Sun Dec 29

MAJOR TYPE OF RESEARCH

THERE ARE A LOT OF DIFFERENT METHODS OF CONDUCTING

A. Descriptive Research
 The main purpose of descriptive research is exactly what it sounds like it
should be: to describe what is going on. There are a lot of individual
approaches that fall under the descriptive research umbrella. Here are a
few:
 Case studies → are a very in-depth analysis of an individual person, small
group of people, or even an event. A researcher might conduct a case study
on an individual who has a specific learning disability, or on a classroom that
is engaging in a particular mode of instruction.
 Observation research →involves sitting back (so to speak) and watching
how individuals interact in natural environments. A researcher might (with
permission from the school and parents of the children, of course) watch a
group of preschoolers through a 2-way mirror to see how the children
interact with one another. There is also a special type of observation
research called participatory observation. This method is used when it
would be difficult or impossible to simply watch from a distance. You can
think of this as going under cover, where the researcher joins a group to
learn about the group. A classic example involves a researcher, Leon
Festinger, who joined a cult who believed the world was going to be
destroyed by a flood in the 1950s. From this work, Festinger proposed
Cognitive Dissonance Theory
 Survey research→ is considered descriptive research. In this work, the
researcher compiles a set of questions and asks people to answer these
questions. The types of questions can vary. Some surveys might people to
rate their feelings or beliefs on a scale from 1-7 (also known as a “Likert”
scale) or answer yes-no questions. Some surveys might ask more open-
ended questions, and there are many that utilize a mix of these types of
questions. If the researcher is asking a lot of open-ended questions, then we
 might call the research an interview, or a focus group if there are a few
people discussing a topic and answering questions in a group. In this
research, the participants may actually be guiding the direction of the
research.
 There is another important distinction to be made under the
descriptive research umbrella: quantitative research vs. qualitative
research. In quantitative research, data is collected in the forms of
numbers. If a researcher asks a student to indicate on a scale from 1-
10 how much they think they will remember from a lesson, then we
are quantifying the student’s perception of their own learning. In
qualitative research, words are collected, and sometimes those
words might be quantified in some way to use for statistical analysis.
If a researcher asks a student to describe their learning process, or
conducts in-depth interviews with teachers about classroom
learning, then we are dealing with qualitative research.
 Advantage
Descriptive research can provide an in-depth view of any topic we might want to
study, and the level of detail that we can find in descriptive research is extremely
valuable. This is particularly true of descriptive research that is collected
qualitatively. In this form of research, we may find information that we never even
knew to look for! This type of research can be used to create new research
questions, or form hypotheses about cause and effect relationships (though we
cannot determine cause and effect from this research alone). Observation research
has an added benefit of allowing us to see how things work in their natural
environments.
 Limitations
We cannot determine a cause and effect relationship from descriptive research. For
example, if a student talks about engaging with a particular learning strategy, and then
provides an in-depth account of why they think it helped them learn, we cannot conclude
that this strategy actually did help the student learn.

We also have to be very careful of reactivity in this type of research. Sometimes, people (and
animals too) change their behavior if they know they’re being observed. Similarly, in
surveys we have to worry about participants providing responses that are considered
desirable or in line with social norms. (For example, if a parent is asked, “did you ever
smoke while pregnant with your child?” we have to worry about parents saying “no, never”
because that is the more desirable answer, or the one that aligns with social norms.)

B. Correlational Research
 Correlational studies involve measuring two or more variables. For
that reason, this research is inherently quantitative. The researchers

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 can then look at how related to variables are to one another. If two
variables are related, or correlated, then we can use one variable to
predict the value of another variable. The greater the correlation, the
greater accuracy our prediction will have. For example, correlational
research might be able to tell us what factors at home are related to
greater student learning in the classroom. These factors might
include things like eating a healthy breakfast, getting enough sleep,
having access to a lot of books, feeling safe, etc.
 Advantage
Correlational research can help us understand the complex relationships between
a lot of different variables. If we measure these variables in realistic settings, then
we can learn more about how the world really works. This type of research allows
us to make predictions, and can tell us if two variables are not related, and thus
searching for a cause-effect relationship between the two is a huge waste of time.
 Limitations
Correlation is not the same as causation! Even if two variables are related to one
another, that does not mean we can say for certain how the cause and effect
relationship works. Take caffeine average consumption and average test. Lets say
we find that the two are correlated, where increased caffeine is related to higher test
performance. We cannot say that caffeine caused greater test performance, or that
greater test performance caused greater caffeine consumption. In reality, either of
those could work! For example, students may drink more caffeine and this might
lead them to perform better on tests. Or, the students who perform better on tests
are then more likely to drink more caffeine. A third variable could be related to both
of these as well! It could be that students who are more concerned about their
grades might study more and achieve better test performance, and might also drink
more caffeine to help them stay awake to study! We just don’t know from the
correlation alone, but knowing that the two variables are in some way related can
be very useful information.
C . Experimental research
● Definition: Involves manipulating one or more variables (independent
variables) to Observe their effect on another variable (dependent variable) while
controlling for other factors.
 Advantage:

○ High Control: Researchers can manipulate variables and control extraneous Factors,
allowing for strong causal inferences. This minimizes the influence of Confounding
variables, increasing the internal validity of the study.

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○ Replication: Experiments can be replicated to test the reliability and Generalizability of
findings. This strengthens the confidence in the results and Allows for the identification of
any inconsistencies.

○ Objectivity: Quantitative data is often collected, reducing researcher bias. This Promotes
objectivity and minimizes subjective interpretations.
 Limitations
 Artificiality: Laboratory settings can create artificial situations that
may not Accurately reflect real-world behavior. This can limit the
external validity of the Findings.
 Ethical Concerns: Manipulating variables can sometimes be
unethical or impractical. This can restrict the scope of research
questions that can be Investigated using this method.
○ Limited Generalizability: Findings from highly controlled
laboratory settings may Not always generalize to real-world situations
or diverse populations. This can limit The applicability of the results to
broader contexts.