QUANTITATIVE METHOD SUMMARY OF THE RESEARCH

PRELIMS REVIEWER PROCESS

Research In Our Everyday Lives • Identify and formulate the research

topic or problem – Select, narrow and
• what we understand is the question or formulate the topic or problem to be
problem to be answered studied and conduct preliminary
literature search.
• how the findings are presented
• Literature search and review – Read
• why the research was conducted
around the subject to help clarify your
• what we know about who conducted research topic, questions, and methods.
the research
• Research objectives, questions, and
• what other people think about the hypotheses – Define clear questions
information and/or hypotheses.

• how the research findings relate to us • Research approach, design, and

strategy – Select a research approach
RESEARCH AS A PROCESS and design that will make it possible to
answer research questions and plan the
– is given the impression of linearity, yet
overall research strategy.
research investigation is often an
iterative process whereby the process of Identify the data you want to record and
conducting the research will give rise to from whom/where you are going to
new ideas which, in turn, feed back into collect it (sampling).
the data collection and analysis stage.
• Data collection

• Data analysis – The data collected

are prepared in such a way that they
describe and highlight what was found
in the research.

Analytical tools are used to describe the

data and measure or explore
relationships between the subjects or
items of interest.

• Generalization and write-up – The

researcher relates the evidence
collected to the research question(s),
draws
conclusions about the question(s) or Choices in research planning must also
hypotheses, and acknowledges take into account the following:
limitations of the research.
• the types of information outputs
Planning your research involves the required – who needs the information
consideration of four overlapping and for what purposes
themes:
• research resources – time, funds,
• Conceptual Approach – the facilities, staff, and access
philosophical underpinnings of research
• ethical considerations – for example,
• Research design – how data within the research plan is it possible to
collection is organized obtain informed consent from all
participants, does the plan involve any
• Data collection techniques – how risks to the safety of the researcher, can
data are collected the researchers assure the
• Sampling – from whom data are confidentiality of all information given?
collected CLARIFYING TERMINOLOGY

• ‘Research topic’ often used

These aspects of research planning can interchangeably or to mean the same
be represented as forming different thing as others’ use of the terms
layers of a research ‘onion’. ‘research problem’ and ‘research
situation’.

• ‘Research strategy’ often used

interchangeably or to mean the same
thing as others’ use of the term
‘research approach’.

• ‘Method’ can refer to a broad strategy

of data collection or a specific tool for
collecting data.

RESEARCH PROCESS
TERMINOLOGY, MODULE
DEFINITIONS

• Plan – General plan of how research

questions will be answered, this
includes the approach and design.
• Research approach – is the • Authoritarian – individuals serve as
theoretical or conceptual basis for the sources of knowledge by virtue of their
research. For example: positivist, social or political position.
interpretivist, realist etc.
• Mystical – knowledge is sought from
• Research design – How data the supernatural world.
collection is organized in order to
answer the research question. • Rationalistic – within the school of
rationalism knowledge can be derived
Basic design types are: from the rules of logic and without
reference to the empirical world.
(1) Situation, ‘snap-shot’ or Baseline
(sometimes called case-study) Scientific knowledge about the world is
based upon empirical observation.
(2) Cross-sectional comparison
• Observation – is used to develop
(3) Longitudinal
theory to help us to describe,
(4) Longitudinal comparison understand, and predict how our world
works.
(5) Experiment.
• Methodology – The procedures by
• Research strategy – refers to a which observations are gathered,
methodological practice or tradition: For evaluated, and used to produce new
example: experiment, survey research, knowledge
or case studies.
• Research methodologies – are the
• Data collection techniques – How rules and procedures by which
data are collected: questionnaire; knowledge is generated and shared.
interview; observation; documentary
analysis.

WHAT MAKES RESEARCH EVALUATE SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH

SCIENTIFIC? (Bryman 2008)
Scientific method is one means by • Reliability - Is the research study
which knowledge is created; however, it repeatable? – that is: are the measures
is not the only way we know or used reliable and consistent. If I go back
understand our world. and repeat the measurements in the
Three other modes of knowing in human same conditions will I get the same
societies can be identified (Frankfort- results?
Nachmias and Nachmias 1996).
• Replication - This refers to the idea When you say that you are undertaking
that the procedures (methodology) a research study to find answers to a
employed in the study question, you are implying that the
process:
• Validity – concerns the integrity of
conclusions that are generated through 1. is being undertaken within a
a research study. framework of a set of philosophies (
research approaches);
“To achieve confidence in the results of
a study demands ‘disciplined inquiry’ 2. uses procedures, methods and
such that the data, arguments, and techniques that have been tested for
reasoning are able to withstand their validity and reliability;
examination by other members of the
3. is designed to be unbiased and
scientific community” (Punch 1998).
objective.
RESEARCH

– is composed of two syllables, re and

• Philosophies – mean approaches e.g.
search. Re means again, anew or over
qualitative, quantitative and the
again. Search means to examine
academic discipline in which you have
closely and carefully, to test and try,
been trained.
or to probe. Together they form a noun
describing a careful, systematic, patient •Validity – means that correct
study and investigation in some field of procedures have been applied to find
knowledge, undertaken to establish answers to a question.
facts or principles.
• Reliability – refers to the quality of a
– Research is a structured enquiry that measurement procedure that provides
utilizes acceptable scientific repeatability and accuracy.
methodology to solve problems and
create new knowledge that is generally • Unbiased and objective – means that
applicable. you have taken each step in an
unbiased manner
• Rajasekar et. al. (2006) – research is
a logical and systematic search for new • Bias – is a deliberate attempt to either
and useful information on a particular conceal or highlight something
topic.
 CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH RESEARCH APPLICATION

• Controlled - implies that, in exploring Two categories of Research:

causality in relation to two variables
(factors), you set up your study in a way • Pure Research – involves developing
that minimizes the effects of other and testing theories and hypotheses
factors affecting the relationship. that are intellectually challenging to the
researcher. The knowledge produced
• Rigorous - you must be scrupulous in through pure research is sought in
ensuring that the procedures followed to order to add to the existing body of
find answers to questions are relevant, research methods.
appropriate and justified.
• Applied research – is done to solve
• Systematic - implies that the specific, practical questions; for policy
procedure adopted to undertake an formulation, administration and
investigation follow a certain logical understanding of a phenomenon. It can
sequence. be exploratory, but is usually
descriptive. Applied research can be
• Valid and verifiable - implies that carried out by academic or industrial
whatever you conclude on the basis of institutions.
your findings is correct and can be
verified by you and others. RESEARCH OBJECTIVES

• Empirical - means that any • Descriptive Research – to describe

conclusions drawn are based upon hard systematically a situation, problem,
evidence gathered from information phenomenon, service or programme, or
collected from real life experiences or provides information about , say, living
observations. condition of a community, or describes
attitudes towards an issue.
• Critical - critical scrutiny of the
procedures used and the methods • Correlational Research – to discover
employed is crucial to a research or establish the existence of a
enquiry. The process of investigation relationship/ interdependence between
must be foolproof and free from two or more aspects of a situation.
drawbacks.
• Explanatory Research – to clarify
TYPES OF RESEARCH why and how there is a relationship
between two or more aspects of a
1. Application of research study situation or phenomenon.
2.Objectives in undertaking the research • Exploratory Research – to explore an
3. Inquiry mode employed area where little is known or to
investigate the possibilities of
undertaking a particular research study – Concerned with actual life research
(feasibility study/pilot study). such as research on increasing
efficiency of a machine, increasing gain
RESEARCH INQUIRY MODE factor of production of a material,
• Structured approach – The pollution control, preparing vaccination
structured approach to inquiry is for a disease, etc.
classified as quantitative research. It is OTHER TYPES OF RESEARCH
more appropriate to determine the
extent of a problem, issue or • Action Research – fact findings to
phenomenon by quantifying the improve the quality of action in the
variation. social world

• Unstructured approach – is classified • Explanatory Research – searching

as qualitative research. This approach explanations for events and
allows flexibility in all aspects of the phenomena, for example finding answer
research process. It is more appropriate to the question why are the things like
to explore the nature of a problem, issue what they are?
or phenomenon without quantifying it.
• Exploratory Research – getting more
– to describe the variation in a information on a topic
phenomenon, situation or attitude
• Comparative Research – obtaining
Rajsekar, ET. al. (2006) proposes Two similarities and differences between
Type Of Research: events, methods, techniques, etc.

• Basic research (theoretical QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE

research) – is an investigation on basic RESEARCH
principles and reasons for occurrence of
a particular event or process or Quantitative Qualitative
phenomenon. Study or investigations of is based on the concerned with
some natural phenomenon or relating to measurement of qualitative
quantity or phenomenon
pure science.
amount. involving quality.
(** Fundamental Research – Research expressed or It is non-numerical,
described in terms descriptive, applies
on improving a theory or a method **)
of one or more reasoning and
• Applied Research – one solves quantities. uses words.
aims to get the
certain problems employing well known
meaning,
and accepted theories and principles. A feeling and
research, the outcome of which has describe the
immediate application is also termed as situation.
applied research.