 A research design is the arrangement of conditions for

collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to

combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in
procedure. (Claire Selltiz, 1962)

 The research is the plan, structure, and strategy of

investigations of answering the research question is the overall
plan or blueprint the researchers select to carry our their study.
 Research design is always gives the answers of following
questions
 What is the study about ?

 Why is the study being made ?

 Where will the study be carried out ?

 What type of data is required ?

 Where can the required data be found ?

 What periods of time will the study include ?

 What will the sample design ?

 How will the data be analyzed ?

 Minimizes time and money
 Advance planning
 Avoid flaws
 Selection of appropriate tools
 Eliminate bias and marginal error
 It should be flexible, appropriate, efficient, economical and so
on.
 It should give a smallest experimental error and high
reliability and validity.
 Good research design includes following five important
elements.
 Subjects

 Variables

 Time

 Setting

 Investigator’s role
Professor Fisher has enumerated three important principles of
research design.

 Principle of Replication
 Principle of randomization
 Principle of Local Control
 According to this principle, the experiment should be repeated
more than once. Thus, each treatment is applied in many
experimental units instead of one.
 By doing this method, the accuracy and precision of the study
are increased significantly.
 For example, the effect of two variety of rice.
 This principle provides protection
 This principle indicates that the researcher should design or
plan the experiment in such a way that the variations caused
by extraneous factors can all be combined under the general
heading of “Chance”.
 Example : effect of two variety of rice
 The extraneous factors, the know source of variability, is made
to vary deliberately over as wide a range as necessary and this
needs to be done in such a way that the variability it causes
can ne measured and hence eliminated from the experimental
error.
 Example : effect of two variety of rice
 Experimental design - which obey the all
three principles.
 Quasi –Experimental design
 Non- experimental design
 The investigator planning an experiment has many
experimental design option to choose. Experimental designs
fall into two major categories.

 True or Classical experimental design

 Pre- experimental design
 TRUE OR CLASSICAL EXPERIMENTAL DESIGN

 There are three major subdivisions in true or classical

experimental design

 Pre test – post test control group design

 Solomon four group design
 After / post test only experimental design
 PRE TEST – POST TEST CONTROL GROUP DESIGN
 Experimental group

experimental treatment

Pre test Post test

 Control group

Pre test Post test

 In this design, subjects have been designed randomly to the
experimental or control group
 The experimental treatment is given only to those in the
experimental group, and the pre tests and post tests are those
measurements of the dependent variables that are made before
and after the experimental treatment is performed.
 All true experimental designs have subjects randomly assigned
groups, have an experimental treatment introduced to some of
the subjects and have the effects of the treatment observed.
 The investigator is able to account for events occurring
between time 1 and time 2 through observation of control
group

 It also enables the investigator to control for changes in the

instrumentation, since changes or drifts in measurement
should affect both groups equally

 Randomization decreases selection bias and maturation.

 SOLOMON FOUR GROUP DESIGN
 Experimental group I
experimental treatment
Pre test Post test
 Control group I

Pre test Post test

 Experimental group II
experimental treatment
Post test
 Control group II

Post test
 This design employs two experimental groups and two control
groups. Initially, the investigator randomly assigns subjects to
the four groups. Those in the first experimental treatment, and
observed again on occasion 2.
 Those in the experimental group 2 also receive the treatment
but are observed only after the treatment, nor before.
 Those in control group 1 are observed, on occasion 1 and 2,
but they are not given the experimental treatment.
 Those in control group 2 are observed only on the second
occasion without previous observation or treatment.
 It has great potential for generating information about
differential sources of effect on the dependent variable,
because all four groups are studied at the same time, both the
effects of events occurring between time 1 and time 2 and the
maturation of subjects are controlled.

 One can examine the score of control groups 2 for a measure

of maturation without the influence of treatment.

 The invigilator also can compare the different in the groups.

 Experimental group

experimental treatment

Post test

 Control group

Post test
 This design, which is sometimes called after only
control group design.

 This is composed on two randomly assigned groups,

but neither of which is pretested or premeasured in
the before period of time.

 The independent variable introduced into

experimental group and withheld from the control
group.
 This design can be useful in situation where it
is not possible to pretest the subjects or pretest
is non essential
 It is one type of the experimental design
 It have three subdivisions. They are

 One short case study or single case study

 One group pretest – posttest design
 The static group comparison design
 ONE SHORT CASE STUDY OR SINGLE CASE STUDY

Experimental treatment
 Cause change

 In single case study, that studies at once, following a

treatment or an agent presumed to cause change.
 Because the study design has a total absence of
control, it is considered to be little value as an
experiment.
 ONE GROUP PRETEST – POSTTEST DESIGN
 Experimental treatment

Pre test post test

 Here only one group is observed before and after the

independent variable is introduced.
 Loss of the control group decreases the usefulness of the study
but may be necessary in cases where it is not possible or
feasible to have control groups.
 THE STATIC GROUP COMPARISON DESIGN
 The static group that has experienced the
independent variable is compared with one
that has not.
 Here the experimental group received the
independent variable, but control group did not
receive the independent variable.
 It is one which full experimental control, usually
randomization is not possible.
 It has three subdivisions. They are

 Non equivalent control group design or the four celled design without
use of randomization

 The time series quasi experimental design

 The multiple time series design

 Non equivalent control group design or the four celled design without use of
randomization

 Experimental group ( not randomly selected)

experimental treatment

Pre test Post test

 Control group ( not randomly selected)

Pre test Post test

 experimental treatment

 Pre test 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2
post test 1

 The time series experiment design, a single group experiment

comprises of series of observation in the before time period to
establish a baseline. The experimental variable is then
introduced, followed by another series of observation to
examine the effect of the independent variable.
 The multiple time series design
 Experimental group

experimental matter
 Pre test 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2
post test 1

 Control group

Pre test 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2 post

test 1
 This type of design is other wise called as
weakest design.
 Need not obey any principles
 It have so many subdivisions
 Number of human characteristics/ independent
variables are not subject to experimental
manipulation or randomization
 Some variables cannot ethically be manipulated
 For some research, it is not practical to conduct a
true experiment/manipulate variables
 For some situations, it is more realistic to explore
phenomena in more natural manner
 Nonexperimental research is often needed to scope
out the experimental one
 Descriptive/exploratory survey studies
 Interrelationship/difference
 Correlational studies
 Ex post facto studies
 Prediction studies
 Developmental studies
 Cross-sectional & longitudinal studies
 Retrospective & prospective studies
 Broadest category
 Detailed observations, descriptions & documentation
of existing variables
 Little is known about the phenomenon
 Justifies, assesses current conditions/practice
 Variables of interest: opinions, attitudes or facts
 Determines differences between variables
 Data collected by questionnaire or interview
 Researchers only relate one variable to another, no
attempt to determine causation
 Designed to obtain information about
 prevalence
 distribution
 interrelations of variables within a population
 Census vs. sample surveys
 Self-reporting
 Flexibility and broadness
 Superficiality – extensive vs. intensive analysis
Survey Content Survey Administration
 Direct questioning  Different data collection
 Answering how, methods
what,and to what extent  Personal interviews
questions  Telephone interviews
 Usually focus on what
 Self-administered
was done and what questionnaires (SAQs)
people plan to do in the  Mixed-mode strategy
future
 Purpose is to
 observe, describe, & document aspects of a situation as it
naturally occurs
 serve as a starting point for hypothesis generation or theory
development
 Types:
 Descriptive Correlational Studies
 Univariate Descriptive Studies
 Prevalence Studies
 Incidence Studies
 Describes the relationship among variables rather
than infer cause-and-effect relationships

 Are usually cross-sectional

 Could focus on one or more variables
 Undertaken to describe the frequency of
occurrence of a behavior or condition or each
variable rather than relationships between or
among them
 Types:
 Prevalence Studies
 Incidence Studies
 Done to determine the prevalence rate of some
condition at a specific point in time
 Data is obtained from the population at risk for
the condition – cross sectional design
Prevalence Rate (PR) = # cases with condition X K
# in population at risk
 Used to measure the frequency of developing new cases
 Need longitudinal designs

Incidence Rate (IR)=

# new cases with condition over given period X K
# at risk of becoming a new case

 Relative Risk: an estimate of risk of “caseness” in one group

vs. another; contribution of risk factors
 E.g. males vs females for acquiring depression
 Advantage:
 large amount of information can be
obtained from a large population in an
economical manner which is “surprisingly” accurate
 Disadvantages
 Info tends to be superficial as breadth is emphasized
 Expertise in: sampling techniques, questionnaire construction,
interviewing and data analysis to produce a reliable and valid
study.
 Time-consuming & sometimes costly
 Examines if variables covary
 Quantifies the strength or relationship between the variables (not cause &
effect)
 +ve or –ve direction relationship determined
 Advantages:
 Increased flexibility when investigating complex relationships among variables
 Efficient and effective method of collecting a large amount of data
 Potential for practical application in clinical settings
 Potential foundation for future, experimental studies
 Framework for exploring relationships that are not manipulated.
 Disadvantages:
 Unable to manipulate variable of interest
 No randomization in sampling
 Generalizability decreased as dealing with preexisting groups
 Unable to determine a causal relationship because of the lack of manipulation,
control and randomization.
 Literally means ‘from after the fact’
 Also known as causal-comparative studies or comparative studies
 Explores differences/relationships between variables (similar to
quasi-experimental designs)
 Advantages:
 Allows for establishment of a differential effect
 Similar to correlational designs
 Offers a higher level of control

 Disadvantages:
 Lack of control on variables
 Unable to draw causal linkage
 Problem of alternative hypothesis
 Not only concerned with existing status &
interrelationship of phenomena but also with changes
from elapsed time.
 Cross sectional (one/more time points, perhaps
different groups) vs Longitudinal (several time
points with same group over extended period)
 Retrospective (dependent variable has already been
affected by independent variable, link present events
to past events) vs Prospective (link present events to
presumed future effect, less common, considered
stronger design)
Natural Experiments: study of a group
exposed to natural or other phenomenon that
have health or other consequences, compared
with a nonexposed group; people are affected
at random
Path Analytic Studies: using a technique called
path analysis, nonexperimental data is tested
against a hypothesized causal inference
 Cohort studies: trend study in which specific subpopulations
(eg age specific) are examined over time for generational
differences
 prospective & retrospective
 Case-control study: comparison of cases/subjects (with
specific condition), with controls (without condition); only
difference should be exposure to presumed cause
 Cross-sectional design: phenomena under study are
captured during one period of data collection; one point in
time