RESEARCH PROCESS- STEPS

Professor Sushma Batra

Department of Social Work
University of Delhi
[email protected]
The Presentation Includes:

 What is Research?
 Characteristics of Research
 Classification of Research
 What is Scientific Method?
 Social Science Research and Social Work Research
 What are the the essential steps in undertaking research in Social
Science?
What is Research?

 Research- Two Syllables: Re + Search Meaning again a new or

over again searching carefully
 Grinnell- Research is a structured enquiry that utilizes acceptable
scientific methodology to solve problems and create new
knowledge that is generally applicable.
 Burns defines research as a systematic investigation to find
answers to a problem.
 Kerlinger- Scientific research is a systematic, controlled empirical
and critical investigation of propositions about the presumed
relationships about various phenomenon.
Characteristics of Research:

In order to qualify as research the process must contain following

characteristics:
It should be:
 Controlled
 Rigorous
 Systematic
 Valid and Verifiable
 Empirical
 Critical
Classification of Research:
1) Application based Classification:
 Pure and Applied
2) Objectives based Classification:
 Exploratory
 Descriptive
 Correlational
 Experimental
3) Inquiry mode Classification:
 Quantitative Research and Qualitative Research
What is Scientific Method?

 Scientific method aims at discovering facts as they are in reality.

 Scientific method is concerned with ‘Classes of objects’ and not
‘individual objects’.
 Scietific method is objective in nature.
 Scientific method makes it possible to make predictions about
the phenomenon.
 It is systematic observation, classification and interpretation of
data.
Steps in Undertaking Research in Social
Sciences:
 Formulation of Research Problem
 Literature Review
 Developing Research Questions and formulating Research
Objectives
 Coceptualizing Research Design
 Constructing Hypothesis
 Universe and Sampling Design
 Constructing the instrument of data collection
 Data processing and Analysis
 Report Writing
Formulating the Research Problem:

 Step I : Formulating a Research Problem:

 Formulating a research problem is the first and fare most step in
the research process.
 A research problem initially is broad which describes the area of
interest of the researcher.
 It is mostly based upon the past research or the relationship
observed/conceived between two variables.
 It becomes clear and makes the topic more precise after the
researcher has undertaken an in depth literature review.
 The clearly defined problem helps in understanding the length,
width and depth of the problem.
Formulating the Research Problem:
Contd.
Essentials of defining a problem:
 What is the purpose of the study?
 How much is already known?
 Is additional information necessary?
 How is it to be measured?
 How to collect data?
 Is time/money adequate for the research
 Formulating the Research Problem: Contd.

Important considerations in formulating the research problem:

 Interest of the researcher
 Magnitude
 Measureable Concepts
 Level of Expertise
 Relevance
 Availability of Data
 Ethical Issues
Literature Review

 Reviewing the available literature is one of the essential

preliminary tasks while undertaking a research study.
 It has the following functions:
 It provides a theoretical background to your study.
 It brings forth the relationship between what you propose to
study and what has already been studied earlier by the other
researcher.
 You can identify the existing gaps in the available literature and
come up with how your findings will contribute to the existing
body of knowledge in the discipline of your study.
 It also helps to contextualise your findings
Literature Review: Contd….

 Thus the final outcome of undertaking a review of

literature is to bring clarity
 And focus to your research problem, improve your
research methodology,
 Broaden your knowledge base in your research are and to
contextualise your
 Findings by identifying gaps in the reviewed literature
  The literature review helps in framing objectives of the
study
 Developing Research Questions and Designing
objectives

Raising Research Questions

The research questions are developed by dissecting the title of the

research problem into smaller sub areas. Once you have developed
an exhaustive list of the sub areas, you develop the research
questions which you feel are relevant for your study and are needed
to be answered in the course of your study.
Developing Research Questions and Designing
objectives
Formulating Objectives
The objectives are generally listed under two headings:
 Main Objectives
 Sub objectives

It is usual to say for the researchers that their objectives are ‘SMART’
 ‘S’ Specific- states exactly what one needs to achieve.
 ‘M’ Measurable – includes an indicator to measure the concepts used.
 ‘A’ Achievable- objectives are achievable in a specific time frame.
 ‘R’ Realistic- Can be challenging but must be achievable.
 ‘T’ Time bound - with a clear end date or timescale.
Developing Research Questions and
Designing objectives
Establishing Operational Definitions
 In every research study you establish a set of rules, indicators to
clearly define the concepts used in the research problem, research
questions or objectives E.g. you need to define who all will be the
adolescents in your study if the study is on adolescents etc.
Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria
 The researcher needs to define the criteria for including/ excluding
the sampling units in the research study in order to maintain
uniformity in selection/rejection of items. This criteria needs to be
clearly spelled before undertaking the study.
Developing Research Questions and
Designing objectives
Scope of the Study

 The scope of the study should also be decided before hand to

geographically demarcate the boundaries of the research study.
Conceptualising a Research Design:

An extremely important feature of research is the use of appropriate


research design.
The main function of selecting the right research design will determine how
you will find answer to your research question?
The research design sets out the logic of your inquiry. It helps you in
deciding the method of data collection, the sampling strategy or the frame
of analysis.
For any investigation, the selection of an appropriate research design is
crucial to enable you to arrive at valid findings, comparisons and conclusion.
The research design can be Exploratory, Descriptive or Experimental
depending on the purpose and of the research study and its specified
objectives.
Formulating Hypothesis:
Hypothesis bring clarity, specificity and focus to a research problem, but are not
always essential for a study.

A Hypothesis is a hunch, assumption, suspicion, assertion or n idea about a

phenomenon, relationship or situation, the reality or truth of which is needed to be
tested. A researcher calls these assumptions as hypothesis which becomes the
basis of inquiry.
Hypothesis has following characteristics:
 It is a tentative preposition.
 Its validity remains unknown till it is empirically tested.
 It always specifies a relationship or comparison between two variables taken
together.
Formulating Hypothesis: Contd…….
 Broadly there are two hypothesis for each constructed assumption:
 Research hypothesis and Null Hypothesis.
 It is to be remembered that it is always the Null hypothesis (Ho)
which is mostly put to test and it is always neutral claiming that there
is no relationship between the two variables under study. Based on
the decision of rejecting/accepting Ho, the research hypothesis (H1)
is finally accepted/ rejected. These are two hypothesis are always
completely opposite in nature. The usual steps followed in testing
the hypothesis are always specific and the order is followed.
 The research hypothesis is a study can be more than one (any
number) but for each research hypothesis an alternative null
hypothesis is constructed. Thus there are always equal number of
research hypothesis and null hypothesis.
Universe and Sampling Design

 In most of the research studies a complete enumeration of all

the items in the ‘universe’ is not possible under many
circumstances, due to the requirement of great deal of time,
money and energy.
 It is a definite plan chalked out prior to actual collection of data
for obtaining a sample from the universe. The sample selected
must be adequate in size and also represent the universe.
 There are three types of sampling designs:
 Random/ Probability sampling design.
 Non Random/ Non probability sampling designs and
 Mixed sampling designs.
Universe and Sampling Design: Contd….

 There are different methods of selecting sample in the first two

types of sampling design. You need to be acquainted with
different methods of selecting a sample using these designs. You
need to know the strengths and weakness of each and the
situations in which they can or cannot be applied in order to
select the most appropriate design. The type of sampling design
you use also determines your ability to generalise from the
sample to the total population and the type of statistical tests
you can perform on the data.
Methods and Tool of Data Collection:
 The data may be collected from either of the two sources –
secondary data and primary data.
 Secondary data are collected from books, journals, newspapers,
reports of the available studies.
 Primary data is always collected by the research her by
interviewing the subjects or by using the questionnaire or the
interviews schedule.
 Depending on the objectives of the research study, the
researcher will decide about the method and tool of data
collection.
 There are specific consideration which are needed to be kept in
mind while constructing the instrument type of questions to be
included/exclude in the instrument.
Methods and Tool of Data Collection:
Contd….
 The degree of structuring needed to be done before actually
administrating the tool is also dependent on the plan of
analysing data.
 It needs to be remembered that collecting data through any one
of the methods may involve some ethical considerations which
must be kept in mind of the researcher.
 Further if you are planning to use a computer for data analysis,
you may wish to provide space for coding the data on the
research instrument.
 Data Processing and Analysis:
The information collected is called raw data. It required specific steps to
be followed before being able to draw inferences.
It includes
 Data Editing
 Coding Data : Developing a code book
 Developing a frame of analysis for questions studies.
 The researcher can analyse the data by processing it manually as well as
with the help of computers (Making use of SPSS Package)
 Writing Research Report:

The last step in the research process is writing the research


process is writing the research report.
As Burns writes ‘extremely valuable and interesting practical
work may be spoiled at the last minute by a student who is not
able to communicate the results easily (1994).
In addition to your undertaking of research methodology, the
quality of the report depends upon :
Written communication skills
Clarity of thought,
Ability to express thoughts in a logical, rational and sequential
manner and also
Knowledge base of the subject area is crucial.
Writing Research Report: Contd……

 Experience in conducting research

 Report Writing Skills
 The knowledge of statistical procedures
 The ability to make use of diagrams and graphs
Writing Research Report: Contd……

 The report must be followed by developing proper chapterization

followed by an academic style of referencing at the end. There
are several well established systems for writing a bibliography
and your choice is dependent upon the preference of the
discipline and university. The most common styles used are the
American Psychological Association system (APA Style) and the
Harvard System.
Writing Research Report: Contd……

 In the end it can only be said that all the steps are formulated at
the convenience of the researcher. By and large they are all inter
related and overlapping. The neglect in any step is likely to affect
the reliability and validity of findings. Therefore, a scientific mind
based on objective thinking is really needed in undertaking any
research study.