Maddawalabu University

Collage of Engineering
Department of ECEG
Advanced Research Methods

Prepared by: T.T.D,

(Lecturer )
March, 2019
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 Unit One:
Scientific Research and the Research
Process

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 1.1 Meaning and objective of research
Research is defined as:
•"a studious Inquiry or examination; especially: investigation or
experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts,
revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts, or
practical application of such new or revised theories or laws (The
Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary)
•“The application of scientific research methods to obtain objective
information on people’s attitude and behavior based usually on
representative sample of the relevant populations” (Market
Research Society, UK)
•The Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English, Oxford
1952, lays down the meaning of research as “a careful
investigation or inquiry specially through search for new facts
in any branch of knowledge.”
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 Meaning and objective of research…
Objectives of Research:
i.To gain familiarity with a phenomenon or achieve new
insights into it
ii.To portray/describe accurately the characteristics of a
particular individual, situation or group
iii. To determine the frequency with which something
occurs or with which it is associated with something
else
iv. To test a hypothesis of a causal relationship between
variables
v.To predict the future effects of a phenomenon or
action 4
 MOTIVATION IN RESEARCH
What makes people to undertake research?
The possible motives for doing research may be either one
or more of the following:
1. Desire to get a research degree along with its
consequential benefits;
2. Desire to face the challenge in solving the unsolved
problems, i.e., concern over practical problems initiates
research;
3. Desire to get intellectual joy of doing some creative
work;
4. Desire to be of service to society;
5. Desire to get respectability.
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 MOTIVATION IN RESEARCH
However, this is not an complete list of factors motivating
people to undertake research studies.
Many more factors such as:-
Directives of government,
Employment conditions,
Curiosity about new things,
Desire to understand causal relationships,
Social thinking and awakening,
and the like may as well motivate (or at times compel)
people to perform research operations.

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 1.2 Characteristics of Scientific Research
i. It is empirical: based on observation and
measurement, and could involves some type of
practical experimentation.
ii. It relies upon data: quantitative and qualitative
iii. It is Intellectual and Visionary: requires vision -
the ability to observe the implications of results; to
relate the findings back into real world (inductive
reasoning)
iv. It uses experiments to test predictions: by
designing an experiment in a laboratory or by just
observing the natural world.
v. It is systematic and methodical: Follows certain
steps that are repeatable.
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 1.3 Criteria of Good Research
i. Good research is systematic: structured, follows
specified steps; based on well defined set of rules.
Creative but no guessing and intuition in arriving
at conclusions.
ii. Good research is logical: is guided by the rules of
logical reasoning - induction and deduction.
iii. Good research is empirical: related basically to
one or more aspects of a real situation and deals
with concrete data to ensure external validity of
research results.
iv. Good research is replicable: can be verified by
replicating the study
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 Deductive vs Inductive Research
Research: applies logical reasoning
•Deduction: Goes from general (theories) to specific
(facts)
•Premise * Honest people do not steal
•Premise * John is honest
•Conclusion: John does not steal
• Induction: Goes from facts to generalizations
(theories)
•Facts: Abebe, Ayele, Almaz and Aweke died.
•Facts: Abebe, Ayele, Almaz are human-beings
•Generalization: Human-beings are mortal.
NB: If the premises are true, the conclusion is
correct 9
Deductive vs Inductive Research

From specific to
general. Based
on facts, develop
principles or
theories, which
could later be
used as basis for
deductive
research.

From general to specific.

Arguments are based on laws,
rules and accepted principles.

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1.5 The Deductive Research Process
Find Research Topic and State Your Problem

Literature Survey: Theoretical & Conceptual Framework

Development of Working Hypothesis

Preparing the Research Design
Data collection & Administering data Collection
Analysis of Data
Hypothesis Testing
Generalization and Interpretation
Preparation of the Research Report
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Find Research Topic and State Your Problem
 Two approaches (paradigms) in problem
definition:
•The narrow-deep (e.g. in journal articles)
•The broad-wide (e.g. in books)
 Both have their own purposes, advantages and
dis-advantages
 The first one is preferable for your MA thesis
for better quality; but getting focused is an
iterative process

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 Find Research Topic and State Your Problem…
 Decide the general area of interest that has a feasible
solution - a smaller part of a bigger problem
 Understand the problem-by reading & discussion.
 Narrow the problem down – an iterative process.
 Examine all available literature: the conceptual
(concepts and theories) and empirical literature.
 Verify the validity and objectivity of the
background facts concerning the problem.
 Define relevant terms
•What are key variables in your study?
•What relationship do you investigate?
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 Find Research Topic and State Your Problem…
Checklist for a good research topic:
• Is the topic something in which you are really interested?
• Does the topic have a clear link to theory?
• Is the subject familiar and feasible to you?
•Do you have, or can you develop, the necessary research
skills to undertake the topic?
• Is your topic societal relevant?
• Is the subject overdone? (Avoid it)
• Is the subject controversial? (Avoid it)
• Is the problems too narrow or too vague/broad? (balance)
•Can you meet the cost and time requirements?
•Can you gain accessibility of necessary cooperation, etc.
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Literature Survey: Theoretical & Conceptual Framework

The Theoretical Framework

•A summary of the relevant theories that you will refer
to in your study:
•During the development of the hypotheses and the
conceptual framework;
•When you prepare the research design; do the data
analysis and generalization.
• Indicates the important issues to be assessed or the
variables to be measured; their possible indicators; the
type and direction of relationship that exists among the
variables, and so on.
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 Theoretical & Conceptual Framework…
If you fail to prepare the theoretical framework
properly:
i.You will not have the basis to define relevant
concepts, identify the assessment issues or the variables
and to define them.
ii.You don’t know what relationship to expect.
iii.It will not be easy for you to choose the appropriate
research design.
iv.Your data collection instruments will be unfriendly
designed.
v.During analysis, you will not have any theory to
compare your results with.
vi.The contribution of your research to the existing
theory will be unclear. 18
Theoretical & Conceptual Framework…
The Conceptual Framework:
Is based on the theoretical framework, defines
operationally the concepts you will use in your
research.
 Specifies the variables and indicators that you
will use in your study to measure the concepts?
 Depicts how do the different concepts relate
among each other?
 Is best if supported by a graphical depiction.
•You may create your illustrative diagram or adopt or
adopt it from the literature (clearly cite the sources)
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 Development of Working Hypothesis
 In a deductive logic, you should develop hypotheses
based on what the theory(ies) say about the
phenomenon and the relationships
   A hypothesis:
•Is a tentative assumption; specific and pertinent;
•Provides the focal point for the research; to delimit
the area, sharpen thinking and save you the
researcher - on the right track.
Determines data type; data collection and sampling
methods; the tests that must be conducted during
data analysis, etc.
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Preparing the Research Design
More explicitly, the design decisions happen to be in
respect of:
 What is the study about?
 Why is the study being made?
 Where will the study be carried out?
 What type of data is required?
 What periods of time will the study include?
 What will be the sample design?
 What techniques of data collection will be used?
 How will the data be analysed?

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Preparing the Research Design…
Important concepts in research design:
•A Variable: anything that takes on different values.
•A dependent variable: the one that you would like to
study; it depends on the independent variables.
•Independent variables are those variables related to the
study and that affect your dependent variable.
•Extraneous Variables – independent variables not
related to the study but may affect the ‘dependent’
variable.
•Confounded relationship: When the dependent variable
is affected by the extraneous variable(s),
•Experimental and control groups 22
Preparing the Research Design…
The research design is decomposed into the
following designs:
The sampling designs: method of selecting the
sample.
The Observational design: Conditions under which
the observations are to be made.
The statistical design: How many items are to be
observed and how the information and data gathered
are to be analysed.

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 Preparing the Research Design…
Important elements of research design:
•The Population:
•The sampling Frame:
• Sampling unit/units of analysis:
• Sample size:
• Method of sampling:
• Data Type and sources of data:
• Methods of data collection:
• Methods of data analysis:

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 Data collection & Administering data Collection

 Data collection through

 Observation,
 Personal interview,
 Telephone interview,
 Mailing of questionnaire,
 Schedule etc.
NB: we will discuss them in detail in another chapter

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 Data collection & Administering…
Administering Data Collection (Managing the project):
 Possible sources of bias during data collection:
Defective instruments, such as questionnaires, weighing
scales or other measuring equipment, etc
Observer bias
Effect of the interview on the informant
Information bias
 The bias can be prevented by carefully planning data
collection and by pre-testing the data collection tools.
 The biases will threaten the validity and reliability of
your study.
 It is possible, to certain extent, to prevent them. 26
Data collection & Administering…
Managing the project (data collection process) involves
the following:
Organizing fieldwork
Briefing interviewers (enumerators) and
coordinators (if applicable)
Developing an analysis plan (e,g, Coding)
Organizing data processing (e.g. entering the
coding of the questionnaire items into EXCEL or
SPSS spread sheet; entering data before the data
collection has been completed)
Starting the analysis
Checking and reporting progress of data collection
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 Analysis of Data
Data Preparation: Involves
• Editing:- examining the raw (survey) data to detect error
and omission and to correct these when possible,
•Coding: –assigning numerals or other symbols to answer –
in Excel or in SPSS spreadsheets
•Classification: – The raw data must be grouped or classes
on the basis of common characteristic
•Tabulation /Compilation:- summarizing and displaying
raw data in compact form (statistical tables) for analysis.
 Data Analysis:
•Qualitative, quantitative, or mixed methods - depending on the
research design (exploratory, descriptive, etc) and approach
(qualitative vs, quantitative, or both).
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 Hypothesis Testing
 For quantitative researches, there are different
types of statistical tests of hypothesis: Chi-square
test, t-test, F-test, ANOVA, etc,
  For qualitative researches, the generalizations
that came as a result of the research may be stated
as hypothesis to be tested in subsequent
researches.
 

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 Generalization and Interpretation
 In exploratory research, it could be in the form of
proposing a hypothesis.
 In explanatory studies, your generalization could be
in the form of statements regarding what factors
explain the dependent variable and whether this is in
accordance with what is stated in theory.
 If you had no hypothesis at the beginning, explain the
findings on the basis of some theory known as
interpretation.
 The process of interpretation may trigger new
questions which will serve as a basis for further
researches.
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 Preparation of the Research Report
While writing your report, pay attention to the
language (grammar, spelling), the format, citation,
referencing styles.
In Microsoft Word, the software itself helps you
check the spelling and grammar.
You can download citation and referencing guidelines
from www depending on the particular referencing style
There also are other software that help you in citing
and referencing. Example - Endnote
You can also show your paper to friends & colleagues
at least for language editing
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 Preparation of the Research Report
Different parts of your research report:
Preliminary pages or front matters: Title page;
acknowledgements, TOC, list of tables and list of
graphs and figures. etc.
Main text: Introduction, summary of findings, main
report, conclusion.
End matters: Appendices, Bibliography, Index (esp.
In published report).

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