Session: 2020-2025

Subject: Sociology
Topic: Explain the various steps of the research process that
you have followed in your study of the Anti-Corruption
Movement, 2011.
Social Media Group

Submitted by Submitted to
Shamini Chavan Prof. Arunoday Majumder

Section: B.A. LL. B

SAP ID – 81012019357

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History of the movement:
From 1947 through the 1980s, the economic policies and administration tactics
of Nehruvian socialism inhibited the expansion of India's economic sectors and
slowed the country's progress. To start with the research, we have to first
understand what went down in the Jan Lokpal Bill. Even though Lokpal Bills
were introduced in 1971, 1977, 1985, 1989, 1996, 1998, 2001, 2005, or 2008,
they were not able to get passed. This prompted Hazare and others, including
Kiran Bedi and Arvind Kejriwal, to launch a public campaign for a Jan Lokpal
Bill. Widespread corruption was one of the biggest obstacles to the country's
development. Corrupt politicians are destroying the political system, criminals
and rogues are gaining power in politics and the military, and criminals who
benefit from corrupt politicians' support are harming the country. The RTI Act
of 2005, which gave citizens the right to request information from government
agencies, was ineffective in combating corruption. Thousands of people flocked
to the Ramlila Maidan in the national capital on a particularly hot Sunday
morning in August 2011 to see history being written right in front of their eyes.
The movement's leading crusader, Anna Hazare, broke his fast on the 13th day
after more than 290 hours, bringing an end to a months-long anti-corruption
protest. By the time it became dark, the 4.5-kilometer walkway leading up to
India Gate was covered with tricolours and unique white caps with the words
"Main Bhi Anna" or "I am also Anna" written on them. As spring arrived in
India's capital, veteran campaigner Anna Hazare stepped to the stage at Jantar
Mantar to call for the passage of legislation to create an anti-corruption
ombudsman as soon as possible. On April 5, 2011, when he was still relatively
unknown in Delhi, Hazare began his hunger strike. The time was ideal, as the
Congress-led administration at the centre was facing multiple corruption
allegations. In response to civil society pressure on his administration, then-
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh added to the season-inspired picture of the
situation by copying English poet P.B. Shelley and remarking, "If winter
approaches, can spring be far behind?" Because the all-too-brief spring is a
transitional season on the northern plains, followed by a brutal summer, Singh's
remark was wrong. And the IAC movement, nicknamed Anna Andolan,
signalled the start of a summer of discontent.
Gandhi, who was born in the little village of Ralegan-Siddhi near Pune, was
regarded as a humble, elderly, straight-talking commoner who stood up to the
powerful. The public's reaction to the movement astounded not just the
government, but also the campaign's organisers; Hazare's hunger strike sent
shockwaves across the country. It enraged the politically apathetic urban middle
class and drew young people out onto the streets.

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The India Against Corruption movement got traction after Anna Hazare
launched an indefinite fast at New Delhi's Jantar Mantar in April 2011. Time
magazine called the programme one of the "Top 10 News Stories of 2011."
The administration resolved to form a joint committee with an equal number of
government and civil society representatives to draught the Lokpal Bill jointly
four days into his fast. In contrast, Hazare was dissatisfied with the
government's version of the Bill and announced that he will fast again on
August 16 in Delhi. The Delhi Police captured and arrested him just hours
before he was to begin his hunger strike. At the recent Jantar Mantar event,
Arvind Kejriwal, the brains behind the IAC movement, took centre stage. The
rally's main speaker was Kejriwal, the current Delhi chief minister, a far cry
from 2011, when the Indian Revenue Service officer-turned-activist preferred to
remain in the background and had to be dragged onto the stage. In Delhi, the
Aam Aadmi Party, which Kejriwal co-founded with a portion of the IAC
leadership, is in power, and the newest agitation was intended to protest the
Union government's attempt to pass laws giving the lieutenant governor of
Delhi more powers, limiting the state government's authority.
Group Working
Following the assignment of the research topic, we were separated into four
groups: literature review, NRI, social media, and Delhi. Several duties were
assigned to us. To obtain primary data, everyone had to conduct extensive study
by searching out persons who had been involved in the movement. Ashutosh's
book Anna – 13 Days that Awakened India was assigned to us to read.
Now, let’s understand the various steps to research.

Step 1: Deciding on a research problem

What is the definition of a research question?
A research question is the central focus of your investigation. It should be as
follows:
clear: it offers enough details so that the audience may comprehend the aim
without further explanation.
focused: it is restricted enough that it can be thoroughly answered in the time
allotted by the writing task.

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It is succinct: it is expressed in the fewest words feasible.
complex: it is not answerable with a simple “yes” or “no,” but rather requires
synthesis and analysis of ideas and sources prior to composition of an answer.
arguable: rather than being established facts, its potential responses are up for
argument.
You should offer a question about something that piques your interest and/or
passion. The question you pose should be specific to your subject of study. A
question appropriate for Biology, for example, is not the same as one
appropriate for Political Science or Sociology.
What is the significance of a research question in the research process?
By giving a way through the research and writing process, research questions
assist writers in focusing their research. The precision of a well-developed
research subject aids writers in avoiding the "all-about" paper and focusing on a
precise, debatable argument. For this research paper, we finalized the research
problem and divided ourselves into groups on NRI, People from Delhi
Constituency of Aam Admi Party, Social Media Activist and various NGO’s

Step 2: Literature review (Finding the history and the background on the
research topic)
A literature review is a piece of writing that summarises, synthesises, and/or
critiques the literature discovered through a literature search. It can be utilised
as a backdrop or environment for primary research.

There are a number of reasons to conduct a literature review:

Recognize new advancements in your field of study.

Learn about the sources of knowledge and research procedures.
Look for gaps in the literature that could be turned into research questions.
Verify the uniqueness of a research project.
Examine the approaches.
Avoid mistakes by identifying them.

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Draw attention to the field's strengths, faults, and controversies.
Determine who the subject matter experts are.
Many factors, including the objective and audience of your review, might
influence the level of depth or comprehensiveness of your literature review. For
example, if you're doing a literature review to help you write a thesis or
dissertation, you might want to write a very thorough lit review that examines
all relevant literature on a topic as well as important sources beyond what's
readily available (e.g., foundational scholarly articles not available through
library collections). We were able to get a lot of information about the Anti
Corruption Movement from the book 13 Days that Awaken India

Step 3: Finding Sources to gather relevant information

There are three types of information:
The primary or raw data is referred to as primary information, and it is
sometimes referred to as your 'source.' It's frequently provided without much
thought or examination. Statistics, norms, regulations, and corporation data are
examples of primary sources.
Secondary information usually takes raw data and analyses it before presenting
it in a more readable and understandable style. Secondary information includes
reports, newspaper articles, and textbooks.
Books and articles based on other people's research are examples of tertiary
information. They are designed to explain research to a broad audience. This
may be helpful as a beginning point for your research, but it will provide little
substance to support your academic assessment because they tend to
oversimplify, rely on too few sources, and become outdated soon.
After reading several articles and having a deeper understanding of the research
topic, our group started seeking out people who participated in the movement.
As we were part of the social media group, we were trying to find people on
Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter. We were able to find about 20
people via social media. We texted people who were following groups and
pages of Anti-Corruption Movement, i.e., @janlokpal. The most helpful group
we were able to find was on Facebook called India Against Corruption – Pune
Activist Group. It had Twenty Thousand likes.

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Step 4: Deciding on the Research Design
The framework of market research methods and procedures chosen by a
researcher is referred to as research design. The researchers' design allows them
to use the most appropriate methodologies for the study and to set up their
investigations successfully in the future as well.
The research design can be qualitative, quantitative, or a combination of both.
Researchers can use a variety of research approaches in these studies, including
experimental studies, surveys, correlational studies, and quasi-experimental
review studies. Experimental design, establishing research topics, and
descriptive investigations are examples of sub-types of research methodology.
Data collection, data measurement with the appropriate tools, and data analysis
are all components of research designs. As a general rule, the research problem
that a company chooses to work on, rather than the other way around,
determines the research design chosen by the researcher. The design phase of a
market research study is when the researchers decide which tools will be
utilised in the study and how they will be used. To improve both the internal
and external validity of the research, good research usually assures a minimum
amount of bias in the data collection process. The goal of experimental research
is to create a design that produces the least amount of error possible in the
investigation.

Step 5: Collection of Data

Data collection is the process of acquiring and evaluating information on
variables of interest in a systematic manner that allows researchers to answer
research questions, test hypotheses, and assess outcomes. All fields of study,
including physical and social sciences, humanities, business, and others, use
data collection as part of their research. While the methodologies differ
depending on the discipline, the emphasis on accurate and honest data collection
stays the same.
Regardless of the subject of study or data definition preference (quantitative vs.
qualitative), correct data collecting is critical to research integrity. The use of
appropriate data gathering instruments (existing, modified, or newly built) as
well as properly defined instructions for their proper use reduce the risk of
errors.

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Improperly gathered data has a number of consequences like inability to
appropriately answer research questions, inability to repeat and confirm the
study, resulting in distorted findings and wasted costs deceiving other
researchers into pursuing unproductive avenues of exploration, jeopardising
public policy decisions, etc.
To collect data from the participants we gathered from Facebook for Anti-
Corruption, we made a questionnaire in Google Form with the help of our
course instructor. We chose snowball sampling as our method of collecting
data.
Snowball Sampling
Snowball sampling is a method of recruiting in which volunteers are requested
to help researchers find more possible subjects. Under some circumstances, the
IRB may accept the use of presently registered research participants to recruit
additional research participants (also known as "snowball sampling"). However,
justification for using this strategy in the context of the study and target
population must be included in the protocol. The method with the least amount
of risk would be the best option.