Unit I: Introduction to Research

Lecture Notes

Ayele Tessema (PhD)

 Unit I: Introduction to Research

Upon completion of Unit I, students will be able

to
• Understand what research means, why
undertake research and key characteristics of
research
• Explain the relationships between research and
science
• Introduce to some key terms and concepts
• Identify the different research philosophies,
approaches and types
Introduction to Research - Lecture Notes 2
 What is research and why research?
What is Research?
 An investigation into the nature of an observed problem,
the reasons for is occurrence or existence and its
consequences
 A process of enquiry driven by the quest for new
knowledge and advance its (human knowledge) frontiers
 It is a careful, systematic patient study and investigation
undertaken to establish facts or principles
 A structured enquiry that utilizes the scientific method to
solve problems and create new knowledge that is generally
applicable
 It is directed towards the solution of a problem or explain
the causes of events and their likely effects and control
 Research is directed at drawing generalizations, or
formulation of principles or theories that help to predict
the courses of eventsIntroduction
and their possible
to Research - Lecture
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3
Notes
 Why the Need for Research?
• To solve a problem, or explain or predict the course of
events with the aim of solving or advancing human
knowledge

How does a research activity begin?

Research can be initiated:
• If there is an urge to solve or seek explanation for an
observed problem or an intriguing issue
• If research is a requirement for academic advancement or
career promotion
• An assignment from an employing agency or organization
• If prompted (stimulated) by requests for proposals by a
sponsoring or funding organizations or agencies
Introduction to Research - Lecture 4
Notes
 Characteristics of Research
 Research should be original; logical; and involve rigorous
(thorough, meticulous) analysis
 it is a careful, exhaustive investigation of specific problem
or issue of common concern with the aim of solving or
explaining it
 it is systematic, methodical and ethical; undertaken to
solve practical problems and increase knowledge
• It involves gathering new data from primary and secondary
sources, or using existing data for new purpose
• It is based on observable or empirical evidence – it is not
dogmatic
 Research involves systematic collection, analysis and
dissemination of information
 Follows scientific procedure and methods of analysis
 In other words, research relies on the application of the
scientific method or follows a certain structural process in
its activities
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Notes
• Procedures employed in research, and the
conclusions reached has to be validated by
tests
• Research outcomes are rarely final – research
is an on-going process
• The truth of scientific/research findings is
relative and provisional
• Research outcomes undergo constant process
of reviews – in the process, confirmation,
revision, partial or total rejection of previous
findings are expected

Introduction to Research - Lecture 6

Notes
• Research is often a team endeavor, involving
sharing of ideas and experiences and
knowledge pooling
• Research proposals or findings involve critical
evaluation by peer groups and are subject to
modification, revision, enrichment or partial
or complete rejection
• Research is meaningless if it does not solve
a problem or contribute to the
advancement of human knowledge

Introduction to Research - Lecture Notes 7

In short, research is:
1. Controlled: in real life there are many factors that
affect an outcome. But in research the concept of
control implies that, in exploring causality in
relation to two variables (factors), the study is
designed in a way that minimizes the effects of
other factors affecting the relationship. This can be
achieved to a large extent in the physical sciences
(in lab situations). However, in the social sciences it
is extremely difficult as research is carried out on
issues related to human beings living in society,
where such controls are not possible. Therefore in
such situations you cannot control external factors,
you attempt to quantify their impact.
2. Rigorous: you must be meticulous/careful in ensuring that
the procedures followed to find answers to questions are
relevant, appropriate and justified. Again, the degree of
rigor varies markedly between the physical and social
sciences and within the social sciences

3. Systematic: this implies that the procedure adopted to

undertake an investigation follow a certain logical
sequence. The different steps cannot be taken in a
haphazard way. Some procedures must follow others.

4. Valid and verifiable: this concept implies that whatever

you conclude on the basis of your findings is correct and
can be verified by you and others.
5. Empirical: this means that any conclusion
drawn are based upon hard evidence
gathered from information collected from
real life experiences or observations.

6. Critical: critical scrutiny of the procedures

used and the methods employed is crucial to
a research enquiry. The process of
investigation must be foolproof and free from
drawbacks. The process adopted and the
procedures used must be able to withstand
critical scrutiny
 Science and the scientific Method
• Science is a systematic and organized body of
knowledge in any area of enquiry that is acquired
using the ‘scientific method’
• Science starts by identifying the problem, then
gathering and analyzing evidence, interpretation of
results and making conclusion
• It is rooted on theory and tries to give the ‘truth’
• Not biased and is different from common sense
• Is relevant and interesting to know
• Can be checked, repeated or replicated
• Science is objective, accurate, logical and systematic
in its analysis of phenomenon
• It is a careful, disciplined and logical search for
Introduction to Research - Lecture
knowledge Notes
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• Science employs set methodological
procedures that help to reduce or control the
amount of error that creeps into the process
of knowledge
• The scientific method demands, for example,
that any assertion (statement or claim) about
the world need to be supported by empirical
evidence
• Furthermore, the process requires following
systematic and methodological rules for
gathering evidence and its analysis
• It is a requirement also that the evidence
obtained in a given study should be replicated
by other studies to be considered as
trustworthy Introduction to Research - Lecture
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 Some Key Terms and Concepts
What is truth?
- There are different versions of reality depending on
the experience and situation of each actor. Hence
‘there is no absolute truth but multiple realities’.
realities
There is no universal concept of truth.
- As knowledge expands and research tools refine,
discovery of new knowledge, and updating,
expanding or even nullifying previous findings is
inevitable. Hence, truth is relative
- Ongoing (dynamic changes) of conditions,
relations, interactions between and among things
and phenomena over space and through time
- Human knowledge is incomplete.
- Reality is socially constructed in the same way as
truth is created or socially constructed
Introduction to Research - Lecture 13
Notes
 Some Key Terms and Concepts
- Concepts are mental images, abstractions, or terms that
symbolize ideas, persons, things, or events (Ruane 2005)
- In natural science – concepts are often expressed in
symbolic notations
E.g. % denotes percentile
∑ denotes summation
- In social science, concepts are often expressed in words
E.g. for a legally recognized social and economic
relationship between a man and woman, the conceptual
term marriage is used
- Research is concerned with the concrete and the empirical.
But concepts are not part of the empirical world (are
mental abstractions of things, events and phenomena)
- Concepts become part of research via theory
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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- Science refers to a systematic and organized body of knowledge in
any area of inquiry that is acquired using the scientific method
- Scientific knowledge refers to a generalized body of laws and
theories to explain a phenomenon or behavior of interest that are
acquired using the scientific method
- Laws are observed patterns of phenomena or behavior, while
theories are systematic explanations of the underlying phenomenon
or behavior
- Theories are set of logically related or linked ideas (abstractions)
about how the world or some processes work.
- Theories are conceptual frameworks that explain existing
observations and predict new ones
- The fundamental building blocks of theory are concepts – i.e.
theories consist of a series of statements (propositions) about
relationships between concepts

Introduction to Research - Lecture 15

Notes
 The goal of scientific research is to discover laws and postulate
theories that can explain natural or social phenomena – i.e.- build
scientific knowledge
 Important to note that this knowledge may be imperfect or even
far from the truth. Progress in science is achieved by continuously
improving our knowledge through repeated research on issues –
by refining poorer theories to better theories
 Observations and theories are the two pillars of science and
scientific research – theory (deduction) is concerned with
developing abstract concepts about phenomenon and
relationships between those concepts, while – observation or
empirical (induction) is concerned with testing the theoretical
concepts to see how well it reflects the reality
 This continual moving back and forth between theory (deductive)
and observation (inductive) help theory to be continually refined

Introduction to Research - Lecture 16

Notes
• Scientific method refers to a standardized set of
techniques for building scientific knowledge, such as how
to make valid observations, how to interpret results, and
how to generalize those results.
• The scientific method is systematic (follows steps),
replicable, verifiable, rigorous, and analytic. It tries to be
precise and objective and reduce the researcher’s bias &
prejudices
• Variables: an entity that can take on different values; any
measured characteristic or attribute that differs for
different subjects (e.g. age, sex, )
• Variables can be qualitative or quantitative, discrete (non-
continuous) or continuous, and independent or
dependent or extraneous in nature
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Notes
• In research operationalization of variables is important.
• Operationalization refers to how study variables are going to be
measured or assessed so that it can be replicated by someone else if
necessary
– It is the translation of abstract theoretical constructs into concrete
procedures and indicators that can be observed, recorded, and
replicated.
– Providing operational definitions in measurement means specifying
the exact steps or procedures that would be employed when carrying
out the measurement procedure
• Research methodology refers to the overall approaches & perspectives
to the research process as a whole and is concerned with the following
main issues: Why collect certain data; What data to collect; Where to
collect it; How to collect it; and, How to analyse it, while;
• A research method refers only to the various specific tools or ways data
can be collected and analysed, e.g. a questionnaire; interview checklist;
data analysis software, etc. Introduction to Research - Lecture 18
Notes
 RESEARCH PHILIOSOPHIES
• There are two main research philosophies (or positions) – positivist
and phenomenological. Although there can be overlap between the
two , both positions may be identifiable in any research project.
1. POSITIVISTIC (can also be referred to ‘Quantitative’, ‘Objectivist’,
‘Scientific’, ‘Experimentalist’ or ‘Traditionalist’)
Characteristics
• An approach to research that seeks out the facts or causes of any
social phenomena in a systematic way.
• Belief that the study of social behaviour should be conducted in the
same way as studies conducted in the natural sciences
• Seek to identify, measure and evaluate any phenomena and to
provide rational explanation for the goal of establishing causal links
and relationships between the different elements (or variables) of
the subject and relate them to a particular theory or practice.
Introduction to Research - Lecture Notes
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2. PHENOMENOLOGICAL (can also be referred to as ‘Qualitative’, ‘Subjectivist’,
‘Humanistic’ or ‘Interpretative’)
Characteristics
• It approachs research from the perspective that human behaviour is not as easily
measured as phenomena in the natural sciences.
• Human motivation is shaped by factors that are not always observable, e.g. inner
thought processes, so that it can become hard to generalise on observation alone.
• Furthermore, people place their own meanings on events; meanings that do not
always coincide with the way others have interpreted them.
• This perspective assumes that people will often influence events and act in
unpredictable ways that upset any constructed rules or identifiable norms – they
are often ‘actors’ on a human stage and shape their ‘performance’ according to a
wide range of variables.
• Phenomenological approaches are particularly concerned with understanding
behaviour from the participants’ own subjective frames of reference.
• Research methods are chosen therefore, to try and describe, translate and explain
and interpret events from the perspectives of the people who are the subject of
the research. Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Notes
Research philosophy can impact on the methodology adopted for the
research project.
• The main research methodologies are summarized below and can be
linked to positivistic and phenomenological research positions or
approaches. However, research often contains both positivistic and
phenomenological approaches, e.g. a survey that also contains
qualitative work from participant observation

Positivistic Phenomenological
 Surveys  Case Studies
 Experimental Studies  Action Research
 Longitudinal Studies  Ethnography (participant
 Cross-sectional Studies observation)
 Participative Enquiry
 Feminist Perspectives
 Grounded Theory

Introduction to Research - Lecture

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Notes
 RESEARCH APPROACHES
• Research can be approached as: Quantitative/Qualitative ;
Applied/Basic, and Deductive/Inductive
• Many research projects combine a number of approaches, e.g. may
use both quantitative and qualitative approaches
1.

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Notes
2. BASIC/APPLIED RESEARCH
• The primary aim of Basic Research is to improve knowledge generally, without
any particular applied purpose in mind at the outset.
• Applied Research is designed from the start to apply its findings to a particular
situation.
3.

Introduction to Research - Lecture

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Notes
 More on Deductive/Inductive Approach
a) Deductive Approach
- Deduction is the process of drawing conclusions about a
phenomenon or behaviour based on theoretical or logical reasons
and an initial set of premises; it is a reasoning or approach that
works from the more general to the more specific
- A researcher on the basis of what is known about a particular
domain and theoretical considerations in relation to that domain
deduces a hypothesis that must then be subjected to empirical
scrutiny
- Theory and the hypothesis derived from it come first and drive the
process of gathering data
- The goal is to test a theory with data and draw conclusion about
whether the theory can be confirmed or refuted
- The research is conducted to test an established theory
- For this reason deductive approach is sometimes called
confirmatory research, i.e. the research is trying to confirm theory
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Notes
 Deductive Approach

Data
Collection

Hypothesis confirmed or refuted

In this approach the research process is cyclical, i.e.

results feedback into the system and inform future
research
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Notes
 b) Inductive Approach
- Induction is a process of drawing conclusions based on facts or
observed evidence. It is a process that involves drawing inference
out of observation
- In inductive approach, researcher starts with empirical data and
develops to larger generalizations and theoretical insights from the
data

Data

- Induction proceeds from the particular (i.e. data) to the

general (i.e. theory) Introduction toNotes
Research - Lecture
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• In inductive approach, theory is created
from data in which empirical information is
analyzed to identify a theoretical proposition
• The approach is chosen because may be
there is no established theory on which to
base and, the research is trying to develop
one
• Because of this the approach is sometimes
called exploratory research

Introduction to Research - Lecture 27

Notes
 Types of research
Research can be categorized based on different
considerations
1. Based on the type of data
Qualitative or quantitative research
 Qualitative research produces narratives
or textual description of phenomena
under study. It is a description of
phenomena by using words
 Quantitative research assigns numbers to
the phenomena. It is a description of
phenomena by using some mathematical
or statistical manipulation
Introduction to Research - Lecture 28
Notes
 Quantitative vs qualitative research

Items Quantitative research Qualitative research

Type of data Phenomena described Phenomena described in a

numerically narrative way

analysis Descriptive and inferential Identification of major items

statistics

Scope inquiry Specific question or Broad thematic concerns

hypothesis

advantage Large sample, statistical Rich, in-depth narrative

validity, accurately reflects description of sample
the population

disadvantage Superficial understanding of Small sample, not

participants’ thoughts and generalizable to the
feelings population at large
Introduction to Research - Lecture 29
Notes
2. Based on the goal of research
Basic/Fundamental vs Applied Research
Basic or fundamental research – a research
activity pursued with the aim of discovering or
creating new knowledge regardless of its
immediate application. I
Its primary purpose is to advance the frontiers of
knowledge and is conducted without practical end
in mind.
It is mainly driven by the researcher’s curiosity or
interest. The commitment and devotion of the
researcher is important.
Basic research is often conducted in universities
than in research systems Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Applied research – this is research activity
directed at the generation of knowledge with
the aim of solving a predetermined
problem.
It is not done to gain knowledge for its own
sake but to solve specific and practical
problems that are faced.
It usually involves adaptation, conversion, or
processing of knowledge to develop useful
innovation or technology that is derived from
basic or fundamental research
Introduction to Research - Lecture 31
Notes
3. Based on the Level of Inter-disciplinarity of
research
Disciplinary research – research method that is
limited to a particular discipline or field of study
Multi-disciplinary research – joint research
conducted by researchers coming from different
fields of study. The activity does not lead to
changes in existing disciplinary and theoretical
structure. On the other hand, the researchers look
at a problem from their disciplinary point of view
and try to put their interpretations into the findings
Interdisciplinary research – this research type
transcends disciplinary boundaries. It involves
formulation by the researchers concerned of
common method including common terminologies
to study the issue or problem.
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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4. Based on the level of Participation
 Traditional non-participatory research
- In which research is initiated, directed and controlled by
outside researchers
- considered by some as elitist research or rural
development tourism involving a brief visit by urban-
based professionals
- viewed by some as a top-down affair, carried out in the
name of local welfare but without taking the views and
concerns of the local people into consideration
- Seen as intrusive, aggressive and distanced from local
conditions and realities
- As a top-down research by outsiders, it also tends to
raise local people’s expectations who might expect it to
solve long-standing problemsIntroduction to Research - Lecture
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Participatory research
- A method in which researchers and local people
collaborate closely to explore problems and
issues which the locals think requires research
and action
- In this approach, research grows up more
naturally and organically from the perceptions of
the community and their working with the
researchers. It is consultative and collaborative
research (Pratt & Loizos 1992)
- It is important to note that participatory
research is not a kind of a specific method,
rather, about whether a method being used has
included a strong involvement and consultation
of the local people
Introduction to Research - Lecture
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Notes
- Also important to note that not all research methods or
groups are equally amenable to participation
- Participation is empowering if it is genuinely democratic,
well managed and engenders enthusiastic involvement
of the subjects
- However, participatory research suffers from a paternal
trap. The method can not escape from being a tool by an
outsider who wants to change things, or, where a
stronger person wants to change things for a weaker
one (Chambers 1983)
- Also, participatory method should be seen critically and
sometimes skeptically as some governments often
compel citizens to take part in development programs
- Common participatory research methods are
Participatory Rural Appraisal (PRA) and Rapid Rural
Appraisal (RRA) Introduction to Research - Lecture 35
Notes
 Other classification
Other researchers classify research into the following four types:

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Notes