DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH DESIGNS Descriptive research aims to accurately and systematically describe a population, situation or phenomenon. It can answer what, where, when and how questions, but not why questions. A descriptive research design can use a wide variety of research methods to investigate one or more variables. Unlike in experimental research, the researcher does not control or manipulate any of the variables, but only observes and measures them. Descriptive research methods Descriptive research is usually defined as a type of quantitative research, though qualitative research can also be used for descriptive purposes. The research design should be carefully developed to ensure that the results are valid and reliable. Surveys Survey research allows you to gather large volumes of data that can be analyzed for frequencies, averages and patterns. Common uses of surveys include: Describing the demographics of a country or region Gauging public opinion on political and social topics Evaluating satisfaction with a company’s products or an organization’s services Observations Observations allow you to gather data on behaviours and phenomena without having to rely on the honesty and accuracy of respondents. This method is often used by psychological, social and market researchers to understand how people act in real-life situations. Observation of physical entities and phenomena is also an important part of research in the natural sciences. Before you can develop testable hypotheses, models or theories, it’s necessary to observe and systematically describe the subject under investigation. Case studies A case study can be used to describe the characteristics of a specific subject (such as a person, group, event or organization). Instead of gathering a large volume of data to identify patterns across time or location, case studies gather detailed data to identify the characteristics of a narrowly defined subject. Rather than aiming to describe generalizable facts, case studies often focus on unusual or interesting cases that challenge assumptions, add complexity, or reveal something new about a research problem. Advantages 1. Data collected from descriptive research is helpful in important decisionmaking because the data is obtained from a large population. 2. A variety of data can be obtained using different descriptive research methods like surveys, observation, and vase study. These three research methods provide different type of data which can be used to analysis for a research problem. 3. It is cheap and quick . 4. Descriptive research provides both quantitative and qualitative data. 5. Descriptive research can be conducted in natural settings. There is no need to have a designated space to conduct research using any of the descriptive research methods. Disadvantages 1. Descriptive methods only provide the answers for “what” and do not answer the why and how. Therefore, descriptive research methods are not suitable for determining cause and effect relationships. 2. Descriptive methods mainly depend on the responses of people. There are chances that people might not act their true selves if they know they are being observed. In the case of the survey method, there are chances that some people don’t answer the questions honestly, which makes the output of the descriptive research study invalid. Because the results derived from this type of data will not be accurate. 3. Another problem associated with descriptive research is the halo effect. A researcher might get partial if he knows the participant personally. The observations made in this way would be considered invalid. 4. In descriptive research methods, participants are picked randomly. The randomness of the sample can’t represent the whole population accurately. Conclusion The uniqueness of descriptive research partly lies in its ability to explore both quantitative and qualitative research methods. Therefore, when conducting descriptive research, researchers have the opportunity to use a wide variety of techniques that aids the research process. Descriptive research explores research problems in-depth, beyond the surface level thereby giving a detailed description of the research subject. That way, it can aid further research in the field, including other research methods. It is also very useful in solving real-life problems in various fields of social science, physical science, and education.
