RESEARCH

DEFINITION: Research is the reappraisal (review) of a particular thing or phenomenon i.e. in research,
one is re-studying a particular thing to bring out a new thing from the previous one.
*In research, you are NOT the first person to do work on that said topic.

ESSENCE OF RESEARCH
1. People and organizations need to be updated and keep in line with trends.
2. Researching helps people and organizations to solve social problems.
*Social Problems are negative situations which affect certain people in society.
*Sociological Problems are negative situations which affect everyone in society e.g. global
warming, and COVID-19.
3. Research also makes an organization engage in appraisal exercises by making them assess their
product to bring out the problems in that organization.
4. It also helps an organization to understand the needs of its consumers and therefore create
products geared towards the satisfaction of those needs.
5. It also helps an organisation to innovate products: every organization must engage in
innovation (constant improvement) to make it more acceptable to customers.
6. Lastly, research enables organizations to know what competitors are doing and make
changes to withstand competition.

SOURCES OF DATA/INFORMATION IN RESEARCH

All sources of data/information in research are broadly classified into two:
- Primary Research
- Secondary Research
Both sources can either be quantitative or qualitative.
A. Features of Primary Research:
- They generate first-hand information i.e. the information is collected or gathered by the
researcher himself or their agent.
- They generate current information about research topics.
- Some of them, especially primary qualitative can be time-consuming and expensive e.g.
Covert Participant Observation.
B. Features of Secondary Research:
- They generate second-hand information i.e. the information used or classified here is
generated by other researchers.
- They essentially generate the historical background of current research work.
*secondary sources are more or less stale information
- They are readily available, in archives, the internet etc. they are therefore cheap to collect
and not time-consuming.

TYPES OF SOURCES
A. Quantitative Sources of Data:
These are supported by positivists who view sociology as a science.
The features of quantitative sources of data include:
- They generate a quantity of information e.g. the use of a questionnaire.
- It generates numeric data or information and can be analysed using statistical tools e.g.
histogram, percentage, ratio etc. the analysed data can easily be interpreted
- It generates objective information i.e. it is unbiased
 - It emphasizes empirical qualities i.e. tangibility (what can be seen and touched – the physical
things)
- Information generated is of high reliability i.e. the research result, when repeated – regardless
of the time and/or place of conduct – will remain the same.
B. Qualitative Sources of Data:
This is supported by the micro-school of thought (which emphasizes subjectivity) because these
sources generate emotionally laden information as it considers emotion i.e. gives subjective
information.
Features of qualitative sources of data include:
- It is highly interactive i.e. it is individualistic
- It generates literary data i.e. written form (words)
- They give authority to primary sources which makes current research authoritative.
- They give in-depth (detailed) information because they consider the “why?” behind the
action i.e. the reason, not just the “what?’ i.e. the facts
- They generate valid data which implies that the data is accurate or truthful for a period of
time in a particular place. It is therefore said to consider relativism. This simply means that
nothing is set in stone (permanent).

EXAMPLES OF SOURCES OF INFORMATION

A. Primary Quantitative sources
- Questionnaire/Structured Interview
- Experimental/Scientific Method
- Longitudinal Studies/Content Analysis
B. Primary Qualitative Sources
- Unstructured Interview
- Ethnography
- Participant Observation Method (which includes non-participant, covert, and uncover)
*There are two (2) methods that combine primary qualitative and primary quantitative sources:
1. Semi-structured interview
2. Focus Group
C. Secondary Quantitative Sources
- Official Statistics e.g. Birth & Death Rates, Balance of Payment etc.
D. Secondary Qualitative Sources
- Newspapers
- Biographies/Autobiographies
- Diaries, magazines, books etc.