PRACTICAL RESEARCH I: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH REVIEWER Competencies: • shares research experiences and knowledge • explains the importance of research in daily life • describes, characteristics, processes, and ethics of research • differentiates quantitative from qualitative research • provide examples of research in areas of interest • describes characteristics, strengths, weaknesses, and kinds of qualitative research • illustrates the importance of qualitative research across fields • designs a research project related to daily life • writes a research title • describes the justifications/reasons for conducting the research • states research questions • indicates scope and delimitations • cites benefits and beneficiaries of research • presents written statement of the problem DEFINITIONS OF RESEARCH Research is a scholarly activity that consists of addressing a specific problem through the collection analysis, and interpretation of data. It is a systematic endeavor which involved a well-planned strategy and a timely execution. It is used to advance development. Research is a systematic study directed toward fuller knowledge or understanding of the subject studies.” National Science Foundation Basic Research – focuses on increasing the scientific knowledge base. It is about understanding a certain behavior or phenomenon without the aim of solving a problem (Cherry, 2014). Examples: 1. A survey on the influence of study habits to academic performance of students. 2. A study on the effects of computer game addiction to the person’s behavior. 3. An investigation on the relationship between strategy use and academic performance of students. RESEARCH ETHICS 1 Voluntary Participation – you must ask people to voluntarily participate in your research study a. Explain to your recruited participants what your research is about. b. Ask them to sign a document that they are voluntarily participating (Informed Consent Form) c. Tell them that they have the freedom to stop participating in your study if they wish to do so at any point in your study. 2 Confidentiality – you must inform your participants that you will keep their personal information secret. 3 Privacy – Work with them only in the place and at the time that fit well for them. 4 Accuracy – make sure to accurately represent the data provided by participants. 5 Truth – Never misrepresent your participants or the truth that came from the data. a. b. c. d. e. f. g. THE RESEARCH PROCESS Select the Topic of Interest Search for Literature Free Online Database Samples Google Scholar (https://scholar.google.com.ph) Philippine E-journals (http://ejournals.ph) Pubmed (http://ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed) PDF (http://freefullpdf.com) A. B. Applied Research – is a scientific study which aims to gain knowledge and understanding necessary to determine the means by which a recognized and specific need may be met (National Science Foundation). C. D. E. Examples: 1. What is the most effective treatment in addressing insomnia? 2. What are the effective strategies in teaching polynomials? 3. What is the best drainage design in addressing city flooding? 4. What is the best benefit package to develop a highly motivated workforce? 1. 2. 3. CHARACTERISTICS OF RESEARCH 1. Empirical – it should be based on the experience or observation 2. Systematic – follows a specific process and a specific set of guidelines and principles 3. Credible – must make the readers believe what was found in the research study. 4. Focused on one specific problem – must be focused on a specific problem because research is there to help us solve problems. 5. Logical – should be based on evidence 6. Critical – must be based on careful evaluation RESEARCH PROCESS Step 1: Identify the Research Topic Step 2: Identify a specific Problem Step 3: Write down specific research questions Step 4: Conduct the literature review Step 5: Plan your research study Step 6: Implement your research study Step 7: Analyze your data Step 8: Interpret your data Step 9: Draw the conclusion Step 10: Check the quality of your research QUALITIES OF A GOOD RESEARCHER Curious Efficient and effective Creative Honest Interested in improving life Meticulous Systematic 4. 5. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Establish the research Methodology Collect and Analyze Data Report the Findings STRENGTHS OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Helps study complex issues or problems Based on data from natural settings Can reflect more closely the reality of the research participants Takes into account the real life of people by using their stories and their settings Provides multiple perspectives about the same problem from multiple sources. WEAKNESSES OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Based on a limited number of participants Subjective The researcher’s bias may affect the data Can be cumbersome because data does not follow the same structure Can take more time QUANTITATIVE VS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Quantitative Research (QNR) relies heavily on numbers. It is used to try to understand what a large number of people think about a certain topic. Characteristics: a. Objective b. Use of numbers c. Use of quantitative data collection methods d. Focus on a predetermined set of concepts. PRACTICAL RESEARCH I: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH REVIEWER Qualitative Research (QLR) allows a researcher to explore a complex issue that does not have clear preset variables. Ethnography – focuses on the shared and learned pattern of values, behavior, beliefs and languages of a certain group. Characteristics: a. Rich – explores a problem in-depth b. Open – can be checked with more data collection c. Subjective – not free from bias d. Can deal with complex issues – not limited by variables Case Study – focused on understanding a case or a problem using the case as a specific illustration. Similarities of QLR and QNR: a. Help address human problems and issues b. Require a systematic way of conducting research c. Have specified research designs d. Have specific methods and analysis techniques e. Require a critical mind f. Require hard work g. Require planning and organization Differences of QLR and QNR: Quantitative Qualitative SAMPLE Large, Representative, Small, non-representative, random selection purposeful DATA Quantities, Counts, Verbal Descriptions, Measures, Instruments, Notes, Observations, Numbers, Statistics Documents, Photographs, People’s Own Words METHODS Experiment/Clinical Trials, Case Studies, Quasi Experiments, Cross- Ethnographies, Verbal sectional surveys, cohort Protocol Analysis, studies, case-control Narrative Analysis studies DESIGNS Structured, PreEvolving, Flexible, determined, Formal, Informal, General Specific GOALS Test Hypothesis, Establish Build Theory, Develop Facts, Show association, Understanding, Describe Demonstrate Causality, Multiple Realities, Outsider Meaning Capture Naturally Occurring Behavior, Insider Meaning GENERAL DESCRIPTIONS Information, External, Meaning, Internal, Recurrence, Experiment, Occurrence, Experience, Measurement, Product Exegesis, Process a. b. c. 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. TYPES OF RESEARCH ACROSS FIELDS Library Research – going to a physical or electronic library, reading materials on a certain topic and systematically and critically synthesize what you read on the topic. Field Research – conducted as part of the program or project implementation Laboratory Research – requires you to conduct an experiment and report the outcome of that experiment. GENERAL IMPORTANCE OF QLR QLR helps explore problems in-depth QLR is useful when statistics are not able to solve the problem QLR helps solve complex problems QLR allows the researcher to ask follow-up questions QLR helps understand people’s emotions and experiences better. APPROACHES TO QUALITATIVE RESEARCH Phenomenology – describes the lived experiences of people in a particular phenomenon. Action Research – is used when you have a specific problem in your field of expertise that you want to understand, generate solutions for, test those solutions to improve the way you do things, and then create guidelines on how to implement those solutions. Content Analysis – This can be used if you have some documents that you want to explore to understand a certain problem. FINDING A RESEARCH TOPIC The Topic – this is the main idea of your research study. Guidelines in Choosing a Research Topic: 1. Interest in the subject matter 2. Availability of Information 3. Timeliness and Relevance of the Topic 4. Limitations on the subject 5. Personal Resources Research Topics to be Avoided: 1. Controversial Topics 2. Highly Technical Subjects 3. Hard-to-Investigate Subjects 4. Too broad subjects 5. Too Narrow subjects 6. Vague Subjects Sources of Research Topics: 1. Mass media Communication 2. Books, internet, peer-reviewed journals and government publications 3. Professional Periodicals 4. General Periodicals 5. Previous reading assignments in your other subjects 6. Work experiences Criteria of A Good Research Topic: a. A topic that you will like b. A topic that other people will like c. A topic that is doable. d. A topic that is current e. A topic that is relevant to your field or specialization Writing the Background of the Study Place the research topic within a bigger context. For instance, identify some strong findings that other researchers have written about in the past that can help people understand why your topic is important. In the background of the research study, give specific facts that have been documented about your research topic. The Problem Statement The problem statement is that one or few paragraphs that pinpoint the exact problem that you plan to focus on. It must be directly linked to your topic and to your purpose statement. It also starts with a general background and ends with one or more sentences that state clearly what the problem is. Writing the Purpose Statement State again some background information and then clearly state in one to three sentences why you want to conduct your research study. Your purpose should directly be focused on addressing the research problem that you have just stated in the previous step. Considerations in Stating the Research Questions: 1. Each question should be unique. Don’t state two questions in one. 2. No questions should have subsections in QLR. 3. Altogether, you should have 3-5 questions, PRACTICAL RESEARCH I: QUALITATIVE RESEARCH REVIEWER 4. 5. 6. At least one question (preferably the last one) should help address the selected problem. All the research questions should be written clearly and concisely. All the research questions should be written in the third person, not the first or second person. Importance of Guide Questions: 1. Provide clear focus of the study. 2. Suggest directions on the methodology of the study 3. Present the goal of the study. Types of Questions: General Questions Sub-questions Formulating the Research Questions: 1 Use good qualitative wording 2 Begin the questions with the word “What” or “how”? 3 Questions should tell what the research is trying to discover, generate, explore, identify, or describe. 4 It should ask what is happening or what was the meaning to individuals of what happened. Scope of the Study – refers to the coverage where the study is operating. You need to present a clear picture where your research study will take place and what will be included and not included. Delimitation – These are boundaries under the control of the researcher. It limits the scope and defines the parameters of the study. Significance of the Study – an enumeration of who will likely benefit from the study conducted. Writing the Title of the Research Study: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. Include the major key concepts of your topic, an idea about the participants, the context, and an idea about the research design. Keep it to 10-15 words only. You can use a colon to divide the title into two parts. Don’t use a sentence form, a period or question mark at the end. Don’t use the actual names of people or location of your study; this is an unethical practice.
