Key Concepts in Research - intro

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TRAJ 411: Research Skills
Lecture 1: Key concepts in research and steps
in the scientific method

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- Research comes from the Middle French word ‘rechercher,’ meaning “to seek
out.”
- Research is an academic activity and as such the term should be used in a
technical sense.
- Writing a research paper requires you to seek out information about a subject,
take a stand on it, and back it up with the opinions, ideas, and views of others.
- Research is defined as a scientific and systematic search for pertinent
information or a problem on a specific topic.
- “A careful investigation or inquiry specially through search for new facts in any
branch of knowledge.”(Advanced Learner’s Dictionary of Current English)
- According to Clifford Woody, research comprises of defining and redefining
problems, formulating research questions; collecting, organising and evaluating
data; making deductions and reaching conclusions.
What Is Research?

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A research problem (a research gap)
A research problem is a specific issue, difficulty, contradiction, or gap in
knowledge that you will aim to address in your research.
 Without a well-defined research problem, you are likely to end up
with an unfocused and unmanageable project.
A problem qualifies as a potential research problem when:
1. there should be a difference between “what exists” and the “ideal or
planned situation”
2. The answer should not be obvious to the researcher

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Research adds to our knowledge
What does that mean?
Adding to knowledge means that researchers undertake research to contribute to
existing information about issues.
How can research add to the knowledge base and existing literature ?
By filling a gap in existing knowledge

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Motivation for Conducting Research
The following are possible motives:
1. Desire to get a research degree along with its consequential benefits and/or improve
employment conditions
2. Desire to get academic acknowledgement and respectability
3. Desire to face the challenge in solving the unsolved problems, i.e., concern over practical
problems initiates research (e.g., medical, educational, social, etc.)
4. Desire to be of service to society
5. Curiosity about new things

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Benefits of Writing a Research Paper
As you go through the mass of data and information available on your chosen topic, you will learn…
■ a lot about your chosen subject. Sifting through the pros and cons of opinions on any subject is a priceless
learning experience
■ the conventions of scholarly writing, among them the accepted styles of documentation and the ethics of
research
■ how to use (online) libraries through the “learning by doing” method
■ how to track down information
■ how to organize data and your paper
■ how to use the Internet and software programs in your research
■ how to discriminate between useless and useful opinions
■ how to summarize information
■ how to budget your time
■ how to conceive of and manage a research project from start to finish.
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7. + How to choose a topic
No single step is as important to the whole process of
writing a research paper as the choice of a topic.
1. Pick a topic you like, are curious about, are an expert on,
or are genuinely interested in.
2. If you are utterly at a loss for a topic, go over books,
magazines, and newspapers. You can also ask people.
3. An encyclopedia is also an incredibly rich source of
possible topics.
4. If you still can’t find a suitable topic, it’s time to search the
Internet for ideas.
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• https://sdl.edu.sa/sdlportal/en/publishers.aspx (not currently accessible)
• https://eric.ed.gov/
• https://www.sciencedirect.com/
• https://doaj.org/
• https://www.jstor.org/
• ProQuest | Better research, better learning, better insights.
• https://www.askzad.com/
• https://www.academia.edu/
• ResearchGate | Find and share research
• https://scholar.google.com/
• https://core.ac.uk/
• https://www.worldcat.org/
• British Library EThOS - Search and order theses online (bl.uk)
• https://www.scienceopen.com/
• https://arxiv.org/
• https://www.ssrn.com/index.cfm/en/
• https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/
• https://www.scopus.com/home.uri (limited free preview)
Statistics can also add
reliability:
https://www.copypress.com/kb/r
esources/12-places-you-can-
find-statistics-for-copy-and-
infographics/

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5. Take your time searching for a topic. Don’t settle on the first idea that pops into
your head.
6. The research topic/problem then leads to the research question. Try to restrict your list of
research questions to a choice of two – one likely to be of main interest and the second to fall
back on if your preliminary investigations present problems.
7. Results of studies lead to new questions (suggestions for further research are normally
mentioned by the author(s) at the end of the study).
8. You should ask yourself whether your questions are:
• Realistic and feasible
• Clear – free from ambiguity or a lack of clarity
• Of sufficient importance to warrant a research study
• Ethical
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Research Process
The process of research simply – in a broad sense – consists of three main
components:
 Posing a question
 Collecting data to answer the question
(the main and most complex stage)
 Presenting an answer to the question

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Eight steps of the research process

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Identifying the research problem/gap
Do all problems require research?
1. A non-research problem
A non-research problem is the one that does not require any research to arrive at a solution. The
problem may be solved at the management level.
e.g., In 2020, car prices rose 15 % in Saudi Arabia. Can one ask: why have car prices risen 15 %?
Does this question/problem need to be researched? Isn’t the answer clear?

13. + Topics to Avoid
1. Topics that are too broad
2. Topics based on a single source
3. Topics that are too technical
4. Topics that are trivial
5. Topics that are hot (i.e., very current)
There are at least two good reasons to stay away from hot topics:
- It is often difficult to find unbiased sources on them
- The information that is available usually comes from newspapers and magazines whose
speculative reporting can make your documentation seem flimsy. Intellectually solid papers will
reflect opinions taken from a variety of sources—books, periodicals, reference volumes,
specialized indexes, and various electronic sources—which require a topic that has weathered
both time and scholarly commentary.
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Research areas in translation
1. Text analysis and translation
A. Source Text analysis
B. Comparison of translations and their source texts
C. Translation with commentary
2. Translation quality assessment
3. Multimedia translation
A. Revoicing
4. Translation and technology
A. Evaluating software
B. Website translation

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5. Terminology and glossaries
6. Interpreting
7. Genre translation (e.g., children’s literature, legal
texts, religious texts, etc.)
(See Williams & Chesterman, 2014, p. 6, for more
information about areas in translation research)

16. + Research areas in linguistics (in alphabetical
order)
1. Classroom-based research
2. Computational linguistics
3. First language acquisition
4. Phonetics/ phonology
5. Psycholinguistics
6. Second language acquisition
7. Sentence processing
8. Sociolinguistics
9. Syntax

17. + Narrowing the Topic (Sample)
Let’s Brainstorm…
Translation
???
?
Note: Further
narrowing may
occur naturally
after you are into
the actual
research

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References
Becker, S., Bryman, A. and Sempik, J. (2006) Defining ‘Quality’ in Social Policy Research:
Views, Perceptions and a Framework for Discussion, SPA, Lavenham in conjunction with
JUC.
Creswell, J. W. (2012). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating
quantitative. Pearson.
iEduNote (2021). Research process: 8 steps in research process.
https://www.iedunote.com/research-process
Kerlinger, F. N. (1970) Foundations of Educational Research, New York: Holt, Reinhart &
Winston.
Kothari, C. R. (2004). Research methodology: Methods and techniques. New Age
International.
McCombes, S. (2019). How to define your research problem. Scribber.
https://www.scribbr.com/research-process/research-problem/