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Module 2

The document outlines the research methodology process which includes formulating a research problem, conducting an extensive literature review to develop a working hypothesis, preparing a research design to determine data collection techniques and sample size, collecting and analyzing data, testing the hypothesis, drawing generalizations and interpretations, and preparing a report of the findings. It also discusses how to develop research questions for qualitative and quantitative studies and the various stages involved in conducting a literature review.

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Jewel Dan
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34 views

Module 2

The document outlines the research methodology process which includes formulating a research problem, conducting an extensive literature review to develop a working hypothesis, preparing a research design to determine data collection techniques and sample size, collecting and analyzing data, testing the hypothesis, drawing generalizations and interpretations, and preparing a report of the findings. It also discusses how to develop research questions for qualitative and quantitative studies and the various stages involved in conducting a literature review.

Uploaded by

Jewel Dan
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PPTX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Research Methodology

Module 2
• Research hypothesis
• Stages of research
• Techniques of data collection
• Literature search and review
Hypothesis/ Research Question
Central intent of the study can be narrowed
down to
• Predictions about what will be
learned(hypothesis)
• Questions to be answered(research questions)
Research questions in qualitative
research
• The central question is a broad question that asks for
an exploration of the central phenomenon or concept
in a study.
• “What is the broadest question that I can ask in the
study?”
• Wont restrict the views of the participants.
• Not narrow questions or hypotheses based on a few
variables as in quantitative studies.
• The intent is to explore the complex set of factors
surrounding a central phenomenon.
• Eg: How does social media affect adolescents .
Research questions in qualitative
research
• Central question and associated sub questions.
• Begin the research questions with the words what or
how to convey an open and emerging design.
• Use these more exploratory verbs (non directional)
such as explore, discover rather than directional words
that suggest quantitative research, such as affect,
influence, impact, determine, cause, and relate.
• Expect the research questions to evolve and change
during the study in a manner consistent with the
assumptions of an emerging design
Quantitative research questions and
Hypothesis
Quantitative research questions
• Inquire about the relationship among
variables.
• Used in social science researches and survey
studies.
• Eg: Why the fertility rate among tribal people
is decreasing?
Quantitative Hypothesis
• Predictions the researcher makes about the
expected outcomes of relationships among
variables.
• Testing involves statistical procedures.
• Direction
• Null Hypothesis, Directional Hypothesis, Non
Directional Hypothesis.
Stages of Research
• Research process: series of actions required to carry out the
research.

1. Formulating the research problem


2. Extensive literature survey
3. Development of working hypothesis
4. Preparing research design
5. Determining sample design
6. Collecting data
7. Analysis of data
8. Hypothesis testing
9. Generalisations and interpretations
10. Preparing report
1. Formulating the research problem
• Formulation of a general topic into a specific
research problem.
1. Discuss with experts
2. Literature
• Conceptual literature(theories and concepts)
• Empirical literature(studies made earlier)
3. Rephrasing the problem to operational terms
Determines
• the data which are to be collected
• Characteristics of relevant data
• Relations to be explored
• Techniques to be used
• Form of final report
2. Extensive literature survey
• Journals published or unpublished
bibliographies
• Academic journals conference proceedings,
govt reports, earlier studies
• One source will lead to other
3. Development of working hypothesis
• Tentative assumption
• Gives a direction
4. Preparing research design
• Preparing conceptual structure
• It makes research efficient in terms of money,
time and effort
• Nature varies with time and purpose
• Flexible design… exploratory
• One that minimises bias for researches based
on association btw variables and descriptive
researches.
5. Determining sample design
• All items … population or universe
• Census inquiry
• Sampling… selecting a few items from the
population for testing.
• Way of selecting a sample is known as sample
design.
6. Collecting data
• Experiments.. Quantitative measurements
• By observation
• Personal interview
• Telephone interview
• Mailing questionnaires
7. Analysis of data
• Data condensed into a few manageable
groups and tables for further analysis
• Statistical inferences.
8. Hypothesis testing
• Various tests formulated by statisticians
• Chi test, T test, F test
• If there is no hypothesis, generalisations
formed in the research can be used for further
researches.
9. Generalisations and interpretations
• Building theory

10. Preparing report


Literature review
• Helps to determine whether the topic is
worth studying
• Provides insights into ways in which the
researcher can limit the scope to a needed
area of study.
• Before considering what literature to use in a
project, first identify a topic to study and
reflect on whether it is practical and useful to
undertake the study.
• Working title
• Whether the topic can be and should be
studied.
• Once these are finalised researcher can move
on to the literature part.
• Literature review can have many forms in a research:
– Integrates what others have done.
– Criticize previous scholarly works.
– Build bridges between related topics.
– Identify central issue in the field.
• In qualitative studies, it can be, used to frame the problem in the
introduction to the study, presented in a separate section as a
review of the literature, presented in the study at the end (it
becomes a basis for comparing and contrasting findings of the
qualitative study).
• Quantitative research it is used to introduce a problem or to
describe in detail the existing literature in a section titled “Related
Literature” or “Review of Literature,” or some other similar phrase
and At the end of a study, the researcher then revisits the literature
and makes a comparison between the results with the existing
findings in the literature.
• In a mixed methods study, the researcher uses either a qualitative
or a quantitative approach to the literature, depending on the type
of strategy being used.
Steps in conducting a Literature
Review
• There is no single way to conduct a literature
review
• Systematic
• Selecting and organising
1. Selecting
1. Preliminary readings… topic
2. Identify key words… useful in locating
materials
3. Key words… books, journals, computerized
data base(related to the topic)
4. 50 reports(set a priority)
5. Skim the initial group of articles and
duplicate the needed.
2. Organising
• The organization enables a person to
understand how the proposed study adds to
or replicates the researches already
completed.
• Literature map is a visual summary of the
research that has been conducted by others.
• Top down presentation of the literature
ending at the bottom with the proposed
study.
• Draft summaries of the most relevant articles
which can be combined later to form the final
literature review.
• End the literature review with a summary of
the major themes and suggest how your
particular study further adds to the literature.
Priority for selecting literature material
• Start with a broad synthesis of literature such as
overviews found in encyclopaedias, summaries of
literature on your topic presented in journal articles or
abstract series.
• Journal articles on research studies. Follow up
references for more sources.
• Books… monographs and then books on a single topic
by a single author or group of authors or books that
contain chapters written by different authors.
• Conference papers (latest research developments),
contact authors
• Internet….. quality

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