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A Course Presentation in
MCC201 - Methods of Research
Dr. Pilar Acorda
Course Content
I. Nature and Functions of Research
II. Research Problems and Objectives
III. Review of Related Literature and Studies
IV. Research Designs
V. Sampling Techniques
VI. Research Instruments and Data Collection
VII. Data Processing and Tabulation
VIII. Data Analysis and Interpretation
IX. Action Research Design
X. Writing the (Action) Research Proposal
XI. Presentation and Defense
Course Requirements
1. Regular Attendance/Participation
2. Critical Analysis of Conducted Researches plus
Questions for discussion (relevance of related
literature and studies
cited, congruency of the objectives/statement of the
problem with the instrument used,
appropriateness of design used, sampling method and
statistical treatment)
3. Formulation and preparation of research projects in line
with the field of specialization following the principles
and suggested guidelines
4. Presentation of Generated Research Projects/Proposal
5. Written Final Examination
Nature and Functions of
Research
What is research?
Derived from the French word “CERCHIER” which
means to seek or search
Dull
Theoretical
Impractical
Performed by highly intellectual individuals
Must wear a white lab coat
Factors for Effective Research
Money Materials
Research
Men
The Research
Process
Research Process
1. Identification of the Research Problem
2. Formulation of the research methodology/preparation of
the research design
3. Gathering of data
4. Analysis and interpretation of data
5. Writing of the research report
6. Publication/dissemination of research results
Characteristics of the Research Process
1. It is systematic.
2. It is logical.
3. It is data – based.
4. It involves a process of delimitations.
5. It is replicable.
CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH
ACCORDING TO BEST
Related Theory
- expanded, revised,
new theory
- Existing body of
knowledge
- New knowledge
- Relatedness to the review
of literature
CHARACTERISTICS OF A RESEARCHER
1. patient
2. determined
3. honest
4. fair and just
5. intellectually curious
6. prudent
7. objective and open – minded
8. healthily skeptical
9. accurate and resourceful
10. intellectually honest
SELECTION OF THE PROBLEM
Guide Questions:
1. Is the subject worth investigating?
2. Can the desired inquiry be put through?
3. Can I do the job?
4. Is it a job I want to tackle?
FACTORS TO CONSIDER IN SELECTING A
PROBLEM
1. Be sure that the topic is neither too vague nor too broad
in scope.
2. State the problem with a question that requires a definite
answer.
3. Carefully state the limits of the problem, eliminating all
aspects and factors which will not be considered in the
study.
4. Define any special term that must be used in the
statement of the problem.
Requirements of a Good Research Title
an educated guess
a statement of relationships
a statement of expectations
a working assumption temporarily accepted to be
true and serving as a spring board for researchers in
their quest for truth
TYPES OF HYPOTHESIS
Education SES
Self- Salary
Esteem
2. Summarize large amounts of data
(parsimony)
e = mc 2
3. Application to many different
phenomena (generalizability)
4. Generate additional research by
suggesting novel relationships
(new hypotheses)
5. Apply research to practical
problems (utilitity)
Review of Related
Literature
REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE
1. previous researches
1. clarity of presentation
2. comprehensiveness and exhaustiveness of related
literature
3. appropriateness of method
4. logicality of the problem analysis
5. orderliness of presentation
6. reliability of evidence/ data presented
7. accuracy of content and presentation
8. interestingly presented
9. no unwarranted conclusions
Be Guided!
In summarizing related studies, avoid non-
essential details; emphasize major findings and
methodological issues.
Pearson r
Example
Mathematics Anxiety and Academic Performance of
Selected Freshmen Students of St. Paul University
Philippines
Descriptive Evaluative
Advantages
1. it is easy to generate data
2. factors for projection remain constant and are assumed
3. it helps estimate and predict future information
4. when short – term projects are used, they are more reliable
than long range projection
Disadvantages
1. there is greater probable error of projection
2. data maybe insufficient
Descriptive Narrative Studies
“after the fact”, one that attempts something after the fact,
and where subjects are selected who have undergone some
life experience and where there is an attempt to describe or
explain the experience and often its possible relationship to
some variables
Disadvantages:
It is difficult to argue with certainty that what is learned
from a single case is representative of patterns or trends
in the entire population.
Field experiment
Experimental Method
Experimental group
experimental treatment
Control group
experimental treatment
Post test
Control group
Post test
AFTER / POST TEST ONLY CONTROL GROUP DESIGN
Post test
Control group II
Post test
SOLOMON FOUR GROUP DESIGN
This design employs two experimental groups and two control groups.
Initially, the investigator randomly assigns subjects to the four groups.
Those in the experimental group 1 are pretested and are tested again after
the treatment.
Those in the experimental group 2 also receive the treatment but are
observed only after the treatment, but not before.
Those in control group 1 are observed, on occasions 1 and 2, but they are
not given the experimental treatment.
Those in control group 2 are observed only on the second occasion without
previous observation or treatment.
ADVANTAGES
It has great potential for generating information about different sources of
the effect of the dependent variable, because all four groups are studied at
the same time, both the effects of events occurring between time 1 and
time 2 and the maturation of subjects are controlled.
One can examine the score of control groups 2 for a measure of maturation
without the influence of treatment.
Subdivisions:
Non equivalent control group design or the four celled design without
use of randomization
experimental treatment
experimental treatment
Pre test 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2 post test 1
experimental matter
Pre test 1 2 3 4 5 6 6 5 4 3 2 post test 1
Control group
Illustration:
Time
X O
2. Pre – test- Post – test design
Illustration:
X (Treatment / Intervention)
O1 O2
Pre – test Post – test
(before X) (after X)
3. Static Group comparison design
• The purpose is to explain the present and to anticipate the future based
on a systematic collection and critical evaluation of data pertaining to
past occurrences.
A. Standardized tests
• Achievement Tests
California Achievement Test
Stanford Achievement Test
• Aptitude Test
B. Questionnaires
Examples:
Examples:
What are the strengths of this seminar?
How will the government minimize violence during
elections?
B. Closed-ended questions
required participants to choose from a limited number of
responses
predetermined by the researcher
Examples:
What is your marital status (Check one).
Single Separated
Married Widowed
C. Interviews
ways of conducting:
in-person interviews
telephone interview
The Personal Interview
They can be used with people who are unable to read and
write.
Examples:
-- documents: personal
official
-- archived research data
Statistics in Research?
Descriptive
Does not use a level of significance
Simply describe “what is” about the data
Used to derive profiles or frequency distributions in
exploratory data
Describes relationship of variables and other characteristics
of people, situations and phenomenon
Male 12 24.00
Female 38 76.00
Total 50 100.00
Tools of Descriptive Statistics
4. Measures of variability
Range – distance between highest and lowest
value in a distribution
5. Statistics of association
Pearson product moment correlation (Pearson r)
Describes how the variations of one variable go with the
other
Involves a dependent and an independent variable
Serves as a basis for linear regression
Basic assumptions:
1. Linearity of relationship
2. Normality of the distribution
Tools of Inferential
Statistics
Parametric Tests
Z – test
Used as a test of difference when the population standard
deviation is given
Population mean vs sample mean
T – test
Used when the sample standard deviation is known
Population mean vs sample mean
Paired observations
Pearson r
Parametric Tests
Experience
extension activities
workplace, working activities
personal and others experience
What good will a research-oriented career give me? What is it
for me?
Am I alert?
Am I observant?
Do I persevere?
Am I well-organized?
Do I have a scientific spirit?
Do I have deep curiosity about nature?
Do I have a big desire to know about the world?
Am I scholarly in my disposition and aptitude?
Formulate the Research Problem
Prepare Report
Development of APA Ethical
Principles in the Conduct of Research
with Human Participants
•History
Committee on Ethical Standards in Psychological
Research (1953)
• Questionnaire: 9,000 + psychologists
• Interview: 35 researchers written on topic of
research ethics
Dissemination of draft
• City, state, regional and national meetings
• Published in Monitor
Revised draft gained acceptance in 1973 by general
membership of APA
• Proposed revision every five years
• Latest revision: December, 1992
•Principle A:
In planning a study, the
investigator has responsibility to
make a careful evaluation of its
ethical acceptability.
•Principle B:
Determine degree of risk to subject
(deception, stressful conditions, or
take medication).
•Principle C:
Investigator always retains
responsibility for ethical practice.
•Principle D:
Prior to conducting research, the
investigator must disclose obligations
and responsibilities of both subject
and investigator (influence willingness
to participate).
Not for: anonymous surveys or naturalistic
observation.
•Principle E:
If deception is going to be used:
(1) determine if justified;
(2) identify alternatives to deception,
if any;
(3) ensure participants provided with
sufficient explanation as
immediate as possible.
•Principle F:
Investigator respects individual's
freedom to decline at any time during
course of experiment.
•Principle G:
Investigator protects participant from
physical and mental discomfort, harm,
and danger that may arise from
research procedures.
•Principle H:
After collection of data, researcher
provides participant with information
about the nature of the study
(debriefing).
•Principle I:
If research procedures result in
undesirable consequences for
individual participant, investigator
has responsibility to detect and
remove or correct these consequences
(long-term).
•Principle J:
Information obtained about research
participant during the course of an
investigation is confidential unless
otherwise agreed upon in advance.
The Challenge:
What kind of research will I
make?
How will it contribute to the
spring of knowledge?
With the long and meticulous process of research, one is
not freed from committing mistakes … but sometimes
discoveries are suggested by
FAILURES