Screening and Selection

of Research Area

Prof. Imamul Haque

Department of Commerce
Aligarh Muslim University
Screening and Selecting a Research
Problem

 Screening and Selecting a Research problem

is based on:
 Literature Search
 Previous Findings
 Library
 Previous Research Work
 Online Journals etc.
Screening and Selecting a Research
Problem

 Journals
 Indexes and Abstracts
 Conference Proceedings
 Ongoing Research
 http://scholar.google.com
 Screening and selecting a
research topic

 The proposed topic should not lead to a duplication of

research.
 Ensure that no one has already gathered the evidance required
for the proposed study.
 Diagnosis
1. Database
2. Association of Indian Universities
3. HRD
4. Research conducted by others (bibliography)
 Expenses
 Government Priorities
 Continue…

Submit proposal to reviewers who

objectively assess risks and benefits of the
proposed study.
Is it feasible in terms of money/time?
Is budget adequate?
Will data be available?
Can the findings of small sample be
warranted for broader generalization?
 Continue…

 Topic must be relevant and contemporary

 Has a high social utility value
 Can contribute to the development and
refinement of theory or policy formulation.
 What is a Research Problem?

 It is a problem that someone would like to

investigate.
 It is considered a situation that needs to be
changed or addressed.
 These problems consist of:
 Areas of concern
 Conditions to be improved
 Difficulties to be eliminated
 Questions seeking answers
 The Research Problem
 In educational research, the research problem
is typically posed as a question.
Examples of Research Problems
 How do employees behave when they have a
stress?
 Why a particular company is having low sales
instead of spending a huge amount of money
on advertisement?
 Is Islamic Microfinance, a solution to poverty
in world?
 Etc?
 Factors to consider in Selecting a
Research Problem
 The topic should be important (significant)
 It should add a lot to the existing knowledge.
 It should be based on the scientific logic!
 Appropriate tools of research should be used
while proving the hypothesis.
 More Factors to Consider…
 Consider the feasibility of the Research.
 How much time do you have available
 Do you really want to do a longitudinal study that will take many
years to complete the PhD/research ?
 How difficult is it. Are data available?
 How much will it cost?
 Am I contributing to society by receiving the scholarship or
I am doing it just for degree.
 Factors to Consider in Selecting a
Research Problem
 You should have a personal interest in the
topic.
 By the time you are done, you may really be tired
of the topic
 Researchable
 More Factors to Consider…
 The “newness” of the topic may hold you
interest longer, however there is some value in
repeating previous research
 Considerations in Selecting a
Research Problem
 This helps to ensure that your study will
remain manageable that you will remain
motivated.
 Continue…
 Interest: a research Endeavour is usually
time consuming and involves hard work and
possibly unforeseen problems. One should
select topic of great interest to sustain the
required motivation.
 Magnitude: it is extremely important to
select a topic that you can manage within the
time and resources at your disposal. Narrow
the topic down to something manageable,
specific and clear.
 Continue…
 Measurement of Concept: make sure that
you are clear about the indicators and
measurement of concepts (if used) in your
study.
 Level of Expertise: make sure that you
have adequate level of expertise for the task
you are proposing since you need to do the
work yourself.
 Continue…
 Relevance: ensure that your study adds to the
existing body of knowledge, bridges current gapes
and is useful in policy formulation. This will help you
to sustain interest in the study.
 Availability of Data: before finalizing the
topic, make sure that the data are available.
 Ethical Issues: how ethical issues can affect the
study population and how ethical problems can be
overcome should be thoroughly examined at the
formulating stage.
 How does one find
topics to research?
 Become a scholar in an area of specialization
 Read, listen, discuss and think critically
 Follow up on ideas that stem from present research
 Explore areas of dissatisfaction
 Steps in “Zeroing In”
on a Problem
 Identify a broad area that interests you
 Read the literature
 Narrow the area to 2 or 3 topics
 Thoroughly examine the literature on the 2-3 topics
 Select a single problem from 2-3 topics
 Refining the Topic
 The topic has to be “clarified”!
 The topic needs to reworded so that it states clearly
and unambiguously the matter to be investigated,
the variables to be investigated, and participants, if
any, that will be involved.
 Research Work Calendar

Submission
Admission
Progress Monitored by Supervisor/Department

0 6 12 18 24

Time in months

2 Years
Stages Of Research
A. Primary Stage:
1. Observation
2. Interest
3. Crystallization
i. Defining Objectives
ii. Rational
iii. Scope
iv. Methodology
v. Financial Commitments
vi. Sources
4. Formulation of hypotheses
5. Primary synopsis
6. Conceptual clarity
7. Documentation, and
8. Preparation of Bibliography
Secondary Stage:
1. Project planning

2. Project formulation

3. Questionnaire preparation

4. Investigation and Data collection

5. Preparation of final synopsis

6. Compilation of data
7. Classification
8. Tabulation and Presentation of data
9. Experimentation
10. Analysis
11. Testing of hypotheses
C. Tertiary stage:
1.Report writing

2.Observation, Suggestions and Conclusions.