THE RESEARCH PROCESS

• The Research Problem:

• A problem may imply that controversy or difference
of options exists.
• A research problem is a focus of a research
investigation.
• An issue that someone would like to research
• Is a fuel that drives the scientific process and the
foundation of any research method.
Characteristics of a Good Research
Problem
• It should ask about a relationship between two or more
variables
• It should be unambiguously stated
• Should communicate the purpose of the study
• Should be stated in a question form
• It should be researchable
• Should be significant
• Should not represent a moral or ethical position
• Must be feasible
 Sources of Research Problems
• Where do ideas for research problems come
from???
• Theory: A set of propositions that explain the
relationship among observed phenomena.
• Experience: Ideas come from one’s interest and
personal and practical experiences.
• Literature: A written document that includes
scholarly textbooks, journals, theses, and
dissertations.
 Sources of Research Problems
• Where do ideas for research problems come from???
• Grey Literature: Meeting proceedings and written
memos that are related to a general issue of interest.
• Ideas from External Sources: Course lectures,
project work supervisors, and development agencies
like DFID, USAID, GTZ, and other NGOs.
• Clarification of Contradictory Results: Some studies
indicate one conclusion, and other studies of the
thing come to an opposite conclusion.
 Sources of Research Problems
• Where do ideas for research problems come from???
• Expert: Anybody knowledgeable on specific issues and can
guide others regarding those issues.
• Replication: Repeat a complete study with relatively minor
changes that will contribute to knowledge by confirming or
disconfirming earlier findings.
• Why replicates?
• To check the findings of a major or milestone study.
• To check the validity of research findings
• To check trends or change over time.
• To check important findings using different methods.
Statement of the Research Problem
•A good research statement of the
problem should serve as a guide to the
researcher in the process of designing
the study.
•It should identify the key study variables
and their possible interrelationships, as
the nature of the population of interest.
Ways to Formulate the Research Problem
• Specify the Research Objectives: It is critical that you have
manageable objectives. At least two or three clear goals will
do.
• Review the environment or context of the research
problem: Assess the beneficiaries of the findings and
environmental variables that will affect the research.
• Explore the Nature of the Problem: It can be simple or
complex, depending on the number of variables and their
relationship.
Ways to Formulate the Research Problem
• Define the variable relationship: To determine how the variables affect the
solution to the problem and the degree to which each variable can be
controlled.
• The consequences of alternative courses of action-Delphi technique:
• The Delphi technique is a well-established approach to answering a
research question through the identification of a consensus view across
subject experts. It allows for reflection among participants, who can
nuance and reconsider their opinion based on the anonymized opinions of
others.
• The Delphi method is the process of gathering a panel of experts and
engaging in several rounds of questions about how to make certain
business decisions or solve an organizational problem. Every answer the
experts provide is anonymous. After each round, facilitators review and
sort through all the answers
Forms of Research Problem
• The research problem can be expressed in two main forms namely
• Statement Form of a Problem: This is usually in a declarative form
• Example-The purpose of the study is to examine the relationship
between self-efficacy and performance.
• Question Form of a Problem: This is usually in an interrogative form,
that is a question.
• Example-What is the level of relationship between self- efficacy and
performance?
What is a Hypothesis?
• A hypothesis states your predictions about what your research will
find. It is a tentative answer to your research question that has not
yet been tested.
• For some research projects, you might have to write several
hypotheses that address different aspects of your research question.
• A hypothesis is an assumption that is made based on some evidence.
• This is the initial point of any investigation that translates the research
questions into predictions.
• It includes components like variables, population, and the relation
between the variables.
• A research hypothesis is a hypothesis that is used to test the relationship
between two or more variables.
Importance of Research Hypothesis
• Allows the investigator to confirm o disconfirm a theory and help
advance knowledge.
• It tells us what specific aspects of a research problem to investigate.
• It tells us what data to collect and what not to collect, thereby
providing focus to the study.
• It ensures the entire research methodologies are scientific and valid.
• It helps to assume the probability of research failure and progress.
• It helps to provide a link to the underlying theory and specific
research question.
• It helps in data analysis and measures the validity and reliability of
the research results.
Types of Hypotheses
• Directional: Do stipulate the specific direction, such as
higher, lower, more, or less that a researcher expects to
emerge in a relationship is indicated.
• Example-There is a positive relationship between study
habits and academic performance.
• Non-Directional: Does not stipulate/state the direction
of the relationship or difference.
• Example- There is a relationship between age of
students and their academic performance.
Types of Hypotheses
• Null / Statistical: A statement that differences or relationships have
occurred because of chance. Normally, this is a statement of no
difference or relationship and is denoted by Ho
• Example- There is no difference in performance between male and
female students’ performance.
• Alternative: The alternative hypothesis is a statement used in
statistical inference experiments. It is contradictory to the null
hypothesis and denoted by Ha or H1. We can also say that it is simply
an alternative to the null. In hypothesis testing, an alternative theory is
a statement that a researcher is testing.
• Example- There is a difference in performance between male and
female students’ performance
Characteristics of Good Research
Hypothesis
• Should be stated in a declarative Form
• The result should contribute to an established
body of knowledge
• Should follow the research problem
• Should state the expected relationship
• Should be testable
• Should be clear
• Should be concise
Review of Related Literature
• It involves the systematic identification, location, and
analysis/digging of documents containing information
related to the research problem.
• The review usually provides an overview of sources
you have explored with researching a particular topic
and demonstrates to your readers how your study fits
within a larger field of study.
• Provides a description, summary, and critical
evaluation of these works in relation to the research
problem.
Purpose/ Importance of Reviewing
Related Literature
• Avoidance of Unintentional replication
• Refining/delimiting the research problem
• Identify useful methodology techniques
• Facilitating the interpretation of the results of the study
• Identify contradictory findings
• Developing research hypotheses/questions
• Desirable replication
Types of Literature Reviews (Sources)
• Sources of information or evidence are often categorized as
primary, secondary, or tertiary material.
• These classifications are based on the originality of the
material and the proximity of the source or origin.
• This informs the reader as to whether the author is reporting
information that is first-hand or is conveying the experiences
and opinions of others which are considered second hand.
• Determining if a source is primary, secondary, or tertiary can
be tricky.
Primary Sources
• These sources are records of events or evidence as they are first
described or happened without any interpretation or commentary.
• It is information that is shown for the first time or original materials
on which other research is based.
•  Primary sources display original thinking, report on new discoveries,
or share fresh information.
• Examples of primary sources:
Theses, dissertations, scholarly journal articles (research-based),
some government reports, symposia and conference proceedings,
original artwork, poems, photographs, speeches, letters, memos,
personal narratives, diaries, interviews, autobiographies, and
correspondence.
Secondary Sources
• These sources offer an analysis or restatement of primary
sources. They often try to describe or explain primary
sources.
• They tend to be works that summarize, interpret,
reorganize, or otherwise provide added value to a primary
source.
• Examples of Secondary Sources:
Textbooks, edited works, books, and articles that interpret or
review research works, histories, biographies, literary
criticism and interpretation, reviews of law and legislation,
political analyses, and commentaries.
Tertiary Sources
• These are sources that index, abstract, organize, compile, or digest
other sources. Some reference materials and textbooks are
considered tertiary sources when their chief purpose is to list,
summarize or simply repackage ideas or other information.
• Tertiary sources are usually not credited to a particular author.
• Examples of Tertiary Sources:
Dictionaries/encyclopedias (may also be secondary), almanacs, fact
books, Wikipedia, bibliographies (may also be secondary), directories,
guidebooks, manuals, handbooks, and textbooks (maybe secondary),
indexing and abstracting sources.
Development of Literature Review
• Four Stages include:
• Problem Formulation: Which topic or field is being
examined
• Literature Search: Finding relevant materials
• Data Evaluation: determining which literature makes
a significant contribution to the understanding of the
topic.
• Analysis and interpretation: discussing the findings
and conclusions of relevant literature.
Steps to review related literature
• Define your research scope.
• Identify the new terms
• Plan your research approach.
• Identifying the appropriate Journal indexes and
Abstracts
• Search strategically: be efficient but thorough. ...
• Manage your literature with online tools. ...
• Critical reading and analysis. ...
• Benchmark from other literature reviews. ...
• Assemble the texts and write.
Ways of searching for sources
•By computer
•By mediated online search
done by a librarian of library
staff
•Manually
Writing your literature Review
• Use evidence
• Be selective
• Use quotes sparingly
• Summarize and synthesize
• Keep your own voice
• Use caution when paraphrasing
Criteria for Evaluating the review of literature
• Several criteria should be considered such as:
• Cite actual findings from other studies
• Analyse as well as summarise previous studies
• Should establish a theoretical framework for the problem
• Review of major studies should relate previous studies
explicitly to the research problem or methods.
• There should be a connection between the problem, review,
and hypothesis
Parts of Literature Review
• Introduction: Describes the nature of the research
problem and state the research questions.
• Explains what led to the study and its importance
• Body: Reports what others have found or thought
about the research problem.
• Discuss related studies together
Parts of Literature Review
• Summary: Composite picture of what is known
or thought to date
• Connect the parts together
Parts of Literature Review
• References:
• A basic reference list entry for a journal article in APA must include:
• Author or authors. The surname is followed by first initials.
• Year of publication of the article (in round brackets).
• Article title.
• Journal title (in italics).
• Volume of the journal (in italics).
• Issue of the journal (no italics).
• Page range of the article.
• DOI (presented as a hyperlink, for example, https://doi.org/xxxxx).
• The first line of each citation is left adjusted. Every subsequent line is
indented 5-7 spaces.
Parts of Literature Review
• References: Use APA(American Psychological
Association).
• Example- Example: 
• Ruxton, C. (2016). Tea: Hydration and other health benefits. Primary
Health Care, 26(8), 34-42. https://doi.org/10.7748/phc.2016.e1162
Common mistakes
• Sources in your literature do not clearly relate to the
research problem
• Don not take sufficient time to define and identify the most
relevant sources
• Relies exclusively on secondary and tertiary sources
• Reports isolated statistical results rather than synthesizing
• Only include research that validates assumptions and not
contrary findings and alternative interpretations found in the
literature.