REVIEWER IN PRACTICAL RESEARCH 2
Writing the Research Methodology
Methodology
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Describes all the detailed steps you intend
to do in order to systematically collect and
analyze the data you need to answer your
research questions.
Guide researchers in data collection and
analysis.
Allows others to evaluate and replicate a
given study to validate their findings.
Revisiting the Research Question
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The first step in planning the methodology
is to revisit the primary research question
and assess whether it is descriptive or
correlational.
Descriptive Design
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Requires to describe and explain a situation,
event, problem, and/or phenomena.
Usually ends analysis once necessary data
has been collected, organized, presented,
and explained.
Operationalizing a concept involves adopting a
specific working definition that guides how data
is observed, measured, and collected.
The process of identifying indicators is the step
in operationalization of a concept.
Indicators
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Data Collection
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Requires to determine whether or not there
is a relationship between 2 or more
measurable aspects.
Requires further investigation of
relationships and involves statistical
hypothesis testing.
It should be noted that most quantitative research
projects, including correlational research projects,
require quantitative descriptions.
Measurability
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Distinguishing factor between concepts and
variables.
Quantitative research involves classifying variables
either categorical or continuous, or as nominal,
ordinal, interval, or ratio.
Level of Measurement
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Need to be defined and operationalized first
and expressed as measurable variables
before they can be used in a quantitative
research project.
Research should establish at what level you
collect data and how many observations
they need.
Referred to as the units of observation or
analysis.
Choosing the Method for Collecting Data
Primary Data Collection
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Include surveys, observations, experiments,
and content analysis, among others.
Secondary Data Collection
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Collection of information from datasets and
literature research among others.
Outlining the Plan of Analysis
Descriptive Research
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Concepts
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Process of getting information needed to
answer a research inquiry.
Presented as a step-by-step description of
the data gathering process.
Determining the Level and Unit of Measurement
Correlational Design
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Set of criteria reflective of the concept.
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Requires clear plan on how you intend to
organize, present, and explain your data in
a way that allow you to answer your
research question.
Utilizes descriptive statistics and tools such
as tables, graphs, charts, and other way of
visually presenting data.
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These tools allow to summarize, organize,
and present information in ways that allow
readers to digest the information clearly.
Primary Data Collection
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Correlational Research
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Involves the investigation of a relationship
between two or more variables.
Involves inferential statistics and
hypothesis testing as the primary tools of
analysis in order to determine whether an
association or a causal relationship exists
between variables.
Techniques such as surveys tend to be more
costly in terms of time and resources but
allow to control the type of information to
collect and generate original data.
Secondary Data Collection
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Techniques cost less in terms of time and
resources but give you as a researcher less
control on the type and the parameters of
the data that you are able to collect.
Different Ways of Administering Surveys
Collecting Data
Data Collection
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Simply requires to carry out the step by step
plan, adjusting for changing and unforeseen
circumstances on the ground.
1. Face-to-face survey
2. Telephone survey
3. Electronic survey
Collecting Data from Secondary Sources
Advantages of Using Secondary Data
You should check if you have all the items in the
following list:
1. Complete list of data needed for your research
and where to get them.
2. Data collection instruments if collecting primary
data.
3. Data collection guidelines and/or templates if
collecting secondary data.
4. Step by step procedures for collecting data.
5. The sampling frame and information about
prospective respondents if possible.
6. A working plan of analysis or how you intend to
analyze the data you collected.
Two General Sources of Research Data
1. Primary Sources- primary data collection methods
includes surveys, observations, experiments, content
analysis, among others.
2. Secondary Sources- secondary data collection
includes collection of information from databases
and data sets, among others.
1. Preferred by beginning researchers since it uses
ready to use data, which eases the data collection
process while minimizing research costs.
2. Secondary data gathered from reputable
organizations ten to have better quality, relative to
the primary data gathered by beginning researchers,
since these organizations employ professional
researchers, follow standardized protocols, and have
more experience and resources.
Government Agencies
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Default sources of domestic information on
a country.
World Bann, United nations agencies, & WHO
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Maintain expensive public databases easily
be accessed over the internet and are
generally free of charge.
Some private institutions make their datasets
publicly available while others charge
researchers for using their datasets.
Some Reminders When Using Secondary Data
1. Usually defined in accordance with the purpose
and need of the institution that collected and
compiled them.
2. May be incomplete, if not outdated.
3. Be mindful of copyright and ethical
considerations.