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Research Methods
1.1. Concepts and definition of research

 The term research is perceived, defined, and classified differently among

procedures and customers.

 Research refers to a search for knowledge.

 Research means a scientific and systematic search for certain information

on a specific topic.

 Research is a process for collecting, analyzing and interpreting

information to answer questions.

 Research is to discover answers to questions through the application of

scientific procedures.

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Characteristics of research

 It originates with questions.

 It requires a clear articulation of a goal.

 It follows a clear articulation of procedure.

 It is guided by the specific research problem, question and hypothesis.

 It accepts certain critical assumptions.

 It requires the collection and interpretation of the data in attempting to

resolve the problem.

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1.2. Dimension of Research

 Research can be classified in a number of different ways: by its

purpose, by its research technique and time dimension.

 The dimensions of research loosely overlap with each other.

 Based on the research techniques or methods can be classified as

descriptive, explanatory, basic (fundamental), and applied research.

 Based on time dimension research could be categorized as cross-

sectional and longitudinal research.

 Research could also be classified as quantitative and qualitative

research based on the sources of data collection.

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a) Basic research versus Applied research

i. Basic Research

 Basic research is the source of most new scientific ideas and ways of

thinking about the world.

 It involves developing and testing theories and hypothesis .

 It involves discovery (where a totally new idea or explanation

emerges) or innovation (where a new technique or method is

created).

 Basic research is the source of most of the tools- methods,

theories, and ideas that applied researchers use.

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ii. Applied Research

 The central aim is to discover a solution for some pressing

practical problems.

 And it is conducted to solve the practical problems such as for

policy formulation, administration, and the enhancement of

understanding of a phenomenon.

 Applied research is problem-oriented as the research is carried out to

solve a specific problem that requires a decision.

 Applied researchers conduct a study to address a specific concern or to

offer solutions to a problem of their employer, a club or organization.

 Action research is an example of applied research.

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b) Descriptive versus Explanatory research:

i. Descriptive research

 The main characteristic of this research is only report what has

happened or what is happening.

 Descriptive research usually uses a survey method to accurately

and precisely describe the research population.

 Exploring new issues or explaining why something happens is less of a

concern for descriptive researchers than describing how things are.

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ii. Explanatory Research:

 Explanatory research attempts to clarify why and how there is a

relationship between two aspects of a situation or phenomenon.

 This type of research is involved in explaining why something

happens, and assessing causal relationships between variables.

c) Quantitative versus Qualitative

 Based on the type of information sought research can be classified as

quantitative or qualitative.
i. Quantitative Research:
 Quantitative Research is based on the measurement of quantity or

amount.
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  It is applicable to phenomena that can be expressed in terms of

quantity.

 The research design is determined prior to the start of data collection

and is not flexible.

 This type of study need to adhere to the standards of strict sampling

and research design.

ii. Qualitative research

 Qualitative research is generally used to explore values, attitudes,

opinions, feelings and behaviors of individuals and understand how

these affect the individuals in question.

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 Researchers using qualitative methods are concerned with individuals’

perceptions of specific topics, issues or situations and the meanings they

assign to their lives.

d) Cross sectional research versus Longitudinal research

 Based on time dimension research could be categorized as cross-

sectional and longitudinal research.

 i. Cross-Sectional Research

 Cross-sectional studies are those in which data is gathered once, during a

period of days, weeks or months.

 Researchers observe study subjects at one point in time.

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  It is also called prevalence study (survey study).

 It is the major type of descriptive study designs.

ii. Longitudinal Research

 Research carried out longitudinally involves data collection at

multiple points in time.

 Longitudinal studies will often be more time consuming and

expensive than cross-sectional studies, they are more likely to

identify causal relationships between variables.

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 Types of longitudinal research are

 Trended study (Time series research) is a longitudinal study in

which the same type of information is collected on a group of people

or other units across multiple time periods.

 Panel study observes exactly the same people, group, or

organization across time periods.

 Cohort study is similar to the panel study, but rather than observing

the exact same people, a category of people who share a similar life
experience in a specific time period is studied. The focus is on the
cohort, or the category, not on specific individuals.

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 e) Retrospective research versus Prospective:

i. Retrospective research

 Retrospective studies investigate a phenomenon, situation, problem or

issue that has happened in the past.

 They are usually conducted either on the basis of the data available for

that period or on the basis of respondents’ recall of the situation.

ii. Prospective research:

 Prospective studies refer to the likely prevalence of a phenomenon,

situation, problem, attitude or outcome in the future.

 Such studies attempt to establish the outcome of an event or what is

likely to happen.
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 1.3. Statement of the Research Problem

 The focal point of every research activity is a research problem.

 It elaborates about the problem.

 Identify some of the main an unanswered question : “What is the gap

that needs to be filled?” and/or “What is the problem that needs to be

solved?”

 It is a description of the type of information expected to result from

the project and how this information will be used to help solve the
problem.

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 Following questions must be answered affirmatively before the study is
undertaken:
 Is the Problem Researchable? (The problem must be stated in workable

research questions that can be answered empirically).

 Is the Problem New? (It is useful to avoid duplication; the researcher has

to go through the records of previous studies in a given field).

 Is the Problem Significant?

 Is the Problem Feasible for the Particular Researcher?

In order to be feasible, a problem should agree with the following:

 Research competencies of the Researcher, Interest and enthusiasm of the

Researcher , Financial consideration in the Project, Time requirement for

the Project, Administrative considerations in the Project.
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 1.4. Objectives of the study

 The objective of the study should be clearly stated and in nature.

 This section includes a statement of both your study's general and

specific objectives.

i. General objectives of the study :

 The main/general objective indicates the central thrust of your study.

ii. Specific objectives:

 Identify the specific issues you propose to examine.

 Each specific objective should delineate only one issue.

 Use action oriented verbs such as to determine, to find out, to

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ascertain in formulating specific objectives.
1.5. Literature Review

 Literature review is one of the essential preliminary tasks of a

researcher.

 The process of reviewing the related literature comprises, among other

things, active reading, careful record keeping, and selective note taking
and critical evaluation of the information.

 A literature review is based on the assumption that knowledge

accumulates and those learns from and build on what others have done.

 The production of new knowledge is fundamentally dependent on past

knowledge.

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  Scientific research is not an activity of isolated hermits who ignore

other’s findings.
 Rather, it is a collective effort of many researchers who share their

results with one another and who pursue knowledge as a community.

 In short, Literature review is a standalone review (overview) of the

body of knowledge relevant to your research problem.

Use of literature review

 It prevents you from duplicating work that has been done before.

 It increases your knowledge on the problem you want to study and this

may assist you in refining your "statement of the problem".

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  It gives you confidence why your particular research project is

needed.

 To be familiar with different research methods.

 To learn from others and develop new ideas.

Sources of information

 Card catalogues of books in libraries.

 Organizations (institutions).

 Published information (books, journals, etc.).

 Unpublished documents (studies in related fields, reports, etc.)

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 1.6 Research Design
 Research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and
analysis of data.
 Research design is making research as efficient as possible yielding
maximal information with minimal expenditure of effort, time and
money.
 A detailed outline of how an investigation will take place.

 A research design will typically include how data is to be collected, what

instruments will be employed, how the instruments will be used and the
intended means for analyzing data collected.
 It is, therefore, an efficient and appropriate design must be prepared
before starting research operations.
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 The overall research design includes the following parts:
 Study design

 Source Population /Study population / Sampling specifications

 Sample size needed

 Instrumentation

 Specific procedures

Study design:
 A study design is a specific plan or protocol for conducting the study,
which allows the investigator to translate the conceptual hypothesis into
an operational one.
 The study design should be clearly stated.

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Source Population :

 It is a collection of items that have something in common for which we

wish to draw conclusions at a particular time.

Study Population:

 It is a part of target population and actually accessible and legitimate for

data collection.

Sample size:

 It is important to mention in the protocol what would be the minimum

sample required and how it is arrived.

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 Important Concepts Relating to Research Design

 Variables of the study

A variable is a characteristic that takes different values.

 Response (dependent) variables are variables which can be affected

by explanatory variable and it is the outcome of a study.

 Independent (explanatory) variables are any variables that explain

the response variable.

 Statistical Models: Statistical model is a tool for quantifying the

evidence in data about a particular truth.

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 1.7 Research proposal writing

What is a Research Proposal?

 It is a document that presents a plan for the research project.

 It is an overall plan, structure and strategy design to obtain answers to

research problems or questions.

 A good research proposal is based on scientific facts and on the art of clear

communication .

Purpose of Proposals writing

 Justify and plan a research project.

 Show how your project contributes to existing research.

 Organising and developing your topic ideas.

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 Convincing other people of the merit of your idea.
 Components of research proposal
 Title

 Introduction

 Background of the study

 Statement of the Problem

 Objective of the study

 Significance of the Study

 Literature Review

 Research Methodology

 Ethical considerations

 Work plan

 Cost of the project

 References

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 Title
 It should provide sufficient information about the nature of the study.

 The title should not be too lengthy or too short.

 The research topic or title should be specific and clear.

 Should be in line with your general objective.

 It is the focus of your research.

Introduction
 Describe background of the study

 Generally introduce the problem to the readers.

 Historical perspective of the problem you want to study.

 Discuss the magnitude of the problem.

 State the objective and significance of the study.

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Research methodology

 Research methodology is a way to systematically solve the research

problem.

 The research methodology section should describe the overall

approach and practical steps you will take to answer your research
questions.

 In this section the details about sampling procedure, the data collecting

tools, methods of analysis and administration of the instruments are

described.

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 Work plan

A work plan can serve as:

 a tool in planning the details of the project activities and later the

project funds.

 a management tool showing what activities are planned, their timing,

and when various members will be involved

 a tool for monitoring and evaluation, when the current status of the

project is compared to what was fore seen in the work plan.

Work plan summarizes (in a table, chart, graph) the various components
of a research project and how they fit together.

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 Cost of the project (Budget)

How should a budget be prepared?

 It is necessary to use the work plan as a starting point.

 Specify, for each activity in the work plan, what resources are

required.

 Determine for each resource needed the unit cost and the total cost.

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 Referencing

 Referencing is a standardised method of acknowledging sources of

information and ideas that you have used in your assignment in a

way that uniquely identifies their source.

 Direct quotations, facts and figures, as well as ideas and theories,

from both published and unpublished works, must be referenced.

 'Citing' means acknowledging ideas or data from other authors, but

not using their exact words. Instead, we summarise the ideas using
our own words.

 'Quoting' means including in your document the actual words or data

taken directly from another source, without changing it.

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 Why is it important to cite references:

 Shows where you got your information.

 Allows other researchers to trace your sources of information quickly

and easily.

 Acknowledges the work of other researchers.

 Protects you against accusations of plagiarism.

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 How to search an article for reference

 Once you get a key word, search in the internet using search engines.

 Google scholar, PubMed and Endnote are some of the search engines

(are important internet areas to download).

 By putting the key words, you will find articles.

 If it is your area of interest, you should further read the abstract, and

decide whether it may be useful.

 If the abstract seems useful, try your best to find and read the whole

article.

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 Which system to use?

There are various referencing systems

 Vancouver (number)

 Harvard - (author, date), etc.

The Vancouver system

 In this method, the numbering occurring in the body of the paper refers

to the order of the bibliographic descriptions in the list (Numeric

System).

 This type of system is most often seen in journals as it uses less space

than other methods, yet still allows a brief acknowledgement to an

author when their ideas or words have been used.
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The Harvard System

 The Harvard referencing system is commonly used in most journals and

in many disciplines.

 Using the Harvard system, reference to sources is made at an

appropriate place in the text by stating:

 Surname (of author(s);

 year of publication;

 page number(s), (optional)

 This system utilizes the author’s name (without initials) and the year of

publication of the text within brackets, e.g. (Assefa, 2014).

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 Appendix

 It contains any additional pictures and/or material you wish to

include.

 As an attachment, add any bulky but important

documents/information like tables, graphs questionnaire etc.

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 1.8. Sections of Research report
 Title page

 Table of content

 Acknowledgement

 Abstract

 Introduction (Background, statement of problem, objective, significance of the study)

 Literature review

 Methodology (Materials and Methods)

 Results

 Discussions

 Conclusions and Recommendations

 References

 Appendix
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Title:

 To provide a brief , informative summary that will attract your target

audience.

Abstract

 The abstract will be the first (and for busy decision makers most likely

the only) part of your study that will be read.

 To highlight key points from the major sections of the manuscript.

 Remember that only few words are allowed to be included in the

abstract (usually 250-300 words).

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 Components of the abstract

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Results

 To describe the results of data analysis that are relevant to the study.

 Systematic presentation of your findings in relation to the research

objective is crucial.

 It should contain an explanation and description of the data, including

any qualitative observations you made during the study.

 Tell the reader exactly what you found, what patterns, trends, or

relationships were observed.

 Illustrations in the results section may contain of graphs, photographs,

or diagrams that visually depict your results.

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 Discussion
In the discussion section:

 You should interpret, critically evaluate, and compare to other

reports.

 You examine the amount and possible sources of variability in your

data, including experimental error.

 You have to state clearly whether your hypothesis was valid or

invalid.

 Be sure to relate your findings to other studies and cite those studies.

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 Conclusions & recommendations

 Bring together the outcomes in a statement that addresses the research

question about the generalization of your findings to the population of

which you drew your sample.

 Write up your conclusion and state your recommendation for the

responsible body.

 Draw positive conclusions from your study whenever possible.

 Finish with specific justified suggestions for future research projects.

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