3.Research Methodology Research methodology is the way in which research problems are solved systematically. It is a science of studying how research is conducted scientifically. Under it, the researcher aequaints himself/herself with the various steps generally adopted to study a research problem, along with the underlying logic behind them, The key aspects conversed under research methodology include research designs, population and sampling designs, data sources and data collection instruments, operationalization and measurement, reliability and validity considerations, ethics and legal Issues in research, data analy: and presentation. 3.1 Research Desi Having identified the variables in a problem situation and developing a theoretical framework the next step is to design the research a way that the requisites data can be gathered and analysed to arrive at a solution, Thus, a research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data ina manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedure. It can also be said to be overall plan or program of research that specifies how a research is conducted. In fact, the research design is the conceptual structure within which research is conducted; it constitutes the blueprint for the collection, measurement and analysis of data. As such the design includes an outline of what the researcher will do from writing the hypothesis and its operational implications to the final analysis of data, It involves a series of rational decision choices regarding the purpose of the study, type of investigation, nature of data, type of analysis and time aspects. Research design must, at east, contain (a) A clear statement of the research problem; (b) Procedures and techniques to be used for gathering information (6) The population to be studied; and (d) Methods to be used in processing and analyzing data, 3.1.1 Need for Research Design Research design is needed because it facilitates the smooth sailing of the various research operations, thereby making research as efficient as possible yielding maximal information with Page 1 of 18 by HKimathiminimal expenditure of effort, time and money. Just as for better, economical and attractive construction of a house, we need a blueprint (or what is commonly called the Architectural drawings of the house) well thought out and prepared by an expert architect, similarly we need a research design or a plan in advance of data collection and analysis for our research project. A design may be quite suitable in one case, but may be found wanting in one respeet or the other in the context of some other research problem. One single design cannot serve the purpose of all types of research problems. Details of Study Purpose || Type of Extent of Study Measurement | DATA ofthe || investigation || researcher's || setting || and measures. || ANALYSIS stud interference “ -Feel for Data Problem statement -Goodness of data -Hypothesis Testing Data Collection Unit of Sampling Time Horizon Methods, Analysis | | design 3.1.2 Cl ‘ification of Research Designs 1.Exploratory ~ undertaken when not much is known about the situation at hand or how similar issues (problem) has been solved in the past 2.Exploratory research design is mainly aimed to explore of to gain a new or deeper understanding about particular problem, Exploratory designs are often used to establish an understanding of how best to proceed in studying an issue or what methodology would effectively apply to gathering information about the issue. The design requires extensive preliminary reviews to gain familiarity with the phenomena in the situation, theories are developed and hypotheses developed for testing. It is inappropriate to examine correlation between observed variables, since the variables in exploratory research commonly have not yet been defined Page 2 of 18 by HKimathi3.Descriptive study Descriptive research designs help provide answers to the questions of who, what, when, where, and how associated with a particular research problem; a descriptive study cannot conclusively ascertain answers to why. Descriptive research is used to obtain information concerning the current Status of the phenomena as it exists and to describe characteristics of the variables of interest in a situation. c.g. A bank manager wants to have a profile of the individuals have loan repayments due for 6 months or more. It would indicate details of their average, Earnings, Employment status, e.tc. 4.Correlation Design ‘The main emphasis in a correlational study is to discover or establish the existence of a relationship/association/interdependence between two or more aspects of a situation. What is the impact of an advertising campaign on the sale of a product? What is the relationship between technology and unemployment? What is the effect of a health service on the control of a disease, or the home environment on educational achievement? 5.Causal Research Design Causality studies may be thought of as understanding a phenomenon in terms of conditional statements in the form, “If X, then Y.” This type of research is used to measure what impact a specific change will have on existing norms and assumptions. Most social scientists seek causal explanations that reflect tests of hypotheses. Causal effect occurs when variation in one phenomenon, an independent variable, leads to or results, on average, in variation in another phenomenon, the dependent variable. 6.Experimental Design Suppose you want to test the following: the impact of a particular teaching method on the level of comprehension of students; the effectiveness of a programme such as random breath testing on the level of road accidents; or imagine any similar situation in your own academic or professional field. In such situations there is assumed to be a cause-and-effect relationship. There are two ways of studying this relationship. The first involves the researcher introducing the intervention that is assumed to be the ‘cause’ of change, and waiting until it has produced or has been given sufficient time to produce the change (experimental study). Page 3 of 18 by HKimathiThe second consists of the researcher observing a phenomenon and attempting to establish what caused it, In this instance the researcher starts from the effeet(s) or outcome(s) and attempts to determine causation (non-experimental study). A semi-experimental study or quasi-experimental study has the properties of both experimental and non-experimental studies; part of the study may be non-experimental and the other part experimental Experimental designs can either be classified as: Non-contrived — the study population is exposed to an intervention in its own natural environment where work proceeds normally or Contrived — The study population is in a ‘controlled’ situation such as a room ic. artificial environment in which all the extraneous factors are controlled. Subjects are chosen carefully to respond to certain manipulated stimuli. 7.Cross-sectional studies: Under eross-sectional study, data are gathered just once. Also called one-shot studies. This design is best suited to studies aimed at finding out the prevalence of a phenomenon, situation, problem, attitude or issue, by taking a cross-section of the population. They are useful in obtaining an overall ‘picture’ as it stands at the time of the study. They are “designed to study some phenomenon by taking a cross-section of it at one time. Examples: The extent of unemployment in a city, Consumer satisfaction with a product. 8.The longitudinal study design It is a type of observational study sometimes referred to as a panel study. Longitudinal studies involve study of people or phenomena at more than one point in time. To determine the pattern of change in relation to time, a longitudinal design is used. Longitudinal studies are also usefull when you need to collect factual information on a continuing basis. 9.Case Study ‘A case study is an in-depth study of a particular research problem rather than a sweeping statistical survey or comprehensive comparative inquiry. It is often used to narrow down a very broad field of research into one or a few easily researchable examples. The case study research design is also useful for testing whether a specific theory and model actually applies to phenomena in the real world, Page 4 of 18 by HKimathi3.2 Popul Cooper and Schindler (2003) defines population as an entire group of individuals, events or objects having common characteristics that conform to a given specification. All items in a field of inquiry make up a population or universe, A study involving the entire population is referred to as a census survey. In a census all the items are covered which results in ahigh degree of accuracy. e.g, the population of the study can be all the forty three (43) commercial banks registered in Kenya as at December 31, 2020 or all the 31 Public Universities However, census survey involves a great deal of time, money and energy. It is also impractical when the population is very large and adds no value if by exami 1g a smalll part of the population we can obtain accurate results. When a census is not feasible, a sample is undertaken which involves selection of a few items to represent the population. Sampling is the process of selecting a few units (a sample) from a population to become the basis for estimating or predicting the prevalence of an unknown piece of information, situation or outcome regarding the bigger group. The respondents constitute a sample and the selection process is referred to as sampling technique The population is commonly represented as *N’ and the sample as ‘n’ Sampling provides the advantages of lower cost, greater accuracy, faster data collection and availability of population elements, The researcher must prepare his sample design which is the plan how the sample will be selected and what size the sample will be. 3.2.1 Factors that Determine a Sample Size 1. Required level of precision (degree of accuracy). In social sciences 95% confidence level or 5% of level of significance is adopted. 2. Degree of variability in the attributes of the population. 3. Size of a population. For a small population a census is recommended. 4. Mi imum number required for data analysis. In situation where the sample size isles than 30 units you use the student test (T statistics). In case of more than 30 units use normal distribution. A large number helps to avoid biasness, Page 5 of 18 by HKimathi3.2.2 Sample Design A sample design is a definite plan for obtaining a sample from a given population. It refers to the technique or the procedure the researcher would adopt in selecting the items for the sample. A sample design may as well lay down the number of items to be included in the sample ic. the size of the sample, A sampling frame is a list of units comprising a population from which a probability sample is selected. e.g, if'a sample of students is selected from a student’s roster, the roster is the sampling frame. Likewise, if sample is selected from a telephone directory, the telephone directory is the sampling frame. Characteristics of Sampling Design. 1. It must result in a true representative sample. 2. It must be such that it results to a small sampling error. 3. It must be ble in the context available for the research study, 4, The sample must be such that it results can be applied in general to the universe with reasonable level of confidence. Sampling is either probability or non-probability sampling 3.2.3 Probability Sampling 1.Simple Random Sampling- Each member of the population has an equal chance of being included in the sample and each sample of a particular size has the same probability of being chosen. 2. Stratified Random Sampling Strata are clearly recognisable, non-overlapping subpopulation that differs from one another in terms of a specific variable. Each subpopulation called a stratum, E.g. male and female, private and public universities etc. 3. Systematic Sampling Suppose we need to obtain a sample of n members from a population of N elements (units of analy: that are numbered from 1 to N. In systematic sampling, we include every wth clement (where, xth is an integer i.e. a whole number). Page 6 of 18 by HKimathi300 10 E.g. if one wants to select 10 schools from a population of 100, % Draw the first element at random and then select every 10th element. If the first element is 8, subsequently select 18, 28, 38, and so on. 4. Cluster Sampling In large-scale surveys, it is usually difficult, if not impossible to obtain lists of all the members (units of analysis) of the population. In the case of cluster sampling, we first draw (stratify randomly) pre-existing heterogeneous groups called clusters Randomly select units of analysis from each cluster. E.g. suppose we wish to conduct a survey on primary schools in Kenya, First draw a sample from the 8 provinces. Then draw a number of districts from each province. Next you draw a number of locations from the district. Finally select a few schools within the location, 3.2.4 Non-Probability Sampling 1, Accidental/incidental Sampling An accidental sample is the most convenient collection of members of the population (units of analysis) that are real or readily available for research purposes. e.g. people who happen to be at a certain shopping centre at a particular time or firms that are close to the researcher's home. 2.Quota Sampling In this method, the researcher makes an effort to have the same proportions of units of analysis in important strata such as gender, age, and so on as are the population. Quota sampling yields quite satisfactory results under the following circumstances: * One should know the important strata according to which the population is composed and their respective proportions with a reasonable degree of accuracy, or be able to estimate them. = One should include enough cases (at least 15, but preferably more than 25) of each stratum in the sample. 3.Purposive Sampling Researchers rely on their own experience, ingenuity and/or previous research findings to deliberately obtain un 's of analysis in such a manner that the sample they obtain may be regarded as being representative of the relevant population Page 7 of 18 by HKimathi4.Snowball Sampli ie First approach a few individuals from the relevant population ‘These individuals then act as informants and identify other members (c.g. acquaintances or friends) from the same population for inclusion in the sample. The latter may, in tum, identify a further set of relevant individuals so that the sample, like a rolling snowball, grows in size till saturated. 5.Self-Selection Sampling This occurs when we allow a case, usually an individual, to identify their desire to take part in the research. The researcher will do the following: * Publicise the need for cases, either by advertising via appropriate media or by asking them to take part * Collect data fiom those who respond. Cases that self-select often do so due to their feelings or opinions about the research question(s) or stated objective(s). 6.Convenience Sampling or haphazard sampling Convenience involves selecting haphazardly those cases that are easiest to obtain for the sample, such as, the person interviewed at random in a shopping centre or airport or university. 3.3 Data Collection Data collection is the precise, systematic gathering of information relevant to the research sub- problems. There are two types of data that a researcher can collect: 1.Primary: Data collected afresh and for the first time for the purpose of the study. It is original in character and thus the researcher has to collect it. 2.Secondary: Collected by someone else and already passed through the statistical process for some other purpose. The researcher therefore just compiles it. 3.3.1 Methods of Primary Data Collection 1 Observation: Data is collected by the researcher observing the subject. It is commonly applied in studying behaviour. Observation can be structured where there is careful definition of the units Page 8 of 18 by HKimathito be observed, style of recording, standardized conditions of observation and selection of pertinent data or unstructured where there is no prior planning of the observation. The observation can happen by the researcher being part of the group under observation (participant observation) or by the researcher being detached so he does not share in the group’s experiences (non-participant observation). The observation can take place in a natural setting and so it becomes uncontrolled observation or in a pre-arranged setting thus it is controlled observation. 2.Personal Interview: This involves presenting oral or verbal stimuli and getting oral or verbal responses in a face-to-face setting between the researcher and respondent(s). In this case the respondent can also ask the interviewer questions. This method can be carried out through a structured interview where there are predetermined questions, order and standardized methods of recording or an unstructured interview where there are no predetermined questions or methods of recording but the researcher has the freedom on the questions and recording of responses. 3.Telephone Interviews: This involves contacting respondents over the telephone. 4.Questionnaires: In this case a questionnaire is sent by post or dropped to the respondents. A questionnaire comprises of questions which are typed out for the respondents which they are expected to read, understand and respond to on their own and then return the questionnaire, A. questionnaire can be structured or unstructured. A structured questionnaire has definite, precise and predetermined questions. The questions may be either closed requiring yes or no responses or open inviting free responses. 5.Schedules/ data collection forms This involves a research obtaining data from secondary sources and summarizing it in schedules. 3.3.2 Collection of Secondary Data When the researcher uses secondary data, he has to find the sources for the data. Secondary data may be published or unpublished data, Secondary data must possess the following charaeteristies: 1Rel : This involves establishing who collected the data, its source, methods applied, when data was collected and if there was any bias in collecting it. 2.Suitability: This involves checking the object, scope and nature of the original enquiry and the present one. 3.Adequacy of the data Page 9 of 18 by HKimathiRead on Questionnaires: Y Parts of a questionnaire. ¥ Persons/people named! involved. Y Question types included in questionnaire. ¥ Protesting 3.4 Measurement and Measurement Scale Measurement is the process of assigning numerals, numbers and other symbols to the study variables. It involves assigning a number to an attribute or phenomenon according to a rule or set of rules. It can also be co1 dered to be a process of mapping aspects of a domain on to the other s deals with data and data are aspects of a range according to some rule of correspondents. Statistic the results of measurement. Some variables are easily measured through the use of appropriate measuring instrument e.g. the length and width of a rectangular office table ean be measured sing a ruler, the office floor area using a tape. Whereas certain concepts /variables are not easily measured, using physical measuring devises e.g. motivation, satisfaction, and perception, A major concern about a measurement technique is that it faithfully reflects the attribute being measured. ‘A measurement scale is a tool or mechanism by which individuals items are distinguished as to how they differ from one another on the variable of interest in a study. In measurement we distinguish between different levels of measurement on the basis of the following characteristics /features/ attributes: a. Magnitude-It involves measuring of distance between any 2 points on a scale. When a scale has magnitude, one instance of attribute being measured can be judged to be greater than, less than or equal to another instance of the attribute. b.Equal interval: This represents equal amounts of the variable being measured between adjacent scales, When a scale has equal interval the magnitude of the attribute represented by a unit of ‘measurement on the same regardless of where on the seale the unit falls, c.Absolute zero point/ point or origin- An absolute zero point is a value which indicates that nothing at the entire attribute being measured exists. Page 10 of 18 by HKimathi3.4.1 Categories of Measurement Scale There are basic types of measurement scale which are based on the presence or absence of 1 or more of the attributes in the variable being measured. a.Nominal scale/eategorization/grouping. ‘A nominal scale is the lowest level of measurement and is most often used with variables that are categorical in nature rather than quantitative (continuous) e.g. gender which can only take female or male, Measurement with a nominal scale amounts to classifying the objects and giving them the name of the category to which they belong, because the units of a nominal scale are categories there is 1no magnitude relationship between the units of a nominal scale. An operation performed in conjunction with a nominal measurement is that of counting the instances within each class ice. the frequency of occurrences. b. Ordinal scale (ordering) It poses a relatively low level of the property off magnitude. In this case, the numbers we assign not only reflect differences among individuals but also rank order. We rank (order) the objects being measured according to whether they poses more or less or same amount of the variable being measured. It allows determination of whether A>B, A=B, A X1 or X2 > X1 are meaningful. The statistical techniques used in interval scale can easily be used in ratio scale also. ome from sales for a small scale business. 10000 20000 30000 40000 Therefore, it is an absolute scale — the difference between the intervals is always measured from a zero point. The measurement of income, age, height and weight are examples of this scale. A person who is 40 years of age is twice as old as a 20-year-old. A person earning Sh.60 000 per year earns three times the salary of a person earning sh.20 000 Page 12 of 18 by HKimathi3.5 Operation: n Operationalization is the explicit specification of a variable in such a way that its measurement is possible All variables need to be included in the definition of terms, Example of operationalizing for leverage verses performance Variables Indicator/Construct Measure Performance profitability Return on equity = Pome aer Non- current debt | Tiability Total non —current debt Total assets Current debt Short term debt Current debt Total assets interest Interest cover, Profit before tax and interest interest In case of use of Questionnaires The section of questionnaire with aspects capturing the variable is linked to the variable operationalization, Extract Questionnaire-Part A: Buyer-Supplier Partnerships Indicate your level of agreement with the following statements relating to the effect of buyer- supplier partnerships on ABC organization performance. Key use a scale of 1-5, where (1= strongly disagree, 2= isagree, 3= moderately agree, 4= Agree and 5= strongly Agree). Supplier Partnerships 1[2[3]4]5 There is mutual information sharing between our company and our suppliers There is a high level of commitment between our company and that of our suppliers There is good communication between our company and that of our suppliers There exists clear understanding of each other's roles and responsibilities between our company and our suppliers There is responsiveness towards each other's and needs between our company and our suppliers There exists mutual goals between our company and our suppliers Page 13 of 18 by HKimathi3.6 Goodness of Measures/ Determining Quality of Measurement Goodness of measures is evaluated through reliability and validity concepts 3.6.1 Reliability Reliability relates to the consistency of a measure either overtime (test-rest), across items (internal consistency) or across different researchers (inter-rate). It attests to the consistency and stability of the measuring instrument, The extent to which the same research technique applied again to the same object/subject will give you the same result. ‘A good measurement technique should be reliable in that it yields a given measurement dependability. Reliability is concerned with findings of the research and specially the credibility of the findings In determining whether our findings are reliable, we need to ask the following question: will the evidence and conclusions stand up to the closest scrutiny? 3.6.2 Validity The extent to which our measure reflects what we think or want them to be measuring Any given measuring instrument measures the construct intended and random measurement error (reliability) Types of validity that relate to the independent variable include: face, content, construct validity and criterion-related validity. 1 Face Validity- The measure seems to be related to what we are interested in finding out even if it does not fully encompass the concept 2.Criterion-related Validity- is a predictive Validity. This refers to the degree to which diagnostic and selection measurement/tests correctly predict the relevant eri rion. The relevant criterion refers to the variable that is to be diagnosed or on which success is to be predicted respectively. e.g. the validity of university exams is shown in their ability to predict students’ success in university. The measure is predictive of some external criterion .e.g. Criterion = Success in college Measure = ACT scores (high criterion validity?) Page 14 of 18 by HKimathi3.Construct Validity: The measure is logically related to another variable as you had conceptualized it to be .e.g. Construct = happiness Measure ~ financial stability If not related to happiness, low construet validity 4.Content Validity- How much a measure covers a range of meanings? Did you cover the full range of dimensions related to a concept? .e.g. 1.You think that youre measuring prejudice, but you only ask questions about race. 2.What about sex, religion, etc.? 3.6.3 Sources of Error in Measurement Measurement should be precise and unambiguous in an ideal research study. This objective is however not met its entirety. Measurement need to be precise and unambiguous for validity and reliability of any research study, Hence, measurement should be either free from errors or have minimum error. Any measurement ually involves two types of errors v Measurement invalidity refers to the degree to which the measure incorrectly captures the concept. ¥ Unreliability refers to inconsistency in what the measure produces under repeated us ss. Ifany ‘measure, on average give some score for a case on variable and gives other score, when it is used again, it is said to be unreliable. As such the researcher must be aware about the sources of errors in measurement that include: a. Respondent. At times the respondent may be reluctant to express strong negative feeling or it is just possible that he may have little knowledge but may not admit his or her ignorance. b.Situation, Any condition that places a strain e.g, on interviewing can have serious effects on the interviewer and respondents rapport. For instance, if someone else is present he can distort responses by joining or merely by being present Page 15 of 18 by HKimathic.Measurer/researcher/ interviewer. The measurer can distort responses by rewarding/reordering say interview questions. His behavior, style or looks may encourage/discourage certain replies from respondents. Errors may also creep in because of incorrect coding, faulty tabulation and/or statistical calculations. d.lnstrument, The use of complex words with ambiguous meanings, inadequate space for replies, responses choice commotions. ¢.t.c make the measuring instrument defective and may result in measurement errors, 3.7 Ethics in Research Ethies refer to a set of principles of right conduct. Ethies guide responsible conduct of research. Ethics are not absolute but vary from one person to another, time and place. Ethical principles come into play at three stages of research: 1. When participants are recruited 2. During intervention (measurement) 3. During release of results 3.7.1 Stakeholders in Research ‘There are many stakeholders in research, whether it is quantitative or qualitative. It is important to look at ethical issues in relation to each of them. The various stakeholders in a research activity are: 1. The research participants or subjects 2. The researcher 3. The funding body Generally, all those with direct and indirect involvement in a research study are considered as research participants, hence stakeholders. In addition, those who are likely to be affected by the findings of a study are also considered Research participants or subjects Page 16 of 18 by HKimathiIn any discipline in which a research activity is undertaken, those ftom whom information collected or those who are studied by a researcher become stakeholders in the study. Researchers Constitute the second category of stakeholders. Anyone who collects information for the specific consolidation, enhancement and development of professional purpose of understand knowledge, adhering to the accepted code of conduct, is a researcher. S/he may represent any academic discipline. Funding Organizations are responsible for financing a research activity. Most research is carried out using funds provided by business organizations, pharmaceutical companies service institutions (government, semi-government or voluntary), research bodies and/or academic institutions. The funds are given for specific purposes. Each category of stakeholders in a research activity may have different interests, perspectives, purposes, aimsand motivations that could affect the way in which the research activity is ea out and the way results are communicated and used. Because of this, it is important to ensure that research is not affected by the self-interest of any party and is not carried out in a way that harms any party. It is therefore important to examine ethical conduct in research concerning different stakeholders under separate categories, 3.7.2 Ethical treatment of researchers and team members > Researcher’s right to absence of sponsor coercion, © Researcher's right to safety, co Rights of organisation(s) to confidentiality/anonymity © Avoid plagiarism © No abuse or misuse of one’s privilege in research, © No fraud e.g. when a researcher completes a questionnaire on behalf & in absence of responclent 3.7.3 Ethics and the Sponsor’s © Sponsor’s right to useful research, © Sponsor’s/gatekeeper’s/participant’s right to quality research © Confidentiality Page 17 of 18 by HKimathi3.7.4 Participant’s © Participant's right to privacy, © Participant’s right to informed consent, © Participant’s right to withdraw, © Participant's deception, Participant’s right to confidentiality/anonymity Participant's right to quality research 6 Participant's right as an individual to the processing and storing of their data 3.7.5 General Ethical Issues © Privacy of possible and actual participants; © voluntary nature of participation and the right to withdraw partially or completely from the process; ‘© consent and possible deception of participants; © maintenance of the confidentiality of data provided by individuals or identifiable participants and their anonymity; © reactions of parti ants to the way in which you seek to collect data, including embarrassment, stress, diseomfort, pain and harm; © Effects on participants of the way in which you use, analyse and report your data, in particular the avoidance of embarrassment, stress, discomfort, pain and harm; behaviour and objectivity of you as researcher. 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