Lecture 4. Research Conceptualization Part 1

URP-803 : Planning Research Methods
Research Conceptualization and

Operationalization
Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana
Assistant Professor
Department of Urban and Regional Planning,

National University of Sciences and Technology
URP-803: Planning Research Methods, Spring Semester 2022, NUST [Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana]
Choosing Research Topic
2
What is the most difficult part of research?
Why choosing a topic is a real challenge?
▪ Beginners possess real problem awareness
4
Where do you see problems that may ignite your mind to
think about research?
▪ Classroom
▪ School
▪ Community
▪ Own teaching experiences
▪ Class discussions
▪ Seminars
▪ Workshops/paper presentations
5
Where do you see problems that may ignite your mind to
think about research?
▪ Internet
▪ Out-of-class exchanges of ideas with fellow
students and professors
▪ Reading assignments
▪ Consultation with…
▪ Course instructor; Advisor; Major Professor; Faculty
member
6
Ways to Choose a Research Topic
▪ Personal values/curiosity/challenge
▪ Work experience
▪ Everyday life/media
▪ Hot/fashionable/fancy
▪ Body of knowledge/academic interest
▪ Solving problems
▪ Donor-driven issues
7
Answer the following preliminary questions…
▪ Is the problem/topic significant enough?

▪ Is it feasible (practical/possible for me to do it)?
▪ Is it free of unknown hazards/dangers?
▪ Is it clear (unambiguous)?
8
Actively involve yourself (and other experts) in NARROWING &
REFINEMENT of the problem
▪ Narrowing the focus (Scope)

▪ Population (Target)
▪ Situation (time, condition, subject availability, researcher’s readiness, resources
available, etc.)
▪ Measurements
▪ Issue(s) dealt with?
▪ Setting the scope of the problem
▪ (“this is my line…I won’t go beyond it…”)
9
Techniques for narrowing a topic:
▪ Examine the literature. You can repeat a previous study, explore

unexpected findings from previous studies. Follow author suggestions
for future research, extend a theory to a new topic.
▪ Talk over ideas with others.
▪ Define the aim or desired outcome of the study.
Brainstorming… THINK CREATIVELY…
▪ Brainstorming is a technique you can use to help you generate ideas.
11
Characteristics of good topics
▪ Interesting – keeps the researcher interested in it throughout the research process

▪ Researchable – can be investigated through the collection and analysis of data
▪ Significant – contributes to the improvement and understanding of educational
theory and practice
▪ Manageable – fits the level of researcher’s level of research skills, needed resources,
and time restrictions
▪ Ethical – does not embarrass or harm participants
12
What I do?
▪ Potential Urban Planning Sub-Fields:

▪ Sustainable Land use Planning
▪ Transportation Planning
▪ Regional and Economic Planning
▪ Community development
▪ Urban Design
▪ Disaster and climate change
▪ And more…
13
https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=top_venues&hl=en
&vq=soc_urbanstudiesplanning
Top Urban Journals
14
Top disaster journals
15
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Should we replicate?...
▪ There are times when it is appropriate to replicate (repeat) a study to

verify its conclusions or to extend the validity of its findings to a
different situation or population ……….
17
TASK 3
Choosing a topic
18
TASK 3
▪ Finalize your research stream

▪ Browse last ten issues for top ten journals
▪ Identify and list recurrent trends or topics or problems or viewpoints or
concepts or keywords
▪ Identify down five personal items from the list
▪ Critically think whether you want to choose this topic/idea or not
▪ Discuss with your teachers, seniors, friends, and family.
19
Framing Problem Statement
Research Questions and Objectives
20
▪ SHOW ME TOPICS…
21
The Research Question
▪ The foundation of the research process

▪ It all begins with a question
Your research problem
▪ What is your area of interest?

▪ Where could you look for help in deciding upon a specific research
problem?
▪ What criteria will you apply when deciding upon a specific research
problem?
▪ How could you narrow down your research problem?
▪ How might your value-judgments (preconceived ideas) affect your
research endeavors?
23
Problem Statement
▪ Practical critical development problems

▪ Sources of problem people, community,
policy/program/project and social phenomena (i.e., changes
of situations).
▪ Realization of existing needs and the necessity of change for
the better (efficiency and effectiveness) situation.
▪ Feasibility for searching solutions to the problem
identified.
24
Problem Statements
▪ “The problem of this study was to …”

▪ “This study was concerned with …”
▪ “This study is designed to …”
▪ “The purpose of this investigation is to …”
A research problem is an educational issue or
concern that an investigator presents and
justifies in a research study.
Educational Research 2e:

URP-803: Planning Research Methods, Spring Semester 2022, NUST [Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana] Creswell
Sample Problem Statements
▪ This study was designed to determine the relationship between stability

performance and physical growth characteristics of preschool children.
▪ The present study was designed to identify those characteristics which
differentiate between students who binge Netflix and those that do not.
Why are research questions important?
“Well-crafted questions guide the systematic planning of research.

Formulating your questions precisely enables you to design a study with
a good chance of answering them.”
-- Light, Singer, Willett, By Design (1990)
Why is the Research Problem Important?
▪ Establishes importance of topic

▪ Creates reader interest
▪ Focuses reader’s attention on how study will add to literature
Educational Research 2e:

URP-803: Planning Research Methods, Spring Semester 2022, NUST [Dr. Irfan Ahmad Rana] Creswell
Preparing questions
▪ Why did the chicken cross the road?
(The question does not address which chicken or which

road.)
30
Preparing questions
▪ How many chickens crossed Kashmir Highway, G-11 Crossing,

on February 17th , 2020?.
This question could be answered in one sentence and does not

leave room for analysis
31
Preparing questions
▪ What are some of the environmental factors that occurred, G-11

Crossing between January and February 2020 that would cause chickens
to cross in Kashmir Highway?
32
Checklist of Potential Research Questions
1. Define or measure a specific fact or gather facts about a

specific phenomenon.
2. Match facts and theory
3. Evaluate and compare two theories, models, or hypotheses.
4. Prove that a certain method is more effective than other
methods.
33
Types of Research Questions
▪ Cause Question: Why did this action/event happen?

▪ Effect of Relationship Question: What effect* did this
action/event have on that action/event?
▪ Comparison Question: How are two things/events similar or
different?
Adapted from Concepts: Types of Research Questions. Thinkertools, University of California at Berkeley, 2002
34
▪ Determine All Factors Question: What are all the factors that affect
something?
▪ Characterize Processes Question: How does something happen? What
processes make something happen?
▪ Determine Successful/Effective Strategies Question: What are the best
strategies for accomplishing something?
Adapted from Concepts: Types of Research Questions. Thinkertools, University of California at Berkeley, 2002
35
▪ Function or Purpose Question: What is the function or

purpose of something?
▪ Ways to Achieve Purpose Question: How can something be
done or achieved?
▪ Identify Types Question: What are all the different types of
something?
36
▪ Properties/Characteristics Question: What are the

characteristics of something?
▪ Stages Question: What are the stages that something goes
through?
▪ Structural Question: How are the parts of something
interrelated?
37
Research Questions
▪ Descriptive:
▪ To what extent the Pakistani people vote for Party A and/or Party B candidates in the
next national election?
▪ Relational:
▪ What is a relation between education (male and female voters) and voting preference
between Party A and/or Party B in the next national election?
▪ Causal:
▪ How the political advertising campaigns increase number of votes of both candidates
from Party A and/or Party B? Why?
38
Research question vs. Hypothesis
▪ A research question is similar to a hypothesis, except that a hypothesis

presents an expectation about the way two or more variables are related,
but a research question does not
Example: Objectives
• Effect of housing policy on

Evaluate affordable housing provision
• Spatial changes in rural and

Compare urban settings
• Factors affecting disaster risk

Identify perception
40
Research Questions and Objectives
Topic: People’s Participation in a Development Project.
Research Questions:
1. How people’s participation is organized in a development project?
2. How is people’s participation effective in a project? Why?
41
TASK 4
Developing research questions and objectives
42
TASK 4
▪ Finalize your topic/idea

▪ Develop four research questions/objectives for your
shortlisted topic
▪ Refine research questions
▪ Every student will present their Problem Statement,
Hypotheses/RQs/Objectives
43
Conceptual Framework
44
What do we mean by concept?
o Concepts are constructs; they represent the agreed-upon

meanings we assign to terms.
o Our concepts do not exist in the real world, so they cannot be
measured directly.
o Can measure the things our concepts summarize.
Conceptualization
▪ Conceptualization is the process of specifying what

we mean by a term.
▪ A clear, verbal specification of your variable

(concept) so that others know what it is and can
place cognitive borders around it.
46
What do we mean by concept?
▪ Sustainability
▪ Poverty
▪ Corruption
▪ Social Status
▪ Risk
▪ Concept: “Idea or plan that takes shape in one’s mind”

▪ Framework: “Pull together; shape/build up or form a plan”
A conceptual framework is “to build up the way of

thoughts in perspective”.
48
Conceptualization
▪ Conceptualization is a process for taking concept and refining

it by giving a conceptual and theoretical definition and
explanation, which may be either in abstract or concrete
terms or both.
49
▪ A conceptual framework specifies the variables of interest and

the expected relationship among them. The framework may be
relatively straightforward or complex, which depends on the
identification of research problem or issue.
▪ The development of a conceptual framework is a mechanism
to refine the focus of the study and it can be used as a vehicle
to explain the research study.
50
What do we mean by conceptualization?
▪ In research, conceptualization produces an agreed upon meaning

for a concept for the purposes of research.
▪ Different researchers may conceptualize a concept slightly
differently.
▪ The end product of conceptualization is the specification of a set
of indicators and dimensions of what we have in mind, indicating
the presence or absence of the concept.
What are dimensions and indicators?
Dimensions
o We classify different meanings into different groups. Such groups are
called "dimensions."
o A concept may have more than one dimension
o At a practical level, we are usually more interested in dimensions than in
concepts (which are more abstract, vague).
What are dimensions and indicators?
Indicators
o When a dimension is not directly observable, we use indicators.
o Indicators are identified to mark the presence or absence of a concept.
54
55
56
57
NOT A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK
58
Why do we need the conceptual framework?
▪ Provide knowledge and understanding of social phenomena by

explaining it through theories and/or concepts;
▪ Show boundaries or conceptual limits of theories and concepts
applied in the study; and
▪ Present the direction of the relations among factors and/or
variables for hypothesis testing.
59
How can we construct the conceptual framework?
▪ Theories and concepts; and

▪ Theories start out as ideas, which may be explored scientifically, which should be
characterized by logical consistency, interrelatedness, exhaustiveness and
prospect to empirical scrutiny.
▪ Literature review
▪ The literature review will enable a researcher to have better understanding and
knowledge on the study subjects, key concepts and theories and the relationship
between factors and variables used in various studies both from theoretical and
empirical perspective.
60
Sample:
Concept of Poverty
▪ From Chambers' Concept
▪ From Sustainable Livelihood Concept
▪ Poverty of rural people is caused by several social, economic and
institutional factors”.
▪ “What is/are key factor (s) to be considered in this research?
61
Concept of Poverty
▪ In this research:
▪ Social Factors: Education Level, Health Condition
▪ Economic Factors: Farm Size, Job Opportunities and Agricultural
Production
▪ Institutional Factors: Accessibility and Isolation from Local Groups,
62
Job Agricultural
Farm Size
Opportunities Production
Economic Aspects
Education Accessibility
Social Institutional
Aspects Aspects
Health People’s
Poverty Participation
63
TASK 5
64
TASK 5
▪ Find out closety related terms/concepts/phenomenon fields

▪ Read papers only related to shortlisted topic
▪ Identify recurrent dimensions/groups/categories and sub-themes
▪ Reread papers to identify any missing dimensions
▪ Construct a loose diagram on paper
▪ Finalize it on any software (paint, PowerPoint, Word, etc.)
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URP-803 : Planning Research Methods

Research Conceptualization and

Department of Urban and Regional Planning,

▪ Beginners possess real problem awareness

▪ Is the problem/topic significant enough?

▪ Narrowing the focus (Scope)

▪ Examine the literature. You can repeat a previous study, explore

▪ Brainstorming is a technique you can use to help you generate ideas.

▪ Interesting – keeps the researcher interested in it throughout the research process

▪ Potential Urban Planning Sub-Fields:

▪ There are times when it is appropriate to replicate (repeat) a study to

▪ Finalize your research stream

▪ The foundation of the research process

▪ What is your area of interest?

▪ Practical critical development problems

▪ “The problem of this study was to …”

Educational Research 2e:

▪ This study was designed to determine the relationship between stability

“Well-crafted questions guide the systematic planning of research.

▪ Establishes importance of topic

Educational Research 2e:

▪ Why did the chicken cross the road?

(The question does not address which chicken or which

▪ How many chickens crossed Kashmir Highway, G-11 Crossing,

This question could be answered in one sentence and does not

▪ What are some of the environmental factors that occurred, G-11

1. Define or measure a specific fact or gather facts about a

▪ Cause Question: Why did this action/event happen?

▪ Function or Purpose Question: What is the function or

▪ Properties/Characteristics Question: What are the

▪ A research question is similar to a hypothesis, except that a hypothesis

• Effect of housing policy on

• Spatial changes in rural and

• Factors affecting disaster risk

▪ Finalize your topic/idea

o Concepts are constructs; they represent the agreed-upon

▪ Conceptualization is the process of specifying what

▪ A clear, verbal specification of your variable

▪ Concept: “Idea or plan that takes shape in one’s mind”

A conceptual framework is “to build up the way of

▪ Conceptualization is a process for taking concept and refining

▪ A conceptual framework specifies the variables of interest and

▪ In research, conceptualization produces an agreed upon meaning

▪ Provide knowledge and understanding of social phenomena by

▪ Theories and concepts; and

▪ Find out closety related terms/concepts/phenomenon fields

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