BUAD801 Research Methodology

Mixed Methods, Research Report and

Research Ethics
 Chapter Overview
This chapter discusses:
– Mixed methods research design
– Planning and writing a thesis
– Assembling a research
– Structuring a thesis
– Plagiarism
– Research ethics
 What is Mixed Methods Research?
• A mixed methods research design is a procedure for
collecting, analyzing, and “mixing” both quantitative and
qualitative data in a single study to understand a
research problem
• When do you use mixed methods research?
– When both quantitative and qualitative data, together, provide a
better understanding of your research problem than either type
by itself
– To provide a complete picture of the research problem
• Quantitative: trends and describing population
• Qualitative: participants’ words
– When you want to build from one phase of a study to another
• Explore qualitatively then develop an instrument
• Follow-up a quantitative study to obtain more detailed information.
 Mixed Methods Research Designs
Explanatory Sequential Design
• Researcher places priority on quantitative data
collection and analysis
• Researcher collects quantitative data first in the
sequence
• Researcher uses the qualitative data to refine the
results of the quantitative data

Quantitative Qualitative data

data collection collection Interpretation
& analysis & analysis
 Mixed Methods Research Designs
Exploratory Sequential Design
• Research emphasizes qualitative data rather than
quantitative data
• Researcher has a sequence to data collection that
involves collecting qualitative data followed by
quantitative data
• Researcher plans on the quantitative data to build on
or explain the initial qualitative findings

Qualitative data Quantitative

collection data collection Interpretation
& analysis & analysis
 Mixed Methods Research Designs
Convergent Parallel Design
• Researcher gives priority to both quantitative and
qualitative data
• Researcher collects both quantitative and qualitative
data simultaneously
• Researcher compares the results from quantitative
and qualitative analysis to determine if the two data
bases yield similar or dissimilar results

Quantitative data
collection & analysis Integrate data &
Interpretation
re-analyse
Qualitative data
collection & analysis
 Writing a Thesis
• A thesis is a research report:
- Concerns problems in your research area
- Describes what is already known about the problem
- Highlights what you (the researcher) have done to solve the
problem
- Indicates where further progress in the field can be made
• A thesis is not an answer to an assignment question
– You are the main expert in the problem area
– Write to make the topic clear to the reader
– The research must discover something hitherto unknown
– Must have an impact
– Must display some logic
 Writing a Thesis
• A thesis should have an argument
– Should answer a question or a few related questions
– Should try to prove something by reasoning and evidence
– Convince your readers about the credibility of the knowledge
claims made
• Organization of the thesis
– Present your arguments in a logical and consistent order
– Make your argument clear and persuasive
– Always keep the thesis’s overall purpose and organization in
mind
 Writing Academically
• Tell a story
– Think of each variable in the research as a character and explain how
the characters interact with each other.
• Discuss fully your procedures and thought processes.
• Concentrate on the macrostructure:
– Make sure that all sections of the paper are coordinated and flow logically
from one to another.
• Find the operational base of your research and stick to it.
– Think of the research design as the core of an empirical paper, to which
the theory, results, and discussion correspond.
• Don’t exaggerate.
– It is better to be cautious in your argument than to overstate your claims.
– Avoid statements like ‘these findings prove’ and instead say ‘these
findings suggest’.
 Assembling Your Research

Research Problem Theory

Promise to contribute
Thesis statement Theorizing
Sense making
Literature review
Motivation
FIT
Contribution

Interpreting
Evidence
Explaining

Theory-in-practice

Data
 Structuring a Thesis
• Title
• Abstract
• Background or introduction: contemporary debates
– Argue your research problem clearly
• locate the article’s focus as addressing an important aspect of research
• Statement of purpose or aims
• Clearly spell out your research questions

• Literature review
– Show the importance of the topic
– Use the review to:
• Justify your choice of research question, theoretical framework, and method
• Establish your study as one link in a chain of research that is developing
knowledge in your field.
 Structuring a Thesis
• Theory and hypotheses
– How relationships between the variables might be conceptualized
– Interpretive schema for understanding the field of study
• Methodology and methods:
– Research design and data collection procedure,
• How appropriate they are for your questions
• Explain the sampling procedure
• Discuss data collection methods
• Discuss conceptualization, operationalization, and measurement of
concepts
• Address questions of validity and reliability
– Data analysis
• Explain the appropriateness of your method of analysis
• Present the analytic procedure clearly
 Structuring a Thesis
• Results/findings
– Provide a general description of the findings
– Consider whether the findings address your research questions
and/or hypotheses and offer potential explanations for contrary
findings.
– Highlight possible differences in interpretation

• Discussion and conclusion

– The final section should begin with a strong findings statement.
– Indicate how the results are consistent with other empirical studies.
– Reflect upon the theoretical and practical contribution of the study
– Highlight some of the limitations of the study;
– Outline some direction for future research.

• References/bibliography.
 Plagiarism and Acknowledging Sources
• Plagiarism
- Using some one else’s ideas without acknowledging
- The university regards it as a serious breach of ethics
- Referencing helps you to use the ideas of others ethically

• Referencing
– Referencing is a way of acknowledging sources of information
– Information that you have to research to learn about requires
referencing
– General knowledge and public information does not require
referencing
– The easiest approach to referencing is to start compiling a list of
your sources
 Ethics in Research
• Ethical considerations must always be taken into
account in any type of research
– The researcher must be aware and act on ethical concerns
from the initiation of a research project through to completion
– Only ethical research is good research

• Three levels of ethical considerations in research

include:
– The participant level
– Research-participant relationship
– Data level
 Ethical Considerations in Research
• The participant level
– Informed consent
– Participants should have the right to withdraw at any time
– Privacy should be guaranteed to all participants
– Information/data should not be obtained through deception
– Protection of the participant from physical and psychological harm
• Researcher-participant relationship
– Establish good rapport but avoid situations where the participant
thinks they are friends with you
– The conduct of the research should not be excessively intrusive on
the time, space and personal lives of the participant
– Avoid conflict of interest between you and the participant and
among participants
 Ethical Considerations in Research

• Data
– Information obtained through the research must be
treated in strict confidence
– Analyse data in a way that avoid misstatements,
misinterpretations or fraudulent analyses.
– Represent data fairly