MCE 510

Research Methodology
Princess’ Part
The Nitty-Gritty of Research Report Writing & Presentation
Research concept begins from systematic investigation to systematic presentation

Research is the systematic investigation and study of materials and sources in

order to establish facts and reach new conclusions.

RESEARCH PROBLEM AND OBJECTIVES

4 factors to consider to determine that a problem is researchable or not.
1. The problem existing in the locality or country but no known solution to
the problem.
2. There are probable solutions but they are not yet tested.
3. The occurrence of phenomena requires scientific investigation to arrive at
precise solution.
4. Serious needs/problems of the people where it demands research.
CHARACTERISTIC OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Specific. The problem should be specifically tested.
 Measurable. It is easy to measure by using research instruments, apparatus
or equipment.
 Achievable. The data are achievable using correct statistical tools to arrive
at precise results.
 Realistic. Real results are attained because they are gathered scientifically
and not manipulated or maneuvered.
 Time-bound. Time frame is required in every activity because the shorter
completion of the activity, the better.
SOURCES OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Specialization of the researcher.
 Current and past researches
 Recommendations from theses, dissertations, and research journals.
 Original and creative ideas of the researcher based on the problems met in
the locality and country.
CRITERIA OF A GOOD RESEARCH PROBLEM
1. Interesting. An interesting research problem attracts the attention of the
researcher and other people to conduct the research project even without
incentive or research grant at all.
2. Innovative. Through replicability in conducting research is allowed, it is
advisable that a research problem is something novel, original, and unique to
 attract the attention of the people and contribute to the economic
development of the country.
3. Cost-effective. A good research problem should be economical and
effective in solving the needs and problems of the society.
4. Relevant to the needs and problems of the people. Not for the personal
aggrandizement but to solve the needs and problems of the people.
5. Measurable and time-bound.
Report writing are classified into different form:
1. Technical/paper publication report
2. Conference publication report
3. Seminar/proposal report
4. Project- ND, HND, BSC, PGD: Dissertation -MSc: Thesis report -PhD.
SEMINAR PRESENTATION
Presentation is an essential draft of your up to date report into a template.
A presentation concentrates on teaching something to the audience. A good
presentation means that the audience understood the message.
The first rule is to place yourself in the mind of your audience.
The second rule is to provide the minimum amount of information to the
audience; this helps overcome the temptation to fill presentations with details
meant to impress the audience.

Guidelines to making a good presentation

 Try not to cover so many ideas, stick instead to a major theme.
 Focus on what the audience needs to know about the subject and not on what
you want to tell them.
 Don’t give too many experimental details unless the method is the main
point of the talk.
 For each set of data, explain the significance of the findings, don’t just only
show it.
 Don’t assume that the audience will know what you mean. Make transitions
from one topic to another logical and smooth
TITLE
Let your title be:
 Descriptive,-----------Expressive, Vivid
 Succinct,--------------Concise, Brief, to the point
 Informative and---- Educative, edifying, useful
 Interesting…………Fascinating, thought provoking
VlSUAL AIDS
 A visual aid is something your audience can see that aids your speech
content. Always look and talk to the audience, NOT to the visual aid.
FONT, COLOR, BACKGROUND:
 Decide what font, colors, graphics, background design and layout to use for
your entire presentation. While you can use variation, strive for
consistency:
SIZE AND NUMBER OF ELEMENTS
Nothing aggravates the audience more than not being able to see what the speaker
is talking about.
Titles should be 36-48 point and text should be 26-36 point (72 points equals 1
inch).
REFERENCES
You need to give credit to the work of others. Don’t forget to include references on
your visuals at the bottom in small font.
GRAPHS AND TABLES
Graphs and tables are the best way to summarize large quantities of raw data.
INTRODUCTION
The introduction serves to provide a focus (statement of main idea), a reason to
listen (significance of the main idea), and an orientation (division of the
presentation). Identify the problem and focus on the scientific observations that led
to your research topic. Include some background information.
BODY
Choose the story you want to tell then present the data or experiments that are
essential to your story.
Be selective; don’t overwhelm the audience with volumes of data that may just
confuse them.
This is NOT your thesis defense. Present your results in an order and organization
that support and maintain the flow of your even if that is not the order you used in
the laboratory.
CONCLUSION
Take this time to repeat and reemphasize the most important conclusions.
Show the significance of your work.
Tell them exactly what you want them to walk away remembering.
DELIVERY
1. Practice
2. Dress for success
3. Don’t be nervous
4. Don’t speak too fast
5. Don’t be boring
6. Handling questions
Chapter 1
What is Research?
• Research is a logical and systematic search for new and useful information
on a particular topic.
• It is an investigation of finding solutions to scientific and social problems
through objective and systematic analysis.
• It is a search for knowledge, that is, a discovery of hidden truths. Here
knowledge means information about matters.
Objectives of Research?
• To discover new facts
• To verify and test important facts
• To analyse an event or process or phenomenon
• To identify the cause and effect relationship
• To develop new scientific tools; Concepts and theories to solve and
understand scientific and non-scientific problems
• To find solutions to scientific, non-scientific and social problem
• To overcome or solve the problems occurring in our everyday life
What makes people do Research?
• To get a research degree (Doctor of Philosophy) (PhD) along with its
benefits like better employment, promotion, increment in salary, etc.
• To get a research degree and then to get a teaching position in the university
and other higher institutions
• To become a scientist in research institution
• To solve the unsolved and challenging problems
• To get joy of doing some creative work.
• To acquire respectability
• To get recognition
Importance of Research
Research is important both in scientific and non-scientific fields. In our life, new
problems, events, phenomena and processes may occur every day, practically
implementable solutions and suggestions are required for tackling new problems
that arise. Scientists, have to undertake research on them and find their causes,
solutions, explanations, and applications. Precisely, research assists us to
understand nature and natural phenomena.
Some important outcomes of research are:
• Research on existing theories and concepts help us identify the range and
application of them.
• Research is the fountain of knowledge and provides guidelines for solving
problems.
• Research provides basis for many government policies
 • It is important in industry and business for higher gain and productivity and
to improve the quality of products.
• Mathematical and logical research on business and industry optimizes the
problems in them.
• It leads to the identification and characterization of new materials, new
living things, new stars, etc.
TYPES OF RESEARCH
Research is broadly classified into two main classes
• Fundamental or basic research (is mainly concerned with generalisations and
with the formulation of theory)
• Applied research (aims at finding a solution for an immediate problem
facing a society or an industrial/business organisation).
What is basic Research?
Definition: Basic research is an investigation on basic principles and reasons for
occurrence of a particular event or process or phenomenon, also called theoretical
research. Study or investigations of some natural phenomenon or relating to pure
science are termed as basic research.
Note: Basic researches sometimes may not lead to immediate use or application. It
is not concerned with solving any practical problems of immediate interest. But it
is original or basic in character
Applied Research
Definition: In an applied research one solves certain problems employing well
known and accepted theories and principles. Most of the experimental research,
case studies and interdisciplinary research are essentially applied research.
Note: Applied research is helpful for basic research. A research the outcome of
which has immediate application is also termed as applied research. Such a
research is of practical use to current activity.
Applied research is concerned with actual life research such as research on
increasing efficiency of a machine, increasing gain factor of production of a
material

Difference between basic research and applied research

Chapter 2
Research and Development
Research and Development, R and D, is the application of scientific principles to
the solution of commercial problems. According to Arthur Lewis (1963) it is the
point where inventors and industrial research teams, private, co-operative, and
public, take over from the specialised research agencies and the universities.

Note: For the process of R and D to be completed, these inventions and discoveries
must be translated into something, which can be manufactured cheaply, in large
quantities, and at standard quality

Technology Transfer
Research and Development organisations (RDO) may transfer its technology to
private organizations, using various agreements. The private organization may
then modify, adapt the process of technology and turn it to commercially viable
venture.
Technology may be transferred in one of the following ways:-
• Patent agreement
• Know-How agreement
• Hybrid agreement
• Technical services and assistance agreement
 • Commercialization therefore involves aspect of extension and technology
transfer, it goes beyond this because it implies that the technology is adopted
and turned into profitable activities.
Need for Patents
Patent a special document that gives you the right to make or sell a new invention
or product that no one else is allowed to copy.
The inventions must be regarded as the intellectual property of the inventors who
granted monopoly rights. Similarly the commercial developers are also granted
monopoly rights.

Challenges of Research and Developments in Nigeria

The challenges facing Research and Development in Nigeria presently:
• Appropriate framework for funding Research and Development in Nigeria
• Institutional mechanism for coordination of Research and Development in
Nigeria
• Structural frame work for commercialization of Research and Development
outputs in Nigeria
• Legal and institutional frame work for the protection of Research and
Development output of Research Institutes and tertiary institutions
• Measures for capacity strengthening of Research Institutes and Research and
Development departments in the Civil Services, Public and Private
Enterprises
A general set of sequential components of research is the following:
• Selection of a research topic.
• Definition of a research problem.
• Literature Survey and reference collection.
• Assessment of current status of the topic chosen.
• Formulation of hypotheses.
• Research design.
• Actual investigation.
• Data analysis.
• Interpretation of result
• Report.
• Discussion the following various stages of Research.

a. Selection of a research topic and problem

The starting point of a research is the selection of a research topic and problems.
Identifying a suitable topic for work is one of the most difficult parts of a research.
Before choosing a research topic and problem the young researchers should keep
the following points in mind.
• Topic should be suitable for research.
• The researcher should have interest in it.
• Topic should not be chosen by compulsion from someone else.
• Topic and problem can be fixed in consultation with the research supervisor.

Chapter 3
Identification of Research Topic and Problems
Some sources of identification of a research topic and problem are following:-
• Theory of one’s own interest
• Daily problems
• Technological changes
• Recent trends.
• Unexplored areas.
• Discussion with experts and research supervisor
b. Definition and formulation of a problem
After identifying a problem, in order to solve it, it has to be defined and formulated
properly. For this purpose, one can execute the following:-
• State the problem in questionnaire form or in an equivalent form.
• Specify the problem in detail and precise terms.
• List the assumptions made.
• Remove the ambiguities, if any, in the statements of the problem.
• Examine the feasibility of a particular solution.
• Note Defining the problem is more important than its solution. It is a crucial
part of the research study and should not be defined in hurry.
c. Literature survey
Literature survey is a collection of research publications, books, and other
documents related to the defined problem. It is very essential to know whether the
defined problem, has already been solved, status of the problem, techniques that
are useful to investigate the problem and other related details.
One can survey under the following:
• The journals which publish abstracts of papers published in various journals.
• Review articles related to the topic chosen.
• Journals which publish research articles.
• Advanced level books on the chosen topic.
• Proceedings of conferences, workshops, seminars, etc.
• Reprint/preprint collections available with the supervisor and nearby
 experts working on the topic chosen,
• Internet
Why Literature survey?
• Sharpen the problem, reformulate it or even leads to defining other closely
related problems.
• Get proper understanding of the problem chosen.
• Acquire proper theoretical and practical knowledge to investigate the
problem.
• Show how the problem understudy relates to the previous research studies
• Know whether the proposed problem had already been solved
Research proposal writing
The primary objective in preparing a competitive grant proposal is to produce a
proposal that will stand out from so many others that are submitted to funding
agencies for funding.
This will entail selecting an effective title, developing an effective summary,
articulating the study objectives/ hypotheses, writing a good introduction, choosing
appropriate experimental design/methods, planning for expected/unexpected
results and developing a realistic budget
What does a research proposal entail?
A proposal is a statement or planning document of intent, which shows how a
study would be executed. In other words, you have to lay out the details of your
plans and as well as a sales document for someone else’s review or approval.
The approving body or person might be an instructor/lecturer/ or a funding agency
whose resources (time or money) you intend to spend.

Chapter 4
Competitive Grant Proposal
Project Overview
• Title: - This should be a short phase describing the subject of the proposal.
• Proponent: - Provide the name of the research organization, the name of
the research organization, the name of the project leader, and collaborating
research organizations.
• Estimate budget: - Give an estimate of the total cost of the project in
national currency.
• Indicate the current exchange rate of the local currency against the
international currency, e.g. the US dollar, the Euro, or the British pound
• Estimated duration: - Indicate how many months it will take to complete
the entire project, including writing and submitting the final reports.
• Objectives: - Indicate both the general and specific objectives of the project.
• Abstract: - Provide a summary of 150 to 300 words of the problem. How it
 will be studied and how the findings will be used.

Components of Research Proposals

The components of a research proposal can be divided into two broad
groups, namely:
• Core components
• Additional components.
Core components of research proposals:
• The core components of a research proposal include the following:-
• A description of the research question
• An indication of why the problem is relevant.
• A review of relevant literature.
• A description of the proposed methodology.
• A time frame
Additional Components of Research Proposals:
• Depending on the project, additional components of a research proposal will
include the following:-
• A budget
• A description of how the research findings will be disseminated.
• An outline of team members’ responsibilities
• Capacity development.
• Ethical statement.
• Possible problems.
• Other information required by funders.
Systematic Collection of Data
What is Data?
Data are the symbols, numbers and or alphabetical characters used to describe one
or more attributes such as age, sex, volume, growth rates, temperature, etc, of an
entity.
Data are obtained by observing, counting, measuring, weighing etc which are then
record. It is also regarded as the building blocks of information
• Data are the input raw materials from which information is produced.
Information can therefore be defined as data that have been assembled,
processed and interpreted into a meaningful way.
• Information could be in textual, pictorial or vocal form.
Types of data
Data can be of three types.
• Cardinal or numerical data or discrete variables (quantitative) are those
which can only take certain values. An example is the number of nodes in
the cowpea plant. This number must be an integer such as 0, 1, 2, 3, etc.
 • Nominal or categorical data are simply facts that can be sorted in classes and
enumerated such as colour and breed.
• Ordinal or continuous variables are those that have ordered relationship to
one another and can take any value in a certain range. For instance plant
height is a continuous variable. If one plant has a height of 20cm and another
a height of 21cm, it is possible to find a third plant with a height of between
20 and 21cm. *** For continuous variables, measurements are approximate
because they have to be rounded off to a whole number or to a fixed number
of decimal places.
Research Design
• Definition of the problem
The first step is to state the problem one is dealing with clearly and consistently.
For example, the problem may be how to increase yield of a particular crop with
nitrogen fertilizer.
• Statement of objectives.
The investigator needs to write out clearly the objectives of the study and the data
that need be generated to attain them
• Formulation of Hypothesis.
Hypothesis formulation is one of the ways by which the broad problem being
researched into is reduced to testable forms. Hypotheses ought to be formulated
before the collection of data.
• Method of investigation
The selection of appropriate method of investigation appropriate sampling method
and sample size where relevant, is essential.

Chapter 5
Data collection
There are three basic techniques available to collect research data. These are
interviews (both face to face and via questionnaires), observations and examination
of existing records.
Interview may be used to eliminate some of the problems encountered in
questionnaire-based research, such as ambiguous wording, ill-defined categories
and inadequate measuring instruments
CONTENTS OF A QUESTIONNAIRE.
Questionnaires may contain open-ended (e.g. use one opinion) or close- ended
(have a choice) items or questions. In open-ended items, the subject uses his own
words to describe the response while in close-ended items responses are stated and
the subject is forced to choose one of them or to rank them.
An even number of choices (called a forced choice) precludes taking a neutral or
midpoint choice. An odd number of choices allow a respondent to take a neutral
position
Observations and Measurements.
If a high degree of precision is required, especially in experimental studies, the
variable will have to be determined in such ways as observing, weighing and
measuring. It is the primary technique for the collection of non- verbal data.
Study of existing records
Since collection of data involves a considerable amount of time and effort, the
possibility of using existing data normally collected during routine services, should
be explored. Examples include records from hospitals, diagnostic laboratories,
abattoirs, farms, meteorological offices, courts, schools and office of statistics.

Examples of closed-ended and open-ended question.

Closed- ended (Likert- scale).
Closed- ended
A) On an average, how many abstracts of thesis for doctoral students does your
faculty take to the postgraduate school executive committee meeting.
• 1 1 to 3
• 2 4 to 6
• 3 7 to 9
• 4 10 to 12
• 5 13 to 15
• 6 more than 15 including conversion cases
• 7 more than 15 excluding conversion cases
B) Would you characterize your achievement as:-
• 1 too bad
• 2 bad
• 3 about good
• 4 good
• 5 excellent.
Open-Ended
• A “ How would you describe the outcome of” each meeting at the PGS or
your faculty?.
• B “ What is your opinion about the former Head of state, Ibrahim
Babangida contesting the 2015 presidential election”.
Data Gathering
The two common means of gathering data for are research purpose routine
collection from a source and data generation through surveys and experiments.
Data abstracted from a source are called secondary data as the researchers are
usually not responsible for the original design and collection of the data.
Data Analysis
As a general rule, the type of data analysis to carry out depends on the
following:-
• Study objectives
• Type of data
• Design of study- any effort to reduce variability in sets of data or minimize
errors.
• Nature of samples- independent or dependent
• Sample size.