Research methodology {Creswell book} Chapter 1

The Selection of a Research Design

Research designs are plans and the procedures for research that span the decisions from broad
assumptions to detailed methods of data collection and analysis. This plan involves several
decisions, and they need not be taken in the order in which they make sense to me and the order
of their presentation here. The selection of a research design is also based on the nature of the
research problem or issue being addressed, the researchers’ personal experiences, and the
audiences for the study.

The three types of designs are qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods.

Qualitative research is a means for exploring and understanding the meaning

individuals or groups ascribe to a social or human problem. The process of research
involves emerging questions and procedures, data typically collected in the participant’s
setting, data analysis inductively building from particulars to general themes, and the
researcher making interpretations of the meaning of the data.
Quantitative research is a means for testing objective theories by examining the
relationship among variables. These variables, in turn, can be measured, typically on
instruments, so that numbered data can be analyzed using statistical procedures.
Mixed methods research is an approach to inquiry that combines or associates both
qualitative and quantitative forms. It involves philosophical assumptions, the use of
qualitative and quantitative approaches, and the mixing of both approaches in a study.

Strategies of inquiry are types of qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods designs or
models that provide specific direction for procedures in a research design.

 Quantitative Strategies

 Survey research provides a quantitative or numeric description of trends,

attitudes, or opinions of a population by studying a sample of that population. It
includes cross-sectional and longitudinal studies using questionnaires or
structured interviews for data collection, with the intent of generalizing from a
sample to a population.
 Experimental research seeks to determine if a specific treatment influences an
outcome. This impact is assessed by providing a specific treatment to one group
and withholding it from another and then determining how both groups scored on
an outcome.
  Qualitative Strategies

 Ethnography is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher studies an intact

cultural group in a natural setting over a prolonged period of time by collecting,
primarily, observational and interview data. The research process is flexible and
typically evolves contextually in response to the lived realities encountered in the
field setting.
 Grounded theory is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher derives a
general, abstract theory of a process, action, or interaction grounded in the views
of participants.
 Case studies are a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher explores in depth a
program, event, activity, process, or one or more individuals.
 Phenomenological research is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher
identifies the essence of human experiences about a phenomenon as described by
participants.
 Narrative research is a strategy of inquiry in which the researcher studies the
lives of individuals and asks one or more individuals to provide stories about their
lives.

 Mixed Methods Strategies

 Sequential mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher seeks to
elaborate on or expand on the findings of one method with another method.
 Concurrent mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher
converges or merges quantitative and qualitative data in order to provide a
comprehensive analysis of the research problem.
 Transformative mixed methods procedures are those in which the researcher
uses a theoretical lens as an overarching perspective within a design that contains
both quantitative and qualitative data.

Research is the process of making claims and then refining or abandoning some of them for
other claims more strongly warranted.

Three Components Involved Design

 Philosophical Worldviews: philosophical ideas remain largely hidden in research; they

still influence the practice of research and need to be identified.
 Post positivist Worldview: post positivist assumptions have represented the traditional
form of research, and these assumptions hold true more for quantitative research than
qualitative research. This worldview is sometimes called the scientific method or doing
science research.
  Social Constructivist Worldview: Social constructivism is such a perspective, and it is
typically seen as an approach to qualitative research.

Chapter 3 {Creswell book}

The Use of Theory in quantitative and qualitative studies

A variable refers to a characteristic or attribute of an individual or an organization that can be

measured or observed and that varies among the people or organization being studied.

Independent variables (IV) are those that (probably) cause, influence, or affect outcomes. They
are also called treatment, manipulated, antecedent, or predictor variables.

Dependent variables (DV) are those that depend on the independent variables; they are the
outcomes or results of the influence of the independent variables. Other names for dependent
variables are criterion, outcome, and effect variables.

Moderating variables are new variables constructed by a researcher by taking one variable and
multiplying it by another to determine the joint impact of both. These variables are typically
found in experiments.

Two other types of variables are control variables and confounding variables.

Control variables play an active role in quantitative studies. These are a special type of
independent variable that researchers measure because they potentially influence the
dependent variable.
Confounding variable is not actually measured or observed in a study. It exists, but its
influence cannot be directly detected.

Theory is an interrelated set of constructs (or variables) formed into propositions, or hypotheses,
that specify the relationship among variables.

In Quantitative studies, one uses theory deductively and places it toward the beginning of the
proposal for a study. With the objective of testing or verifying a theory rather than developing it,
the researcher advances a theory, collects data to test it, and reflects on its confirmation or
disconfirmation by the results.

In Qualitative studies, inquirers use theory in their studies in several ways. First, much like in
quantitative research, it is used as a broad explanation for behavior and attitudes, and it may be
complete with variables, constructs, and hypotheses.

Second, researchers increasingly use a theoretical lens or perspective in qualitative research,

which provides an overall orienting lens for the study of questions of gender, class, and race.
Third, distinct from this theoretical orientation are qualitative studies in which theory becomes
the end point.

Fourth and finally, some qualitative studies do not employ any explicit theory. However, the
case can be made that no qualitative study begins from pure observation and that prior
conceptual structure composed of theory and method provides the starting point for all
observations.

Chapter 1 {Nicholas Walliman book}

Research basics

Elements of Good Research

Writing a good proposal will help you manage your time so that you can complete the quarter
with three papers that meet your objectives. The specific format and content of these elements
may vary; they may not always appear as separate sections or in the order listed here.

Background of the study

The main purpose of the backdrop of study is to define the field of study to which your work
belongs and to set the research subject in context. Also, it offers details about the subject of the
study. A good introduction should include the following:

• The attention of the reader in the subject;

• Create the broad framework for the issue that motivates the study.

Statement of the problem

When you start a research, you have a question that you wish to seek answer for. The question
leads to a problem that needs to be solved by the research. Describe the issue or explain your
thesis before you start your research.

Objectives of the study

Tell us what you want your study to achieve.

Significance of the study

What will your research add to the discipline and why it is significant. Also, it's a good idea to
explain the relevance of your findings and the significance of conducting the research.
Limitation of the study

It is impossible to cover every facet of a specific issue. Specify what is not included. Define the
parameters of your research. It is unwise and problematic to conduct research in too many
different areas.

Definition of terms

You should define and explain any terms or concepts you use, unless they are well-known or
evident. You should consult to authorized sources for definitions

Literature Review

This section need not be extensive, but it should demonstrate your knowledge of the pertinent
literary canon. Include talks with academics, peers, or other professionals in your list of all
relevant publications or reports you have spoken with while putting together the project. A well-
written review gives you an understanding of the important topics that serve as the backdrop for
your own work this quarter.

This demonstrates your knowledge of the literature review needed for your research field. Before
composing your proposal, you read a sizable amount of reading material. It demonstrates that
you are proficient in your chosen field of theory.

Methodology

This section is the heart of the proposal because it provides insight into your perspective as well
as details on how you plan to carry out the project. How will you accomplish your objective(s)?
What theories or concepts will guide the study? How do they or might they suggest the specific
hypotheses or research questions? Where might you run into obstacles?

Explain the specifics of what you want present in your project (statistical data, comparisons of
historical and recent data, the evolution of a paradigm, etc.). One way to do this is by developing
a rough outline of the major topics and sub-topics that you will investigate.

Chapter 3 {Nicholas Walliman book}

STRUCTURING THE RESEARCH PROJECT

Research projects are set up in order to explain a phenomenon or to test a theory. Research
methods are the practical techniques used to carry out research.

The research process it is necessary to first define some kind of research problem in order to
provide a reason for doing the research. The problem will generate the subject of the research, its
aims and objectives, and will indicate what sort of data need to be collected in order to
investigate the issues raised and what kind of analysis is suitable to enable you to come to
conclusions that provide answers to the questions raised in the problem.

The answers to four important questions underpin the framework of any research project:

 What are you going to do? The subject of your research.

 Why are you going to do it? The reason for this research being necessary or interesting.
 How are you going to do it? The research methods that you will use to carry out the
project.
 When are you going to do it? The program of the work.

There are techniques that can be used to detect the valid from the fallacious arguments, i.e. those
whose logic follows the correct rules and those that do not. Fallacies fall into two main
categories: formal and informal.

Formal fallacies are those where the logical structure underpinning the argument is faulty in
some way. There are many ways that logical structures can be faulty, too many to consider here,
but for one example, consider the following simple argument.

Informal fallacies also come in many guises. These are misleading not so much because the
logical steps are incorrect, but they make false analogies, use emotional and misleading claims,
and jump to unjustified conclusions on evidence that is skimpy, irrelevant or untrue. The
following example makes false analogies

References
Creswell, J. (2009). Research design: Qualitative, quantitative, and mixed methods approaches.

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.

Flinders, D., & Mills, G. (1993). Theories and concepts in qualitative research: Perspectives

from the field. New York, NY: Teachers College Press, Teachers College, Columbia University.

Mertens, D. (2003). Mixed methods and the politics of human research: The
transformativeemancipatory perspective (Handbook of mixed methods in social and behavioral
research).

Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

Reynolds, P. (2007). A primer in theory construction. Boston, MA: Pearson Education.

Thomas, G. (1997). What’s the use of theory? Harvard Educational Review, 67(1), 75-104.