INTRODUCTION TO RESEARCH PROJECT WORK

Mugenda and Mugenda (2003) defines research as a dynamic process of arriving at solutions to problems
through systematic collection, analysis and interpretation of data. It involves an analysis of existing
conclusions and theories with regard to newly discovered information.

Best (1997) defines research as a systematic and objective analysis and recording of controlled
observations that may lead to generalizations, principles and theories resulting in production and ultimate
control of events.

Kotler (1985) defines research as a voyage of discovery and a formal adherence to a well defined system
in order to contribute to knowledge by either discovering new facts / collecting old ones.

Kerlinger (1973) defines research as a systematic controlled empirical and critical investigation of
hypothetical propositions about the presumed relationships among natural phenomena.

NB: simply research can be defined as a search for knowledge.

IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH PROJECT WORK.

Research project work is seen as being important for the following reasons:

 Discovery of new knowledge- it’s the discovery of new facts. This is the core reason for research.
 Describe a phenomenon – description provides knowledge.
 Enable prediction – it’s the ability to estimate a phenomenon.
 To enable control- it’s the ability to regulate phenomenon under study.
 To enable explanation of phenomenon.
 Development of theory- this enables generalization
 Authentication – research is used to either validate/ falsify a theory.
 Expansion and conquest of new horizons- research helps to broaden the horizons of a community.
Through research retrogressive cultural practices are exposed and done away with
 Answering mans curiosity and interest- man being a curious being ,has his questions answered by
research
 Solution of the daily emerging issues and challenges – these are coming up every day and
research is key to finding out their solutions.
 Basis for funding – funding agencies make their funding decisions based on research done
 Demonstration of competency and expertise – through research the competency and expertise of
scholars

TYPES OF RESEARCH PROJECTS

There various types of research namely;

 Qualitative research – it involves the use of non quantitative research methods e.g. participant
observation, focus group discussion, document analysis etc to describe a result. It’s a systematic
collection, analysis, and interpretation of data in order to provide accounts of social events and
objects of research in their natural settings.

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 Quantitative research – it involves use of quantitative methods e.g. averages, variations, standard
deviations, covariance, correlation efficient, questionnaires etc in order to generalize results on
sample populations. It aimed at validation of theories
 Cross sectional research – it gathers information on a population at a single point in time. All the
data is collected at the same time / within a short time frame.
 Longitudinal research – here data is collected over a long period of time. Multiple measurements
are taken over an extended period of time.
 Experimental research – this is research of a scientific nature
 Action research – it’s qualitative and participative in nature. Its conducted with the aim of making
improvements
 Applied research – its research whose findings have direct applications the concerned people and
their problems. It seeks to change people’s lives by addressing the daily problems
 Case studies – this refers to in-depth studies of individual people / organizations
 Historical research – it gathers and analyses historical evidence

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 RESEARCH PROJECT PROPOSAL.

The term proposal refers to suggestions, intentions/ plans. Therefore a research proposal is a research
plan/ suggestion. It’s a report on a plan to conduct a research study. It usually written in future tense and
has the following sections:

 Title page.
 Declaration page.
 Dedication page
 Acknowledgement page.
 Abstract.
 List of abbreviations.
 Table of contents.
 Chapter 1- introduction to the study.
 Chapter 2- literature review.
 Chapter 3- research design and methodology
 References.
 Appendices. - They include the copies of research instruments used in the study, map of the area,
and research permit and introduction letter from the institution.

IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH PROPOSAL

A research proposal is deemed important for the following reasons:

 It helps the person undertaking the study to critically think about the study and be in a position to
predict any imminent difficulties.
 It helps the researcher to remain on track once the research has started since the objectives are
listed in the proposal.
 It helps the researcher to be in a position to know the resources needed for the research albeit on a
tentative basis.
 It justifies the proposed study.
 It can act as a tool to source for financing for the study.
 It outlines the research instruments to be used and the expected outcomes.
 It gives the importance of the expected outcomes.
 It informs others of the proposed study.
 It gives a timeline for the study.

Factors to consider when selecting a research project include:

 Type of project – is there an existing problem that requires to be looked in to and solutions
sought.
 Sources of data – how easy is it to obtain both the primary and secondary data. Will the
instruments you plan to use enable you to acquire the needed data?
 Quality specifications – is the quality of the data you will access up to data.

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  Available technology – is the technology at your disposal adequate for you to conduct the
research and process the data as needed.
 Personnel requirements – do you have enough personnel to conduct the study within the set time
frame.
 Time factor – will you be able to successfully conduct the study within the allotted time.
 Finance available – do you have enough financial resources to adequately meet the needs of the
research study

Formulating research project objectives.

These are derived from the purpose of the study. There are two types of research objectives.

 Main research objectives –

 Specific research objectives

Objectives specify whets to be achieved by the study in specific terms. Simply they act as the guidelines
for the research. Considerations when formulating the objectives are:

 State objectives that are clear, well written and precise.

 Make objectives specific, significant, realistic and achievable.
 Ensure that they flow logically from the statement of need and that they address the problem.
 They should be chronological / hierarchical.
 They should fall within the range of results which are expected i.e they should be within the
scope of the study.

NB: simply the objectives should be SMART.

PREPARATION OF RESEARCH PROPOSAL.

THE steps involved in preparation are:

 Introduction – identification of the research problem, and why it warrants investigation.

 Objectives – these are derived from the research topic. You need to state both the main and
specific research objectives.
 Literature review – here it shows whether there’s any available information on the topic under
study. This can be gotten from books. Journals, previous researches, and internet etc. literature
review forms the foundation upon which further research is done it serves four purposes.
 It helps the researcher to further understand the problem being investigated.
 Helps the researcher to understand the results of previous studies.
 it helps the researcher to identify any gaps that need further identification
 It provides justification of the methods and procedures of data analysis
 Methodology. – This highlights the approaches to be used in data collection and analysis and why
they were chosen.
 Analysis/ data interpretation – this details how the data collected will be analyzed/ interpreted
leading to the formation of conclusions.
 Budgeting – this gives a breakdown of the financial requirements for the study.

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 Timing – this gives a breakdown of the time allotments for each phase of the study then the
cumulative time requirements of the whole study

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 METHODOLOGY

Choosing a representative sample.

The term sampling refers to the procedure a researcher uses to gather people / places to study. In
other words it refers to the technique the researcher uses to select members / items for the
sample. According to Orodho and Kombo (2002) it’s a process of selecting a number of
individuals / objects from a population such that the selected group contains elements
representative of the characteristics found in the entire group.

According to Webster (1985), a sample refers to a finite part of a statistical population whose
properties are studied to gain information about the whole.

Sampling methods include:

 Probability sampling – the key aspect here is randomization i.e every members of the
population stands en equal chance of being selected for the sample. The sample is
randomly selected. This method enables the researcher to generalize a larger population
and be able to make conclusions. Under this we have the following methods:
 Simple random sampling- the members of the population have an equal chance of
being selected. Nowadays computers are used to select these samples as there are
software’s available for this. Advantages of this method are:
 All members of the population have an equal chance of being selected in
the sample.
 Samples yield data that can be used to generalize a larger population.
 The method allows the researcher to apply inferential statistics to the data.

Disadvantages of this method are

 The sample may be poorly representative.

 Some samples may be over / under represented.
 Some of the members selected may have moved to other areas.
 Systematic sampling – in this system every nth number of the population on a list
is selected from a randomly selected starting point. The “n” is referred to as a
sample interval e.g. if a researcher has a sample of 600 and needs a sample of 30
this means he will select every 20th member i.e 600÷30. The starting point would
be a number between 1 and 20. If 6 was selected as the random starting point then
they would pick 6th, 26th,46th etc advantages of this system are
 Large populations can be analyzed.
 Every member in the population has an equal chance of being included.
 Bias is minimized.

Disadvantages of this method are:

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  The selection of the first member of the group may result to bias of the
entire group
 Stratified sampling – this is whereby the population is divided in to strata/
subgroup based on a certain characteristic of the population. Selection is done
randomly from each strata. The sample in each sub group is selected in such a
way that its proportional to the groups number in the population i.e the bigger the
subgroup the larger the sample. this method is appropriate where the researcher is
interested in matters pertaining to gender, race, age disparities in the population
etc. advantages of this method are:
 The researcher is able to represent not only the overall population but also
key sub groups of the population especially small minority groups.
 The method has more statistical precision.

Disadvantages of the method are:

 If the population isn’t properly stratified then bias can occur.

 Cluster sampling – here the population is divided in to groups / clusters then some
clusters are selected to represent the whole population. Advantages of the method
are:
 It’s cheaper in terms of logistics.

Disadvantages are:

 There’s a risk of missing important subgroups and not having complete

representation of the target population
 Non probability sampling – here members of the population do not have an equal chance
of being selected in the sample. methods in this group include:
 Purposive sampling – it’s where the population being studied is small and a
known characteristic is to be studied intensively. The researcher never knows if
the sample to be studied is representative
 Convenience sampling – here the researcher questions whoever is available/
whoever he meets. The sample isn’t considered to be representative hence the
findings are deemed unreliable.
 Voluntary sampling – here members of the population volunteer to form the
sample to be studied i.e the subjects are identified based on their willingness to
take part in the study. The sample isn’t deemed to be representative.
 Snow ball sampling – a few subjects are identified and the needed information
obtained from them. Then they are asked to identify others who have the needed
information who in turn identify other subjects.

Instruments for collecting data

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This refers to the tools used to collect the data for analysis from the field. They are categorized in
to:

 Social science research instruments

 Questionnaires – this is a set of questions. The subjects fill in answers in written
form then the researcher collects the filled questionnaires. They work well with
large samples. Advantages of questionnaires are:
 Data can be collected from a large sample.
 Confidentiality is upheld.
 Saves on time.
 They are cheap.
 They can easily be made anonymous.

Disadvantages are:

 The response rate may be low in some instances.

 There’s no direct contact between the researcher and the subjects hence
misunderstandings can’t be clarified.
 There’s no opportunity to ask for further information relating to
information given in the questionnaires
 Responses may be incomplete.
 There’s no assurance that the questions are understood.
 Suspicious subjects may give wrong answers

Qualities of a good questionnaire are:

 It should be easy to understand. - It should be straight to the point.

 Instructions are clearly given – there are a few words of explanation in
each new section
 The questions are focused and limited to a single idea- they are short and
precise.
 Each item included has a specific purpose and contributes to the study.
 The questions shouldn’t be leading questions.
 Observation schedules – this is where the researcher collects information by
directly observing the subjects/ the event under study. It’s of two types
 Structured observation – where the desired observations are predetermined
then a checklist is used to record down the data.
 Unstructured observation – this is where the desired observations can’t be
predetermined before
 Industrial and scientific research instruments
 Machines – this is where the researcher uses machines to collect data from the
field

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  Hand tools and aids – these are manual gadgets used for data collection.
 Apparatus and measuring instruments – this is where the researcher actually goes
out in to the field to collect actual data using measuring apparatus. These include
items like wind vane, rain gauge etc.

Types of data.

Data is classified in to:

 Dimensional measurements – this is data comprising of physical measurements of the

object / place under study.
 Statistical data -this is factual data relating to issues like number of births, number of
deaths, number of marriages in a particular region/ period.
 Diagrammatic and photographic data – this is where data is collected using diagrams and
photographs

Data collection

These are methods used to collect data. They include

 Observations – this is where the researcher collects data by actually observing the
subjects/ the phenomena under study.
 Interviews this is where the researcher engages in an oral conversation with the subject
with a view of acquiring the needed information. They are classified in to:
 Unstructured interviews – the questions to be asked and the expected answers
can’t be pre defined. The interview is informal and conversational
 Semi structured interview- the interview is based on an interview guide. This is a
written list of questions to be asked by the interviewer.
 Structured interview- it involves subjecting every subject in the sample to the
same stimuli e.g. asking every member of the sample the same question. they
mainly consist of closed end questions
 Measurement- this involves the measuring of dimensions of an object under study.
 Photography – this is where data is captured using photographs.
 Counting – this involves taking the numerical count of something usually under study.

Data analysis

Data analysis methods include the use of graphical and tabular methods. Graphs can either be
linear, pie charts / bar graphs. These are used to show the trends identified in the data collected.

The general procedure for carrying out research is

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Research problem

Identifying the
research problem

Stating the research

objectives and
hypothesis

Stating the
conceptual frame
work

Definition of terms

Literature review

Research design

Instrumentation.

Data collection

Data analysis and

presentation

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Conclusions and
recommendation
s

PRESENTATION

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