The gaps in knowledge are brought to light through the questions arising out of theory.
Thus, from the above discussion, theory is a framework for observation and understanding,
shaping our perceptions and understanding. It links abstract and concrete phenomena,
explains and predicts variable relationships, and organizes knowledge about the world. It
guides research and organizes ideas, allowing researchers to make connections between
abstract and concrete concepts.