1._Introduction1

1.
INTRODUCTION
GRM 601 – Research Methods
Course Outline
• This course tackles the major considerations and tasks involved in

conducting research particularly as they pertain to the area of
engineering science.
• The topics to be covered include: Introduction to the nature of

Research, Research conceptual framework, Literature Review, Types
of research proposals and structuring the research proposal,
Qualitative and quantitative Research, Writing and evaluating
research reports, and finally Ethics in research.
Text Books
 Whitley, B.E. Jr. (2002). Principles of Research in

Behavioral Science. New York: McGraw-Hill.
 Zikmund, W. G. (2003). Business Research
Methods. Mason, Ohio: South Western.
 Sekaran, U. (2004). Research Methods for
Business. New York: John Wiley & Sons.
 Neuman, W. L. (2000). Social Research Methods:
Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Boston:
Allyen and Bacon.
Grading
 Assignment (1): 15%
 Assignment (2): 15%
 Midterm Exam: 20%
 Final Exam: 50%
_________________________________
 Final (covering all the course materials)
 The assignments if fact are small projects
Course email
 User ID: [email protected]
 Password: Academygrm601
_________________________________________________
Objectives
 At the end of this course students will be able:
 To sharpen the analytical skills;
 To develop their understanding of the research concerns;
 To develop the ability to convert the research concerns into a

research problem;
 To prepare a roadmap or blueprint of the research – using

appropriate methodologies;
 To conduct the research by following the complete research

process.
Acquiring Knowledge
Humankind needs to KNOW:
Who? When? Why?
How? Where? What?
Tenacity: It has always been so

Intuition: I feel it is so
Authority: They say it is so
Rationalism: It makes sense for it to be so
Empiricism: Data suggests it to be so
Science: It can be demonstrated to be so
Science
Science is a way of thinking, a system of belief; it is a kind of
RELIGION.
Science is a process of inquiry that brings together elements of
both rationalism and empiricism. It employs rational logic and
checks each premise, and each logical step with empirical
observation.
Science is the inter-play of logic with observation

Science
BASIC TENETS OF SCIENCE
A scientist believes that:
1. A true, physical and external universe exists
2. While there may be randomness and thus unpredictability

in the universe, it is primarily an orderly system.
Science
BASIC TENETS OF SCIENCE
3. The principles of this orderly universe can be discovered
E=Mc2 λ=h/mv
F=ma
∆x∆p > h/2π
4. Our knowledge of the universe is always incomplete. New

knowledge can, should, and does alter current ideas.
?
Science
SCIENTIFIC THEORY
The outcome of fundamental science is Scientific Theory.
Scientific Theory is a model of reality.
A model IS NOT reality but only REPRESENTS it.
Therefore
A theory is a formalized set of concepts that organizes
observations and inferences and predicts and explains
phenomena.
Research
Research is also a process of inquiry. It entails the following steps:

1. Posing a question
2. Developing a procedure to answer that question
3. Following that procedure.
However,
Not all research is scientific

Scientific Research
Scientific research is the process of inquiry in which we:
1. Pose a question about the physical world
2. Develop a set of procedures using the rational process
that if followed, would convincingly answer that
question
3. Plan to make appropriate empirical observations
4. Rationally interpret the empirical observation to arrive at
a conclusion.
Epistemology
Research is about acquiring new knowledge. Our study of
research methods should therefore at least partly be concerned
with study of knowledge and ways of obtaining it.
Epistemology:
Epistemology is the branch of philosophy that studies knowledge.
It attempts to answer the basic question: what distinguishes true
(adequate) knowledge from false (inadequate) knowledge?
Epistemology
History of Epistemology
1. Plutonian Epistemology
Knowledge is merely an awareness of absolute, universal Ideas
or Forms, existing independently of any subject trying to
apprehend to them.
2. Aristotelian Epistemology
Puts more emphasis on logical and empirical methods for
gathering knowledge, yet he still accepts the view that such
knowledge is an apprehension of necessary and universal
principles
3. Cartesian Rationalist Epistemology
Sees knowledge as the product of rational reflection
Epistemology
4. Reflection-Correspondence Theory
Knowledge results from a kind of mapping or reflection
of external objects, through our sensory organs,
possibly aided by different observation instruments, to
our brain or mind. Though knowledge has no a priori
existence, like in Plato's conception, but has to be
developed by observation, it is still absolute, in the
sense that any piece of proposed knowledge is
supposed to either truly correspond to a part of external
reality, or not.
Epistemology
5. Kantian Synthesis Theory
According to Kant, knowledge results from the
organization of perceptual data on the basis of inborn
cognitive structures, which he calls "categories". This
epistemology does accept the subjectivity of basic
concepts, like space and time, and the impossibility to
reach purely objective representations of things-in-
themselves. Yet the a priori categories are still static or
given.
Epistemology
Pragmatism
Knowledge consists of models that attempt to represent the
environment in such a way as to simplify problem-solving. No
model can ever hope to capture all relevant information, and
even if such a complete model would exist, it would be too
complicated to use in any practical way. Therefore we must
accept the parallel existence of different models, even
though they may seem contradictory. The model which is to
be chosen depends on the problems that are to be solved.
The basic criterion is that the model should produce correct
(or approximate) predictions (which may be tested) or
problem-solutions, and be as simple as possible. Further
questions about the "Ding an Sich" or ultimate reality behind
the model are meaningless.
Epistemology
BUT, where do models come from?
6.1 Experientialism
Models are built from parts of other models and
empirical data on the basis of trial-and-error
complemented with some heuristics or intuition.
6.2 Constructivism
All knowledge is built up from scratch by the subject of
knowledge. There are no 'givens', neither objective
empirical data or facts, nor inborn categories or
cognitive structures.
Epistemology
The idea of a correspondence to external reality is rejected.

Because of this lacking connection between models and the things
they represent, the danger is that constructivism may lead to
relativism: to the idea that any model constructed by a subject is as
good as any other and that there is no way to distinguish adequate
or 'true' knowledge from inadequate or 'false' knowledge.
Epistemology
Avoiding relativism
A) Individual Constructivism
It assumes that an individual attempts to reach coherence
among the different pieces of knowledge. Constructions that
are inconsistent with the bulk of other knowledge that the
individual has will tend to be rejected. Constructions that
succeed in integrating previously incoherent pieces of
knowledge will be maintained.
Epistemology
Avoiding relativism
B) Social Constructivism
Sees consensus between different subjects as the ultimate
criterion to judge knowledge. 'Truth' or 'reality' will be accorded
only to those constructions on which most people of a social
group agree.
This is the essence of how we should use research as a

means to extend knowledge.
Epistemology
Repeatability and Agreement
It can be seen that the main criterion for a concepts to be accepted as

knowledge is repeatability of the effect from the postulated causes
and even more importantly, consensus or agreement in the “society”
as to the essence of the candidate knowledge presented.
That the earth is flat was (and in certain societies still remains as)
knowledge as long as the society agreed that it was so.
Knowledge is ALWAYS true, there is no FALSE knowledge.

There are INCORRECT facts, but no false knowledge.
Epistemology
This does not mean however that existing knowledge cannot be
falsified (that is to be shown to be incorrect).
All that has to be done is to convince the “society” that the

knowledge held thus far is incorrect. Usually by convincing them of
some new concepts that become new “replacement” knowledge.
The process of replacing knowledge is called Methodology and

the scientific way of replacing knowledge is called Scientific
Methodology
Methodology
Scientific Methodology
A branch of philosophy concerned with methods and techniques of

scientific inquiry, their composition and ability to yield valid
knowledge. The aim of methodology then is to describe and
analyze not the objects or the products but the processes of
scientific inquiry, to investigate the potentials and limitations of
particular techniques, to reveal their pre-suppositions and
epistemological consequences, to suggest structural reasons for
successes and failures, and to develop, test and offer
generalizations about scientific procedures.
Methodology
The phases of scientific research
1. Idea generation and posing of a research question

2. Procedure design phase
3. Observation phase
4. Analysis phase
5. Interpretation phase
6. Communication phase
Methodology
Scientific Inquiry
To acquire knowledge, we have to ask questions. Inquiry is
therefore the beginning of scientific research.
But where do questions come from?

1. Researcher’s own observations
2. Researcher’s personal interest and
experience
3. Other investigators’ theories or
research, particularly “future work”.
4. Seeking solutions to practical problems
Methodology
The scientific procedure
As we saw before, the society may agree with a concept put
forth based on any of the following:
But the quality and
Tenacity: It has always been so defensibility of
Intuition: I feel it is so such agreement
tends to increase
Authority: They say it is so as we go down the
Rationalism: It makes sense for it to be so scale.
Empiricism: Data suggests it to be so

Science: It can be demonstrated to be so
Methodology
Similarly as seen before even within science itself, the
society may agree with a concept put forth based on any
of the following
But the quality and
1. Naturalistic observation defensibility of
2. Case-study method such agreement
tends to increase
3. Correlational research as we go down the
4. Differential research scale.
5. Experimental research
Methodology
The essence is to be as convincing as possible.
Provision of irrefutable evidence – actually sufficiently

irrefutable will suffice – is the way to be maximally convincing.
This can be done by starting off with one or several established

scientific “facts”, and:
1. Demonstrate its (their) inadequacy and directly present a new,
better, more complete approach backed by irrefutable
evidence.
2. Use them as an irrefutable basis upon which to build
tangentially, all new work must be backed by irrefutable
evidence.
Methodology
Repeatability
Generality seems to aid acceptability. If a concept applies in a
more general case, it would be within the domain of experience
of a larger society. Therefore there would be a larger community
of converts. Generality also provides a greater opportunity to
demonstrate instances that the concept put forth would hold.
One can support generality through repeatability.
If your model responds the same way to the same measure and
extent of inputs or pre-conditions at all times (in other words the
process is reliably repeatable) then the model is a good predictor
of outcome, when that specific set of inputs or conditions prevail.
Methodology
Measurement
In order to demonstrate repeatability and predictability, we must

first have measures of the phenomena we propose to deal with.

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1.

• This course tackles the major considerations and tasks involved in

• The topics to be covered include: Introduction to the nature of

 Whitley, B.E. Jr. (2002). Principles of Research in

 To sharpen the analytical skills;

 To develop their understanding of the research concerns;

 To develop the ability to convert the research concerns into a

 To prepare a roadmap or blueprint of the research – using

 To conduct the research by following the complete research

Tenacity: It has always been so

Science is a way of thinking, a system of belief; it is a kind of

Science is the inter-play of logic with observation

2. While there may be randomness and thus unpredictability

4. Our knowledge of the universe is always incomplete. New

Research is also a process of inquiry. It entails the following steps:

Not all research is scientific

The idea of a correspondence to external reality is rejected.

This is the essence of how we should use research as a

Repeatability and Agreement

It can be seen that the main criterion for a concepts to be accepted as

Knowledge is ALWAYS true, there is no FALSE knowledge.

All that has to be done is to convince the “society” that the

The process of replacing knowledge is called Methodology and

A branch of philosophy concerned with methods and techniques of

The phases of scientific research

1. Idea generation and posing of a research question

But where do questions come from?

Empiricism: Data suggests it to be so

Provision of irrefutable evidence – actually sufficiently

This can be done by starting off with one or several established

In order to demonstrate repeatability and predictability, we must

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