RESEARCH METHODOLOGIES

Topic selection, Synopsis, Topic

justification, Research methods &
Draft writing

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

1. What is Design Dissertation?

2. Where to begin with Design Dissertation?

3. How to select a Topic for Design Dissertation?

4a. Why is Research/Analysis required as a Black Book?

4b. Why are Research methods used?

5. When is the Research considered to be complete?

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

TWO THINGS TO REMEMBER ABOUT RESEARCH:
1. A research proposal generally consists of an outline of your proposed research
project, including your main research questions and the methods you intend to use.

2. You should also comment on the potential impact and importance of your intended
research and on how your work would interact with current trends in Architecture.

Keep it simple.

Only two rules for writing a good draft.

1. READ! 2. DEDUCT!

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

How to structure a Research?
1. Research topic:
General subject area/explain domain on which you will focus.

2. Review of the literature:

Demonstrate familiarity with relevant literature, show awareness of
previous research and explain how your research aims to make an original
contribution to knowledge.

3. Research objectives:
Explain what you are intending to achieve.

4. Research strategy:
Explain your research strategy/method; consider strategic options/outline
how you plan to collect your data (if any).

5. References and Bibliography.

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

 What is a Research Proposal?
A research proposal is a paper that explains:

1. The Big Question in consideration.

2. The topic and specific examples to be used.

3. The proposed small questions that shall be answered.

4. The resources (bibliography) that gives necessary information.

5. The kind of analysis to be done (site analysis, historical,

statistical etc.)

6. Arguments to be answered; starting from research back to the big

question.

Sharayu Gangurde
 Organizing your Ideas and Outlining the Paper
• An Outline is a method of organizing your ideas and your paper before you
actually write it.
- This way you can focus on thinking the ideas through and on putting them
into a logical sequence, without having to struggle with sentence structure
at the same time. You can change elements of the outline and rearrange
things easily.
• An Outline should be the paper without the sentences.
- It should be almost as long as the paper and should contain everything that
will be in the paper: All the ideas, all the thinking, all the evidence, and all
the references.
• An Outline is not a list of sub-topics.
- Someone should be able to read the outline and know exactly what your
thesis is and how you are going to support it, point by point.
- Writing outlines helps you to think things through without the pain of
making sentences.
- With a good outline, writing is easy.
Sharayu Gangurde
• Architecture draws on many analyses but the ones
we normally rely on for research papers are the
following:
- Where does an idea come from?

- What are the implications of the ideas expressed?

- What are the references?

- State and justify your objectives clearly (“because it is interesting” is not

enough!) – make sure that you address a clear gap in existing work.

- Write down your observations. They are valuable. Hopefully one of them
will resonate with your Big Question and these will become your small
questions.

- The questions are endless. They are the same ones you MUST ask yourself
when you are designing.
Sharayu Gangurde
 SEARCH

RESEARCH SAVE

SELECT

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

 FIND

FIGURE

FINALISE

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

 TRUTH

TRANSLATE

THEORISE

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

 Purpose of the Literature Review
• Gives readers easy access to research on a particular topic by selecting high
quality articles/ studies that are relevant, meaningful, important and valid and
summarizing them into one complete report.

• Provides an excellent starting point for researchers beginning to do research in a

new area by forcing them to summarize, evaluate, and compare original research in
that specific area.

• It ensures that researchers do not duplicate work that has already been done.

• It can provide clues as to where future research is heading or recommend areas on

which to focus.

• It highlights key findings.

• It identifies inconsistencies, gaps and contradictions in the literature.

• It provides a constructive analysis of the methodologies and approaches of other

researchers.

Sharayu Gangurde
 Content of the Review
- It is both a summary and explanation of the complete research in focus.

• Introduction
It explains the focus and establishes the importance of the subject. It discusses what kind of work
has been done on the topic and identifies any controversies within the field or any recent research
which has raised questions about earlier assumptions. It may provide background or history. It
concludes with a purpose or thesis statement. In a stand-alone literature review, this statement
will sum up and evaluate the state of the art in this field of research; in a review that is an
introduction or preparatory to a thesis or research report, it will suggest how the review findings
will lead to the research the writer proposes to undertake.

• Body
Often divided by headings/subheadings, the body summarizes and evaluates the current state of
knowledge in the field. It notes major themes or topics, the most important trends, and any
findings about which researchers agree or disagree. If the review is preliminary to your own
thesis or research project, its purpose is to make an argument that will justify your proposed
research. Therefore, it will discuss only that research which leads directly to your own project.

• Conclusion
The conclusion summarizes all the evidence presented and shows its significance.
- If the review is an introduction to your own research, it highlights gaps and indicates how
previous research leads to your own research project and chosen methodology.
- If the review is a stand-alone assignment for a course, it should suggest any practical
applications of the research as well as the implications and possibilities for future research.

Sharayu Gangurde
 Steps To Writing A Literature Review

1. Find a Working Topic

• Look at a specific area of study. Think about what

interests you and what is fertile ground for study.

• Look for information access.

Sharayu Gangurde
2. Review the Literature

• Use keywords, search a computer database. It is best

to use at least two databases relevant to your topics.

• Use reference lists of recent articles and reviews can

lead to valuable papers.

• Also include any studies contrary to your point of

view.

Sharayu Gangurde
3. Read the Selected Article(s) Thoroughly and Evaluate

• What assumptions do most/some researchers seem to be

making?

• What methodologies do they use? What testing procedures,

subjects, materials are used?

• Evaluate and synthesize the research findings and conclusions

drawn.

• Note experts in the field: names that are frequently referenced.

• Note conflicting theories, results, methodologies.

• Watch for popularity of theories and how this has/has not

changed over time.
Sharayu Gangurde
4. Develop a Working Thesis

• Write a one or two sentence statements summarizing the

conclusion you have reached about the major trends and
developments you see in the research that has been done on
your subject.

• Simplify it into different paragraphs.

Sharayu Gangurde
5. Organize Your Own Paper Based on the Findings
From Step 4

• Develop headings/subheadings. If your literature review is

extensive, then, organize all your findings into categories.

• Move them around if you decide that

- (a) they fit better under different headings, or
- (b) you need to establish new topic headings.

Sharayu Gangurde
6. Write the Body of the Paper

• Make certain that each section links logically to the one before
and after.

• Divide sections by themes or subtopics, not by reporting the

work of individual theorists or researchers.

Sharayu Gangurde
7. Look At What You Have Written; Focus On Analysis, Not
Description
• Look at the topic sentences of each paragraph.
- If you were to read only these sentences, would you find that your
paper presented a clear position, logically developed, from beginning
to end?

- If, for example, you find that each paragraph begins with a
researcher's name, it might indicate that, instead of evaluating and
comparing the research literature from an analytical point of view,
you have simply described what research has been done.

- If your paper still does not appear to be defined by a central, guiding

concept, or if it does not critically analyse the literature selected,
then you should make a new outline based on what you have said in
each section and paragraph of the paper, and decide whether you
need to add information, to delete off-topic information, or to
restructure the paper entirely.
Sharayu Gangurde
Structure of Research Paper
Writing
Title
Abstract
Introduction
Methodology
Results
Discussion
Conclusion
References
Sharayu Gangurde
A good introduction generally consists
of three distinct parts:

• FIRST- Give a general presentation of the

research problem.
• SECOND- Lay out exactly what you are
trying to achieve with this particular
research project.
• THIRD- State your own position.

Sharayu Gangurde
• Give a context to the research

- Includes any relevant information learned during your

literature review.

- You are also trying to explain why you chose this area of
research, attempting to highlight why it is necessary.

• State the purpose of the topic and must include the research
problem.

• Quick summary of the form that the parts of the research

paper is going to take and must include a condensed version
of the discussion.

Sharayu Gangurde
The principles for literature review follows
the following basic principles:
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Method
• Results
• Discussion
• Conclusion
• Reference List
Sharayu Gangurde
 TIPS

• How to Avoid wasting time reading too much

irrelevant stuff:
- Read abstracts of articles.

- Read prefaces, introductions, Tables of

Contents and scan footnotes of books to see
if they apply to your topic.

- Read reviews of books.

Sharayu Gangurde
• Start with general resources:

- Encyclopaedias, and simultaneously the

Internet.

- Seek out a number of different books and

articles to get a complete picture of how your
topic relates to your question.

Sharayu Gangurde
• Make Notes

- Keep track of your research.

- Always write down the citation: the author, name

of book or article, Name of Journal, Date,
Publisher, and the page numbers of important
points.

Sharayu Gangurde
• Bibliography.

- Keep track of it.

- Get references from footnotes of articles you

read.

- Use computer programs designed to keep

bibliography and footnotes in proper
form: �Endnote� �Procite� etc.

Sharayu Gangurde
 Finishing Touches: Revising and Editing
Your Work
• Read your work out loud.

• Make certain that you have covered all of the important, up-to-date, and pertinent
texts.

• Make certain that all of the citations and references are correct and that you are
referencing in the appropriate style for your discipline. (P.S. If you are uncertain
which style to use, ask your professor.)

• Check to make sure that you have not plagiarized either by failing to cite a source of
information, or by using words quoted directly from a source. (Usually if you take
three or more words directly from another source, you should put those words
within quotation marks, and cite the page.)

• Text should be written in a clear and concise academic style; it should not be
descriptive in nature or use the language of everyday speech.

• There should be no grammatical or spelling errors.

• Sentences should flow smoothly and logically.

Sharayu Gangurde
BEST RESEARCH WEBSITES

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde
Ar. Sharayu Gangurde
Ar. Sharayu Gangurde
Ar. Sharayu Gangurde
Ar. Sharayu Gangurde
LET THE RESEARCH BEGIN…….!!!!

Ar. Sharayu Gangurde