Unit 5 Research

Methodology
 Qualitative,
What is
quantitative
research
and mixed
methodology
Areas to methods

be
covered Sampling,
data
How to
choose your
collection
methodology
and analysis
 • “Methodology is the philosophical
framework within which the research is
conducted or the foundation upon which
What is the research is based” (Brown, 2006).
research • Research methods, approaches and
methodolog designs in detail highlighting those used
y? throughout the study,
• Justifying the choice of methodology
through describing advantages and
disadvantages of each approach and
design taking into account their practical
applicability to the research.
 • The way in which research is
conducted may be conceived of in
terms of:
What is 1. the research philosophy subscribed
research to,
methodolo 2. the research strategy employed, that
gy? Cont’d is:
the research instruments utilised
the research objective(s)
the research question(s)
 Positivism
• Positivists believe that reality is stable and can be observed and
described from an objective viewpoint
• This can be done without interfering with the phenomena being
studied.
• They contend that phenomena should be isolated and that
observations should be repeatable.
• This often involves manipulation of reality with variations in only a
single independent variable so as to identify regularities in, and to
form relationships between, some of the constituent elements of
the social world.
• Predictions can be made on the basis of the previously observed
and explained realities and their inter-relationships.
Interpretivism
• Interpretivists contend that only through the subjective interpretation
of and intervention in reality can that reality be fully understood.
• The study of phenomena in their natural environment is key to the
interpretivist philosophy,
• They acknowledge that scientists cannot avoid affecting those
phenomena they study.
• They admit that there may be many interpretations of reality, but
maintain that these interpretations are in themselves a part of the
scientific knowledge they are pursuing.
 Finding your research
methodology
• Your introduction is about what you will research
and why
• Your literature review is to find out what already
exists and how its been done
• Your methodology explains how you are going to
undertake your research to answer your research
question(s)
• You must justify your methodology.
• What data you will collect
• Who or where you will get the data from
• How you will collect the data
• How you will analyse the data
Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed
Methods

• Quantitative means your data is number-based and measurable

• Qualitative means your data includes words, phrases, ideas, pictures,
concepts
• Mixed methods involves using both quantitative and qualitative data
• Your data shows your philosophy. The angle at which you are going to
look at your research question.
RESEARCH
METHODS
 Research method
• A research method is a strategy used to implement that plan.

• It involves the techniques and procedure, that are applied during

the course of studying research problem are known as the
research method.

• It encompasses both qualitative and quantitative method of

performing research operations, such as survey, case study,
interview, questionnaire, observation, etc
Research methods
Research Method Scientific/Positivist Interpretivist/Anti-positivist

Laboratory Experiments √
Field Experiments √
Surveys √
Case Studies √ √
Reviews √
Action Research √
Mixed Methods √ √
Laboratory experiments
• Permit the researcher to identify precise relationships between a
small number of variables that are studied intensively via a designed
laboratory situation using quantitative analytical techniques with a
view to making generalisable statements applicable to real-life
situations.
• The key weakness of laboratory experiments is the "limited extent to
which identified relationships exist in the real world due to
oversimplification of the experimental situation and the isolation of
such situations from most of the variables that are found in the real
world" (Galliers, 1991, p.150)
Field experiments
• extend laboratory experiments into real organisations and their real
life situations, thereby achieving greater realism and diminishing the
extent to which situations can be criticised as contrived.
• In practice it is difficult to identify organisations that are prepared to
be experimented on and still more difficult to achieve sufficient
control to make replication viable.
Surveys
• Enable the researcher to obtain data about practices, situations or views at one point in
time through questionnaires or interviews.
• Quantitative analytical techniques are then used to draw inferences from this data
regarding existing relationships.
• The use of surveys permit a researcher to study more variables at one time than is
typically possible in laboratory or field experiments, whilst data can be collected about
real world environments.
• A key weakness is that it is very difficult to realise insights relating to the causes of or
processes involved in the phenomena measured.
• There are, in addition, several sources of bias such as the possibly self-selecting nature of
respondents, the point in time when the survey is conducted and in the researcher
him/herself through the design of the survey itself
Case studies
• Is an attempt to describe relationships that exist in reality, very often in a single organisation.
• Case studies may be positivist or interpretivist in nature, depending on the approach of the
researcher, the data collected and the analytical techniques employed.
• The advantage is that reality can be captured in greater detail by an observer-researcher, with the
analysis of more variables than is typically possible in experimental and survey research.
• Case studies can be considered weak as they are typically restricted to a single organisation and it
is difficult to generalise findings in the case of quantitative data since it is hard to find similar
cases with similar data that can be analysed in a statistically meaningful way.
• Furthermore, different researchers may have different interpretations of the same qualitative
data, thus adding research bias into the equation
Action research
• It is a form of applied research where the researcher attempts to develop results
or a solution that is of practical value to the people with whom the researcher is
working, and at the same time developing theoretical knowledge.
• Through direct intervention in problems, the researcher aims to create practical,
often emancipatory, outcomes while also aiming to reinform existing theory in
the domain studied.
• As with case studies, action research is usually restricted to a single organisation
making it difficult to generalise findings, while different researchers may interpret
events differently.
• The personal ethics of the researcher are critical, since the opportunity for direct
researcher intervention is always present
Research Designs
Research Methods vrs Research Design
What are research designs?

Research designs are procedures for collecting, analyzing, interpreting, and

reporting data in research studies

Research designs represent different models for doing research, and these
models have distinct names and procedures associated with them.

Rigorous research designs are important because they guide the methods
decisions and interpretations that researchers must make during their studies
Research Designs

◆ Experimental Designs
◆ Correlational Designs
◆ Survey Designs
Experimental Design

• Experimental research is a scientific approach to

research, where one or more independent variables
are manipulated and applied to one or more
dependent variables to measure their effect on the
latter.
• The effect of the independent variables on the
dependent variables is usually observed and
recorded over some time, to aid researchers in
drawing a reasonable conclusion regarding the
relationship between these two variable types.
3 Types of Experimental Design
The types of experimental research design are determined by the way the
researcher assigns subjects to different conditions and groups.

Pre-experimental

Quasi-experimental

True experimental
 • In pre-experimental research design,
Pre- either a group or various dependent
groups are observed for the effect of the
experime application of an independent variable
ntal which is presumed to cause change.

Research • It is the simplest form of experimental

research design and is treated with no
Design control group.
• Although very practical, experimental
research is lacking in several areas of
the true-experimental criteria.
• The pre-experimental research design is
further divided into three types
1. One-shot Case Study Research Design
• In this type of experimental study, only one dependent group
or variable is considered.
• The study is carried out after some treatment which was
presumed to cause change, making it a posttest study.
2. One-group Pretest-posttest Research Design:
• This research design combines both posttest and pretest study
by carrying out a test on a single group before the treatment is
administered and after the treatment is administered.
• With the former being administered at the beginning of
treatment and later at the end.
3. Static-group Comparison:
• In a static-group comparison study, 2 or more groups are
placed under observation, where only one of the groups is
subjected to some treatment while the other groups are
held static.
• All the groups are post-tested, and the observed differences
between the groups are assumed to be a result of the
treatment.
Quasi-experimental Research
Design
“Quasi" means partial, half, or pseudo. Therefore, the quasi-experimental
research bearing a resemblance to the true experimental research, but not the
same.

In quasi-experiments, the participants are not randomly assigned, and as such,

they are used in settings where randomization is difficult or impossible.

This is very common in educational research, where administrators are

unwilling to allow the random selection of students for experimental samples.

Some examples of quasi-experimental research design include; the time series,

no equivalent control group design, and the counterbalanced design.
True Experimental Research Design

• The true experimental research design relies on

statistical analysis to approve or disprove a
hypothesis.
• It is the most accurate type of experimental design
and may be carried out with or without a pretest on
at least 2 randomly assigned dependent subjects.
• The true experimental research design must
contain a control group, a variable that can be
manipulated by the researcher, and the distribution
must be random.
The classification of true experimental
design
• The posttest-only Control Group Design: In this design,
subjects are randomly selected and assigned to the 2 groups
(control and experimental), and only the experimental group
is treated.
After close observation, both groups are post-tested, and a
conclusion is drawn from the difference between these groups.
• The pretest-posttest Control Group Design: For this
control group design, subjects are randomly assigned to the 2
groups, both are presented, but only the experimental group
is treated.
• After close observation, both groups are post-tested to
measure the degree of change in each group.
Classification of true experimental
design cont’d
Solomon four-group Design:
• This is the combination of the pretest-only and the
pretest-posttest control groups. In this case, the
randomly selected subjects are placed into 4
groups.
• The first two of these groups are tested using the
posttest-only
method, while the other two are tested using the
pretest-
posttest method.
Correlational Designs

• Correlational designs provide an opportunity for you to predict

scores and explain the relationship among variables.
• In correlational research designs, investigators use the
correlation statistical test to describe and measure the degree of
association (or relationship) between two or more variables or
sets of scores.
Ex post facto
• Studies that investigate possible cause and effect relationships by
observing an existing condition or state of affairs and searching back
in time for plausible causal factors.

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Characteristics of Ex Post Facto
• Researcher takes the effect/dependent variable and examines it
retrospectively
• Establishes causes, relationships or associations and their meanings.
• Researcher has little to no control over independent variables.
• Flexible by nature.

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When to use this?
• You can use this where more powerful experimental designs are not
possible; when you are unable to select, control and manipulate the
factors necessary to study cause and effect relationships directly, or
when control variables except a single independent variable may be
unrealistic and artificial.

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Survey Designs

• Survey research designs are procedures in quantitative research

in which investigators administer a survey to a sample or to the
entire population of people to describe the attitudes, opinions,
behaviors, or characteristics of the population.
• In this procedure, survey researchers collect quantitative,
numbered data using questionnaires (e.g., mailed
questionnaires) or interviews (e.g., one-on-one interviews) and
statistically analyze the data to describe trends about responses
to questions and to answer research questions or test
hypotheses.
 Types of Survey Designs

Cross sectional surveys

• In a cross-sectional survey design, the researcher collects data at
one point in time. For example, when JHS students complete a
survey about teasing, they are recording data about their
present views.
• This design has the advantage of measuring current attitudes or
practices. It also provides information in a short amount of time,
such as the time required for administering the survey and
collecting the information.
Types of Survey Designs cont’d

• A longitudinal survey design involves the survey procedure of

collecting data about trends with the same population, changes
in a cohort group or subpopulation, or changes in a panel group
of the same individuals over time.
• Thus, in longitudinal designs, the participants may be different
or the same people.
Types of Survey Designs cont’d

Trend Studies
• In some surveys, researchers aim to study changes within some
general population over a period of time (Babbie, 1998).
• This form of longitudinal research is called a trend study. Trend
studies are longitudinal survey designs that involve identifying a
population and examining changes within that population over
time.
Types of Survey Designs cont’d

• Cohort Studies Rather than studying changing trends in a

population, the researcher may be interested in identifying a
subgroup in the population, called a cohort, that possesses a
common defining characteristic.
• A cohort study is a longitudinal survey design in which a
researcher identifies a subpopulation based on some specific
characteristic and then studies that subpopulation over time.
• All members of the cohort must have the common
characteristic, such as being 18 years old in the year 2021. If age
is that characteristic, the researcher studies the group as the
group ages.
 Mixed
Methods
Selecting a mixed methods
approach
Mixed methods researchers need to be acquainted with the major types of mixed
methods designs and the common variants among these designs.

The next step is to decide on the specific design that best addresses your research
problem

Important considerations when choosing designs are knowing the intent, the
procedures, and the strengths and challenges associated with each design.

Be familiar with the timing, weighting, and mixing decisions that are made in
each of the different mixed methods designs
Mixed Methods
Design cont’d
• Combines qualitative and
quantitative data to answer the
same research question or finding
a solution to the research problem
• It is about linking (mixing)
qualitative data and quantitative
data in answering your research
questions or the research problem
• The qualitative and quantitative
data complement each other.
Not Mixed • It is not mixed methods if you keep your
quantitative and qualitative data
Methods separately and report on them
Design separately.
4 major types of mixed methods
design

Triangulation (concurrent) Design

Embedded Design

Explanatory Design

Exploratory Design
 This design is used when a researcher wants to
directly compare and contrast quantitative
statistical results with qualitative findings or to
validate or expand quantitative results with
Triangulatio qualitative data
n
(concurrent)
Design
The purpose of this design is to obtain different
but complementary data on the same topic to
best understand the research problem or to
answer the same research question
Merging of data sets

The researcher merges the

The researcher
two data sets into one
transforming data to
overall interpretation, in
OR facilitate integrating the
which quantitative results
two data types during the
are related to the
analysis
qualitative findings
4 Variants of the Triangulation
Design
These two models differ in
terms of how the researcher
2. The data transformation attempts to merge the two
1. The convergence model
model data types (either during
interpretation or during
analysis)

3. The validating
4. The multilevel model
quantitative data model
This model is used to
This model is used to
investigate different levels
enhance findings from a
of analysis
survey
The convergence model
In this model, the researcher collects and analyzes quantitative and qualitative
data separately on the same phenomenon and

Then the different results are converged (by comparing and contrasting the
different results) during the interpretation.

Researchers use this model when they want to compare results or to validate
confirm, or corroborate quantitative results with qualitative findings.

The purpose of this model is to end up with valid and well-substantiated

conclusions about a single phenomenon.
 The Embedded Design is a mixed
methods design in which one data set
provides a supportive, secondary role in a
study based primarily on the other data
Embedde type (Creswell, Plano Clark, et al., 2003).

d Design The premises of this design are that a

single data set is not sufficient, that
different questions need to be answered,
and that each type of question requires
different types of data.
 Researchers use this design when they need to
include qualitative or quantitative data to answer
a research question within a largely quantitative
or qualitative study.

Embedde This design is particularly useful when a

researcher needs to embed a qualitative

d Design
component within a quantitative design, as in the
case of an experimental or correlational design.

The intent of the design is not to converge to

different data sets collected to answer the same
research question ask triangulation model
Embedded Design Procedures
The Embedded Design mixes the different data sets at the design level, with one type of data
being embedded within a methodology framed by the other data type (Caracelli & Greene, 1997).

For example, a researcher could embed qualitative data within a quantitative methodology, as
might be done in an experimental design, or quantitative data could be embedded within a
qualitative methodology, as could be done in a phenomenology design

The Embedded Design includes the collection of both quantitative and qualitative data,
but one of the data types plays a supplemental role within the overall design.

E.g. Within an experimental design this can

be done in two different ways:
Variants of the Embedded Design

The embedded experimental model

The embedded correlational model

The embedded experimental model

The priority of this model is

This model is defined by having
established by the quantitative,
qualitative data embedded
experimental methodology, and
within an experimental design
the qualitative dataset is
(such as a true experiment or a
subservient within that
quasi experiment).
methodology.
The embedded correlational model

In this design, researchers

In the correlational model collect qualitative data as
qualitative data are part of their correlational
embedded within a study to help explain how
quantitative design. the mechanisms work in
the correlational model.
The Explanatory Design
The Explanatory Design is a two-phase mixed methods design.

The overall purpose of this design is that qualitative data helps explain or build upon
initial quantitative results

Start with quantitative data collection followed by qualitative data collection. Example, you answer
quantitative question and explore the emerging issues further with qualitative data collection When
you are interpreting the data you mix the different data sets.

For example, this design is well suited to a study in which a researcher needs qualitative
data to explain significant (or nonsignificant) results, outlier results, or surprising results
(Morse, 1991).
 Interviews - Qualitative data

Focus groups - Qualitative data

Common
data Document analysis – Qualitative
collection
methods Observation – Qualitative data

Surveys – Quantitative data

 1. INTERVIEWS

One-on-one back and forth discussion between the researcher and the
participant

Data
Collection 2. FOCUS GROUPS

Methods
Participants who have knowledge/experience about a given topic discuss the
topic. maintenance fees analyzing texts maybe in terms of understanding
history or historical records that is a very important way of doing things

Participants interact with their researcher and each other. Participants

influence each other.
 Researcher analysis existing
3. DOCUMENT ANALYSIS texts (,for example historical
records)

Researcher observes a situation

4.OBSERVATION METHODS in its natural environment

Data
5. SURVEYS
Collection
Methods Online or offline service with preset choices,
categories, tick boxes, scales, questions ETC.
cont'd
6. MEASUREMENTS

Measuring any variable using a variety of instruments

(e.g. ruler lab equipment ETC.