WHAT IS RESEARCH ?

RESEARCH DESIGN
A research design is a framework or blueprint used to guide
a research project towards its objectives.
Research design stands for advance planning of methods to
be adopted for collecting the relevant data and technique to
be used.
DEFINITION
The research design is the master plan which contains
several methods and procedures for collecting and analyzing
the needed information.
It is a systematic plan of what is to be done, how it will be
done and how the data will be collected and analysed.
FEATURES OF RESEARCH DESIGN
It clearly defines the research problem.
It illustrates methods and techniques to be used.
Flexible
Efficient
Economical

NEED OF RESEARCH DESIGN

It saves time.
Helps in selecting tools, methods and techniques.
Provide direction.
Reduce chances for biasness.
Bears least cost.
Helps in decision making.
Research design prevent blind searching.
 Provides reliability of the results.
IMPORTANT CONCEPTS OF RESEARCH DESIGN
Dependent variables
Dependent variables are not controlled or manipulated in
any way by the researcher.
Generally, these variables are the causes that have an effect
on other variables.
DIFFERENCE
INDEPENDENT VARIABLES
The value of an independent value can be changed.
Controllable variables.
cause
DEPENDENT VARIABLES
The value of a dependent variable cannot be changed.
Uncontrollable variables but it should measurable
effect
Independent variables
Independent variables are those variables that are more or
less controlled and manipulated by the researcher.
These are the variables which determine the presumed
cause and affect the dependent variables.
Examples :-
How stress affects mental state of human beings?
Independent variable STRESS
Dependent variable MENTAL STATE OF HUMAN BEINGS
Here, we can directly change our stress level and measure how
those stress level change mental state.
 Some other Examples
Independent variables
Hours worked
Total calories consumed
Number of assignment completed
Dependent variables
Amount of money earned
Total weight gain
Increase grade
Extraneous variables (External)
Extraneous variables are those variables which are not the
independent variables but it may influence the dependent
variables.
In general words, independent variables that are not related
to the research study, but may affect the dependent
variables are termed as extraneous variables.
When we conduct experiments there are other variables
that can affect our results, if we do not control them. The
researcher wants to make sure that it is the manipulation of
the independent variable that has changed the dependent
variable. Hence, all the other variables that could affect the
DV to change must be controlled. These other variables are
called extraneous or confounding variables.
Control
The most significant quality of a good research design is to
reduce the influence/effect of extraneous variables.
Control is a technical term, which is used while designing the
study, by reducing the effects of extraneous variables on
dependent variables. Besides, in experimental studies, the
 term control refers to the restraining of experimental
conditions.
CONFOUNDED RELATIONSHIP
When the dependent variables is not free from the influence
of extraneous variables, the relationship between the
dependent and independent variables is said to be
confounded by an extraneous variables.
if extraneous variables are not controlled then they may
become confounding variables.
Research hypothesis
A research hypothesis is a predictive statement that relates
an independent variable to dependent variable.
In simple words, it is a formal statement that presents the
expected relationship between an independent and
dependent variable.
INDEPENDENT VARIABLES
Increased facultys efficiency will improve students results

DEPENDENT VARIABLES
EXPERIMENTAL & NON-EXPERIMENTAL HYPOTHESIS-
TESTING RESEARCH
When the purpose of research is to test a research
hypothesis, it is termed as hypothesis-testing research.
It can be of the experimental design or non-experimental
design.
Research in which the independent variable is manipulated is
termed experimental hypothesis-testing research.
A research in which an independent variable is not
manipulated is called non-experimental hypothesis-testing
research.
 Different Research Designs
1. Research design for exploratory or formulative
studies
Research conducted for a problem that has not been clearly
defined. It often occurs before we know enough to make
conceptual distinctions or posit an explanatory relationship.
Exploratory research helps determine the best research
design, data collection method and selection of subjects. It
should draw definitive conclusions only with extreme
caution.

In this type of design, a vague problem is selected and

understood and is then followed by an exploratory research
to find a new hypothesis and then carrying out conclusion
research decisions to finally get new ideas.

Aims at finding a new hypothesis.

Individual surveys, referring to secondary sources of data etc.

play an important role in such research designs.

Reviewing related literature, following or surveying people

having practical experience in the problem related field act as
very important and most commonly used methods by an
exploratory researcher.
2. Research design for conclusive studies
Also referred to as the research design for the descriptive studies
and is further divided as follows
a. Case Study method
 Another type of descriptive research method is called a case
study. A case study involves making detailed observations about
one specific case. For instance, a medical student who is
interested in learning more about a particularly unique patient
might study the behaviors and thought processes of that one
individual. This could consist of observations or interviews
Finds extensive use in commerce and industry.
Very respectable method of teaching and research in
management.
Helps greatly in knowing the causes and the results of the
incident of the phenomenon.
b. Statistical method
Statistics is the study of the collection, analysis,
interpretation, presentation and organization of data.In
applying statistics to e.g. a scientific, industrial, or societal
problem, it is necessary to begin with a population or
process to be studied.
Also trying to find its place in commerce and industry.
Act as method of correlation and regressions, analysis, chi
square etc.
Has been made very rigorous and sophisticated by coming
up of the computers
3. Research design for experimental studies
Experimental Research - An attempt by the researcher to
maintain control over all factors that may affect the result of
an experiment. In doing this, the researcher attempts to
determine or predict what may occur.
Experimental Design - A blueprint of the procedure that
enables the researcher to test his hypothesis by reaching
valid conclusions about relationships between independent
and dependent variables. It refers to the conceptual
framework within which the experiment is conducted.
The experimenter is often interested in the effect of some process
or intervention (the "treatment") on some objects (the
"experimental units"), which may be people, parts of people,
groups of people, plants, animals, etc. D
PRINCIPLE OF REPLICATION
According to this principle, the experiment should be
conducted more then once i.e. it should be repeated again
and again.
For Example: In experiment being conducted to test the
effectiveness of teaching methods, there should be more
than one experiment group and control group. The treatment
i.e. teaching method should be administered more than one
group. The data would then be collected from all groups and
significant comparison can be made to test the
effectiveness. It increase the accuracy of study.
Principle of Randomization
Randomization used to control the effect of extraneous
variables. The units and treatment are randomly assigned so
that variation caused by extraneous variables. The unit and
treatment are randomly assigned so that the variations are
caused by extraneous variables can be controlled and can be
clubbed under the general factor chance.
Principle of Randomization help us to obtain better estimate
of experimental error. The effect of extraneous variable are
randomly distributed among groups
Principle of local control
Using this principle, it becomes possible for the researcher to
measure and eliminate the effect of extraneous variables.
The known source of variability i.e. the extraneous factor is
made to vary deliberately over wide range in the manner
that its effect can be measured.
For example: IQ is an extraneous factor which may include
the study on effct of teaching methods on students
performance. To control this effect, the students with similar
IQ can be clubbed in one group. Hence the difference in
performance among groups can be caused due to IQ
variations can be extracted and then eliminated from the
results of the study.