CHARACTERISTICS OF A RESEARCH PROCESS

 RESEARCH IS SYSTEMATIC because

research is a structured process (that is,
there are rules for carrying it out). It follows
that it is systematic. The rules include
procedural specifications for identifying and
defining variables, for designing studies to
examine these variables and determine their
effect on other variables, and hypothesis.
 RESEARCH IS LOGICAL Research follows a
system that employ logic at many points. By logical
examination of the procedures employed in an
experiment, relative to the requirements of internal
validity, the researcher can check the validity of the
conclusion drawn. Applying logic he or she can also
check generalization in the context of external
validity. The logic of valid research makes it a
valuable tool for decision making, certainly far
superior to intuiting.
 RESEARCH IS EMPIRICAL Research has a reality
referent. Much abstract deduction may precede
research, but data are the end result of research. It
is the collection of data that identifies research as an
empirical process. To determine the extent to which
empirical findings can be generalized beyond the
immediate research situation, the researcher must
evaluate the research data in terms of their external
validity.
 RESEARCH IS REDUCTIVE A researcher applies
analytic procedures to the data collected to reduce
confusion of particular events and objects to more
general and understandable conceptual categories.
In doing this, the researcher sacrifices some of the
specificity and uniqueness associated with the
individual objects or events, but gains in the power to
identify general relationships, a process that requires
conceptualization. Reductionism enables research to
explain rather than simply describe.
RESEARCH IS REPLICABLE AND TRANSMITABLE

 Because it is recorded generalized, and replicated,

research is considerably less transitory in nature than are
the products of other problem solving process. Thus,
individuals rather than researcher may build upon the
research results of a study, and one researcher may build
upon the research results of another. Moreover, the
process and procedures are themselves transmittable,
enabling others to replicate them and assess their validity.
The transmittable property of research is critical to its role
both in extending knowledge and in decision making.
SOME ETHICAL CONSIDERATION

 The matter of ethics is important for educational researchers.

Because the subject of study is the learning and behaviour of
human beings, often children, research may embarrass, hurt,
frighten, impose on, or otherwise negatively affect the lives of
the participants in the research.
 Here are some ethical considerations on how to deal with
research:
 THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY OR NONPARTICIPATION

 THE RIGHT TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS

 THE RIGHT TO CONFIDENTIALITY

 THE RIGHT TO EXPECT EXPERIMENTER RESPONSIBILITY

THE RIGHT TO PRIVACY AND
NONPARTICIPATION

 First and foremost, a person has the full right not to

participate in the study at all. In general, the right to
privacy refers to the right of participants in the study to
keep from the public certain information about
themselves. E.g, religious convictions, feeling about
parents.
 To safeguard the privacy of the subjects, the
researcher should avoid unnecessary questions;
avoid recording individual item response if possible
and obtain direct consent for participation from
adults, parents or teachers.
THE RIGHT TO REMAIN ANONYMOUS

 All participants in human research have the right to

remain anonymous, that is, the right to insist that
their individual identities not to be salient feature of
the research. To ensure anonymity, two approaches
are often used. First researchers are usually
interested in groups rather than individual data;
second, wherever possible, subjects are identified by
number rather than by name.
THE RIGHT TO CONFIDENTIALITY

 Who will have access to the data? In school studies,

students and teachers both may be concerned that
other could gain access to research data and use
them to make judgements of character and
performance.
 To guarantee confidentiality roster all data by number
rather than name; destroy the original test protocols
as soon as the study is completed and when possible
provide participants with stamped, sel- addressed
envelopes to return questionnaires directly.
THE RIGHT TO EXPECT
EXPERIMENTER RESPONSABILITY

 Finally, every participant in the study has the right to

expect that the researcher be sensitive to human
dignity. Researchers should particularly reassure
potential participants that they will not be hurt by
their participation. Participants have the right to insist
that the researcher explain the study to them after it
is completed, particularly to overcome the negative
effects that might result from participation.
STEPS IN A RESEARCH PROCESS

Identifying Reviewing Constructing Identifying and

a labeling variables
Literature Hypotheses

Constructing Manipulating Constructing Carrying out

Operational And controling methods of
Problem Statistical
definitions variables Data collection analysis

Writing a
Research report