NATURE OF RESEARCH

Research is the systematic investigation and study of materials and sources to establish facts and
reach new conclusions. When you come across studies about events that happen or experiences that you
meet, they shape people’s understanding of the world around them. In various spheres of human life, research
has come up with developing appropriate solutions to improve the individual’s quality of life. Although, it may
take place in different settings and may use different methods, scientific research is universally a systematic
and objective search for reliable knowledge. (Walker, 2010)

Generally, people find it difficult to do research. Many reasons are given for people to find excuse in
doing it. Most often, you are not aware of the benefits derived from conducting research. Some benefits of
conducting research include increasing personal knowledge.

Research is an act of studying something carefully and extensively in order to attain deep knowledge.
When done on a larger scale, research contributes to the welfare of humanity. It can be creative, exploring or
just reassuring in nature

Characteristics of research
1. Accuracy: Research must give factual and exact data which should be correctly and appropriately
documented or acknowledged in the footnotes, notes, and bibliographical entries.
2. Objectivity: Research must deal with facts and NOT with mere opinions arising from assumptions,
predictions, generalizations or conclusions.
3. Timeliness: Research must work on a topic which is fresh, new, and interesting to the present society.
4. Relevance: Research must be instrumental in improving society or solving problems affecting the lives
of people in a community.
5. Clarity: Research must succeed in expressing its central point or discoveries by using simple, direct,
concise, and correct language.
6. Systematic: Research must take place in an organized or orderly manner.
7. Ethical: Research must be geared toward what is advantageous or beneficial rather than what is
detrimental by respecting preferences on matters of confidentiality, independence, or freedom.

Ethics of research
Generally, ethics is considered to deal with beliefs about what is right or wrong, proper or improper,
good or bad. Here are four general ethical principles you have to follow when you conduct research:

1. Respect for persons

o ensures that the choices of autonomous people, people who can responsibly make their own
decisions, are given serious considerations, and that people lacking autonomy, such as young
children or adults with advanced dementia, are entitled to protection
o the source of the moral rules of informed consent and confidentiality
o requires the researcher to protect the confidentiality of the research participant’s personal
information
2. Beneficence
o obliges the researcher NOT to inflict unnecessary harm and, where possible, to promote the
good of the research participant
3. Justice
o the ethical obligation to distribute the benefits and burdens of research fairly
o requires the researcher to ensure that the means used to select the research participants are
equitable
o means that the researcher must neither exploit the vulnerable, nor exclude without good reason
those who stand to benefit from study participation

4. Respect for communities

 o means that the researcher really must respect communal values, protect and empower
communities, and, where applicable, abide by the decisions of legitimate communal authorities
allows the researcher to generally view the researcher-community relationship as a partnership

QUALITATIVE RESEARCH AND ITS TYPES/KINDS

Qualitative research is an act of inquiry or investigation of real-life events. It is concerned with own experiences of a life
event, and the aim is to interpret what has been said in order to explain why it is said. It is a scientific method of observation
to gather non-numerical data; it refers to the meanings, concepts, characteristics, metaphors, symbols and descriptions of
phenomena, and not to their counts or measures.

Types of qualitative research

1. CASE STUDY. This type of qualitative research usually takes place in the field of social care, nursing, psychology,
rehabilitation centers, education, etc. This involves a long-time study of a person, group, organization, or situation. It seeks to
find answers to why such things occurs to the subject. Finding the reasons behind such occurrence drives you to also delve
into relationships of people related to the case under study. Varieties of data collection methods such as interviews,
questionnaires, observations, and documentary analysis are used in a case study.
A CASE STUDY OF THE SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT
Example:
PROGRAM OF THE MUNICIPALITY OF BALER
FROM 2016 TO 2019

2. ETHNOGRAPHY. Falling in the field of anthropology, ethnography is the study of a particular cultural group to get
a clear understanding of its organizational set up, internal operation, and lifestyle. A particular group reveals the nature or
characteristics of their own culture through the world perceptions of the cultural group’s members. Data collection through
observations and interviews.

Example: AN ETHNOGRAPHY
OF THE CORDILLERAN TRIBE
IN BALER, AURORA
3. PHENOMENOLOGY. Coming from the word “phenomenon,” which means something known through sensory
experience, phenomenology refers to the study how people find their experiences meaningful. Its primary goal is to make
people understand their experiences about death of loved ones, care for handicapped persons, friendliness of people, etc.
In doing so, other people will likewise understand the meanings attached to their experiences. Those engaged in assisting
people to manage their own lives properly often do this qualitative kind of research. Data collection through participant
observations, interviews and conversation with participants.

Example: LIVED EXPERIENCES OF PARENTS

OF YOUNG CHILDREN DIAGNOSED
WITH AUTISM

4. HISTORICAL ANALYSIS. Central to this qualitative research method is the examination of primary documents to
make you understand the connection of past events to the present time. The results of your content analysis will help you
specify phenomenological changes in unchanged aspects of society through the years. Data collection method through
interview and using the primary and secondary sources.

Example: DIVISION SCHOOLS PRESS CONFERENCE

(DSPC) IN AURORA: THEN AND NOW

5. GROUNDED THEORY takes place when you discover a new theory to underlie your study at the time of data
collection and analysis. Through your observation in your subjects, you will happen to find a theory that applies to your
current study. Interview, observation, and documentary analysis are the data gathering techniques for this type of
qualitative research.
Example:
SURVIVING SUICIDES: RISING FROM THE FALL
DIFFERENCES OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH AND QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

CATEGORY QUALITATIVE RESEARCH QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

How, Why and What Who, What, When, Where

Questions
Uses open-ended questions Uses close-ended questions
Sample size 10-15 150-200
Contact time 45-240 minutes 10-20 minutes
Approach Observe and interpret Measure and test
Data type Observation, symbol, word, etc. Number/statistical result
Summarizing, categorizing and
Analysis Math and statistical analysis
interpreting
Characterized by Subjectivity Objectivity

PARTS OF A QUALITATIVE RESEARCH PAPER WITH FOCUS

on CHAPTER 1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING
By the way, let our attention be directed to the parts of a qualitative research paper.

Flyleaf
TITLE PAGE The term Flyleaf, of course, should NOT appear in the
TABLE OF CONTENTS. Besides, the word optional
Front DEDICATION (optional) enclosed in parentheses should NOT appear after the
matter ACKNOWLEDGMENTS word DEDICATION in the TABLE OF CONTENTS.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTERS
1 THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING
Background of the study
Statement of the problem
Statement of the assumptions
Scope and delimitation of the study
Significance of the study
Definition of terms
Body/text 2 REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
3 METHODOLOGY
Participants
Research design
Research instruments and data-collection techniques
Data analysis
4 PRESENTATION, ANALYSIS, AND INTERPRETATION OF DATA
5 SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS, AND RECOMMENDATIONS
Summary
Conclusions
Recommendations
REFERENCES
APPENDICES
A. Letter asking permission to conduct the study
Back matter B. Letter to the participants
C. Questionnaire
D. Transcript of interview
E. List of interviewees with addresses
F. Miscellaneous photographs
CURRRICULUM VITAE (optional) The term Flyleaf, of course, should NOT appear in the
TABLE OF CONTENTS. Besides, the word optional
Flyleaf enclosed in parentheses should NOT appear after the
word DEDICATION in the TABLE OF CONTENTS.
 CRITERIA FOR CHOOSING A SPECIFIC RESEARCH TOPIC

These are the criteria for choosing a specific research topic adapted from those given by Dr.
Domingo B. Nuñez and Dr. Leticia S. Navarro in their book Action research for teachers, social
workers and practitioners published in 2015:

Criteria for choosing a specific research topic

1. Personal knowledge & capability What is your level of knowledge about the topic?
concerning the topic

 Are you familiar with the topic or

knowledgeable about it? How much of the
topic do you know?
 Do you have experience in the use/application
of such knowledge? To what extent have you
used/applied that knowledge
2. Personal interest in the topic How much interest do you have in the topic?

 What is your level of motivation to work on the

problem? How much interest do you have in
addressing the problem?
 What is your level of willingness to contribute
something about the topic? To what extent are
you willing to contribute something about the
topic?
3. Available resources What resources are available to enable you to
pursue the study?

 How much manpower support (specifically,

assistance provided by the members of the
research team) do you have to do the
research?
 Do you know the sources of the data needed
and the procedures to collect them?
 How many man-hours (total number of hours
worked over a specific period of time) are
involved? How much time does the research
need to reach completion?
 Are logistic resources (materials for detailed
planning & implementation), hardware
(computer machinery & equipment) and
software (computer instructions, data, or
programs) materials available for you to use?
4. Significance of the topic How important is the topic to address the
problem?
  How urgent is the need to address the
problem?
 How intense and pervasive (widespread) is the
problem? Who are affected by the problem?
What is the level of seriousness of the
problem?
 How much damage/harm can the problem do if
NOT attended to in due time?

Type of research title Examples

concise title – usually includes the main

focus (specific topic) of the study & the
participants

– a contemporary type of research title

Note: American Psychological Association

(APA) suggests that a title be a concise
statement of the main topic.

For your research, however, you have to

write the concise title in a modified way.
Adopting this modified way of writing, be
sure that such a concise title
ATTITUDES OF SELECTED GRADE 11 STUDENTS
TOWARD MODULAR DISTANCE LEARNING
 is in all CAPITALS, boldfaced (in darker
(MDL)
print), & preferably in inverted triangle
form
 has lines that do NOT end with
prepositions (e.g., OF, FOR, FROM, TO,
TOWARD, ON, IN, AT, INTO, POSITIVE WAYS TO COPE WITH DEPRESSION
THROUGH, BY, WITH, DURING, etc.), AS FOLLOWED BY SELECTED TEENAGERS
conjunctions (e.g., AND, AS, etc.),
articles (e.g., A, AN), & adjectives (e.g.,
SELECTED) & do NOT include names of
institutions & locations (e.g., MOUNT
CARMEL COLLEGE OF BALER)
(depending on the situation) & dates
(e.g., S.Y. 2020–2021, C.Y. 2020)
Type of research title Examples

complete title – usually includes the main ATTITUDES OF SELECTED GRADE 11 STUDENTS
focus (specific topic) of the study, the OF MOUNT CARMEL COLLEGE
participants, the research setting, & the time
OF BALER (MCCB) TOWARD MODULAR
period of the study DISTANCE LEARNING (MDL)
– a conventional type of research title DURING THE FIRST QUARTER
OF THE SCHOOL YEAR 2020–2021
 POSITIVE WAYS TO COPE WITH DEPRESSION

AS FOLLOWED BY SELECTED TEENAGERS

IN BRGY. 04 (POBLACION), BALER, AURORA

DURING THE LAST QUARTER
OF THE CALENDAR YEAR 2020

General standards in writing the RESEARCH TITLE

1. The title must be concise & must contain ONLY the words enough to hint the research
content.

 The title must summarize the main topic of your paper. It must tell the total nature of the
subject.
 Preferably, the title must have a length of 12 words or fewer. It must contain the fewest
possible words that adequately describe the research content & purpose. APA (7th
edition) citation guide, however, states that “while there is NO word limit for titles, ‘short
but sweet’ is the goal.
 The title must exclude the following words/phrases:
✖ AN ANALYSIS OF

✖ AN ASSESSMENT OF

✖ AN INQUIRY ON

✖ AN INVESTIGATION OF

✖ A STUDY OF

✖ IMPLICATIONS OF

2. The title must be attractive & interesting enough to catch the readers’ attention.
3. The title must be stated in declarative form & NOT in interrogative (question) form.
4. If the title exceeds one line, it must be stated in V form (inverted triangle form). Preferably, NO
title must be written in excess of three lines regardless of the word count.