Writing a Good Research Method

The methods section of a research paper provides the information by which a study’s
validity is judged. The method section answers two main questions: 1) How was the
data collected or generated? 2) How was it analysed? The writing should be direct and
precise and written in the past tense.

Importance of a Good Methodology Section

You must explain how you obtained and analysed your results for the following
reasons:

• Readers need to know how the data was obtained because the method you
choose affects the results and, by extension, how you likely interpreted those
results.

• Methodology is crucial for any branch of scholarship because an unreliable

method produces unreliable results and it misappropriates interpretations
of findings.

• In most cases, there are a variety of different methods you can choose to
investigate a research problem. Your methodology section of your paper
should make clear the reasons why you chose a particular method or
procedure.

• The reader wants to know that the data was collected or generated in a way
that is consistent with accepted practice in the field of study. For example, if
you are using a questionnaire, readers need to know that it offered your
respondents a reasonable range of answers to choose from.

• The research method must be appropriate to the objectives of the study. For
example, be sure you have a large enough sample size to be able to generalize
and make recommendations based upon the findings.

• The methodology should discuss the problems that were anticipated and the
steps you took to prevent them from occurring. For any problems that did
arise, you must describe the ways in which their impact was minimized or why
these problems do not affect the findings in any way that impacts your
interpretation of the data.

• Often in social science research, it is useful for other researchers to adapt or

replicate your methodology. Therefore, it is important to always provide
sufficient information to allow others to use or replicate the study. This
information is particularly important when a new method had been developed or
an innovative use of an existing method has been utilized.

Structure and Writing Style

I. Groups of Research Methods
There are two main groups of research methods in the social sciences:

1. The empirical-analytical group approaches the study of social sciences in a

similar manner that researchers study the natural sciences. This type of research
focuses on objective knowledge, research questions that can be answered yes or
no, and operational definitions of variables to be measured. The empirical-
analytical group employs deductive reasoning that uses existing theory as a
foundation for hypotheses that need to be tested. This approach is focused on
explanation.
2. The interpretative group is focused on understanding phenomenon in a
comprehensive, holistic way. This research method allows you to recognize your
connection to the subject under study. Because the interpretative group focuses
more on subjective knowledge, it requires careful interpretation of variables.

II. Content

An effectively written methodology section should:

• Introduce the overall methodological approach for investigating your

research problem. Is your study qualitative or quantitative or a combination of
both (mixed method)? Are you going to take a special approach, such as action
research, or a more neutral stance?
• Indicate how the approach fits the overall research design. Your methods
should have a clear connection with your research problem. In other words, make
sure that your methods will actually address the problem. One of the most
common deficiencies found in research papers is that the proposed methodology
is unsuited to achieving the stated objective of your paper.
• Describe the specific methods of data collection you are going to use, such
as, surveys, interviews, questionnaires, observation, archival research. If you are
analysing existing data, such as a data set or archival documents, describe how it
was originally created or gathered and by whom.
• Explain how you intend to analyze your results. Will you use statistical analysis?
Will you use specific theoretical perspectives to help you analyse a text or explain
observed behaviours?
• Provide background and rationale for methodologies that are unfamiliar for
your readers. Very often in the social sciences, research problems and the
methods for investigating them require more explanation/rationale than widely
accepted rules governing the natural and physical sciences. Be clear and concise
in your explanation.
• Provide a rationale for subject selection and sampling procedure. For
instance, if you propose to conduct interviews, how do you intend to select the
sample population? If you are analysing texts, which texts have you chosen, and
why? If you are using statistics, why is this set of statistics being used? If other data
sources exist, explain why the data you chose is most appropriate.
 • Address potential limitations. Are there any practical limitations that could
affect your data collection? How will you attempt to control for potential
confounding variables and errors? If your methodology may lead to problems you
can anticipate, state this openly and show why pursuing this methodology
outweighs the risk of these problems cropping up.

NOTE: Once you have written all of the elements of the methods section,
subsequent revisions should focus on how to present those elements as clearly and
as logically as possibly. The description of how you prepared to study the research
problem, how you gathered the data, and the protocol for analysing the data should be
organized chronologically. For clarity, when a large amount of detail must be presented,
information should be presented in sub-sections according to topic.

III. Problems to Avoid

Irrelevant Detail

The methodology section of your paper should be thorough but to the point. Don’t
provide any background information that doesn’t directly help the reader to understand
why a particular method was chosen, how the data was gathered or obtained, and how
it was analysed.

Unnecessary Explanation of Basic Procedures

Remember that you are not writing a how-to guide about a particular method. You should
make the assumption that readers possess a basic understanding of how to investigate
the research problem on their own and, therefore, you do not have to go into great detail
about specific methodological procedures. The focus should be on how you applied a
method, not on the mechanics of doing a method. NOTE: An exception to this rule is if you
select an unconventional approach to doing the method; if this is the case, be sure to
explain why this approach was chosen and how it enhances the overall research process.

Problem Blindness

It is almost a given that you will encounter problems when collecting or generating your
data. Do not ignore these problems or pretend they did not occur. Often, documenting
how you overcame obstacles can form an interesting part of the methodology. It
demonstrates to the reader that you can provide a cogent rationale for the decisions you
made to minimize the impact of any problems that arose.
Literature Review

Just as the literature review section of your paper provides an overview of sources you
have examined while researching a particular topic, the methodology section should cite
any sources that informed your choice and application of a particular method [i.e., the
choice of a survey should include any citations to the works you used to help construct
the survey].

It’s More than Sources of Information!

A description of a research study's method should not be confused with a description of

the sources of information. Such a list of sources is useful in itself, especially if it is
accompanied by an explanation about the selection and use of the sources. The
description of the project's methodology complements a list of sources in that it sets forth
the organization and interpretation of information emanating from those sources.

For academic writing help, focus on these criteria and tips on how to write a great
research methodology for your academic article

The Methodology section portrays the reasoning for the application of certain
techniques and methods in the context of the study.

For your academic article, when you describe and explain your chosen methods it is
very important to correlate them to your research questions and/or hypotheses. The
description of the methods used should include enough details so that the study can be
replicated by other Researchers, or at least repeated in a similar situation or framework.

Every stage of your research needs to be explained and justified with clear information
on why you chose those particular methods, and how they help you answer your
research question or purpose.

As the Authors, in this section you get to explain the rationale of your article for other
Researchers. You should focus on answering the following questions:

• How did you collect the data or how did you generate the data?
• Which research methods did you use?
• Why did you choose these methods and techniques?
• How did you use these methods for analysing the research question or problem?

The responses to these questions should be clear and precise, and the answers should
be written in past tense.

First off, let’s establish the differences between research methods and research
methodology.
Research Methods and Research Methodology

As an Academic and Author of valuable research papers, it’s important not to confuse
these two terms.

Research Methodology Definition

Research Methodology refers the discussion regarding the specific methods chosen and
used in a research paper. This discussion also encompasses the theoretical concepts
that further provide information about the methods selection and application.

In other words, you should highlight how these theoretical concepts are connected with
these methods in a larger knowledge framework and explain their relevance in
examining the purpose, problem and questions of your study. Thus, the discussion that
forms your academic article’s research methodology also incorporates an extensive
literature review about similar methods, used by other Authors to examine a certain
research subject.

Research Method Definition

A Research Method represents the technical steps involved in conducting the research.
Details about the methods focus on characterizing and defining them, but also
explaining your chosen techniques, and providing a full account on the procedures used
for selecting, collecting and analysing the data.

Important Tips for a Good Methodology Section

The methodology section is very important for the credibility of your article and for a
professional academic writing style.

Data Collection or Generation for Your Academic Article

Readers, academics and other researchers need to know how the information used in
your academic article was collected. The research methods used for collecting or
generating data will influence the discoveries and, by extension, how you will interpret
them and explain their contribution to general knowledge.

The most basic methods for data collection are:

Secondary data

Secondary data are data that have been previously collected or gathered for other
purposes than the aim of the academic article’s study. This type of data is already
available, in different forms, from a variety of sources.

Secondary data collection could lead to Internal or External secondary data research.
 • Internal secondary data research

– particularly related to a company or organization, internal sources (such as

sales data, financial data, operations-related data, etc.) can be easily attained and
re-purposed to explore research questions about different aspects.

• External secondary data research

– represents a study that uses existing data on a certain research subject from
government statistics, published market research reports from different
organizations, international agencies (such as IMF, World Bank, etc.), and so on.

Primary data

Primary data represent data originated for the specific purpose of the study, with its
research questions. The methods vary on how Authors and Researchers conduct an
experiment, survey or study, but, in general, it uses a particular scientific method.

Primary data collection could lead to Quantitative and Qualitative research.

• Quantitative research

or empirical-analytical research focuses on a certain research purpose, with its

complementary research questions and operational definitions of the variables
to be measured. This type of study uses deductive reasoning and established
theories as a foundation for the hypotheses that will be tested and explained.

• Qualitative research

or interpretative research focuses on analytically disclosing certain practices or

behaviours, and then showing how these behaviours or practices can be
grouped or clustered to lead to observable outcomes. This type of research is
more subjective in nature, and requires careful interpretation of the variables.

Readers need to understand how the information was gathered or generated in a way
that is consistent with research practices in a field of study. For instance, if you are
using a multiple-choice survey, the readers need to know which questionnaire items
you have examined in your primary quantitative research. Similarly, if your academic
article involves secondary data from FED or Eurostat it is important to mention the
variables used in your study, their values, and their time-frame.

For primary research, that involve surveys, experiments or observations, for a valuable
academic article, Authors should provide information about:

• Study participants or group participants,

• Inclusion or exclusion criteria
Selecting and Applying Research Methods

Establishing the main premises of methodology is pivotal for any research because a
method or technique that is not reliable for a certain study context will lead to
unreliable results, and the outcomes’ interpretation (and overall academic article) will
not be valuable.

In most cases, there is a wide variety of methods and procedures that you can use to
explore a research topic in your academic article. The methods section should
fully explain the reasons for choosing a specific methodology or technique.

Also, it’s essential that you describe the specific research methods of data collection
you are going to use, whether they are primary or secondary data collection.

For primary research methods, describe the surveys, interviews, observation methods,
etc.

For secondary research methods, describe how the data was originally created,
gathered and which institution created and published it.

Reasons for Choosing Specific Research Methods

For this aspect that characterizes a good research methodology, indicate how the
research approach fits with the general study, considering the literature review
outline and format, and the following sections.

The methods you choose should have a clear connection with the overall research
approach and you need to explain the reasons for choosing the research techniques in
your study, and how they help you towards understanding your study’s purpose.

A common limitation of academic articles found in research papers is that the premises
of the methodology are not backed by reasons on how they help achieve the aims of
the article.

Data Analysis Methods

This section should also focus on information on how you intend to analyse your
results.

Describe how you plan and intend to achieve an accurate assessment of the
hypotheses, relationships, patterns, trends, distributions associated with your data and
research purpose.

The data type, how it was measured, and which statistical tests were conducted and
performed, should be detailed and reported in an accurate manner.

For explaining the data analysis methods, you should aim to answer questions, such as:
 • Will your research be based on statistical analysis?
• Will you use theoretical frameworks to help you (and your Readers) analyze a set
of hypotheses or relationships?
• Which data analysis methods will you choose?
• Which other Authors or studies have used the same methods and should be
cited in your academic article?

Issues to Avoid

There are certain aspects that you need to pay extra attention in relation to your
research methodology section. The most common issues to avoid are:

• Irrelevant details and complicated background information that provides

too information and does not provide accurate understanding for Readers
• Unnecessary description and explanations of basic or well-known procedures,
for an academic audience who is already has a basin understanding of the study
• For unconventional research approaches, it is important to provide accurate
details and explain why your innovative method contributes to general
knowledge (save more details for your Discussion/ Conclusion section in which
you can highlight your contributions)
• Research limitations and obstacles should be described in a separate section
(Research Limitations)
• The methodology should include sources and references that support your
choice of methods and procedures, compared to the literature review that
provides a general outlook and framework for your study.