When discussing research methodology, it is important to distinguish between applied and basic research. Applied research examines a specific set of circumstances, and its ultimate goal is relating the results to a particular situation.  That is, applied research uses the data directly for real world application.

1. Applied Vs Basic Research
Research Methodology

2. Prepared By
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Manu Melwin Joy
Assistant Professor
Ilahia School of Management Studies
Kerala, India.
Phone – 9744551114
Mail – manu_melwinjoy@yahoo.com

3. Applied Vs Basic Research
• When discussing
research methodology,
it is important to
distinguish
between applied and b
asic research.

4. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Applied research examines a
specific set of circumstances,
and its ultimate goal is
relating the results to a
particular situation. That is,
applied research uses the
data directly for real world
application.

5. Applied Vs Basic Research
• In applied research
“[t]he goal is to predict
a specific behavior in a
very specific setting,”
says Keith Stanovich,
cognitive scientist and
author of How To Think
Straight About
Psychology (2007,
p.106).

6. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Basic research focuses
on fundamental
principles and testing
theories. Mistakenly, it
is sometimes implied
that basic research
doesn’t have practical
applications.

7. Applied Vs Basic Research
• The history of science is
replete with examples of
basic research leading to
real world
applications. Just
because a research study
is not directed at specific
set of circumstances does
not mean that in the
future the finding from
that study will not be
applied to a specific event
or events.

8. Applied Vs Basic Research
• In 2011, spending on
basic research accounted
for about 18% of all U.S.
R&D activities. Private
industry performs less of
this type of research than
in years past because
there is often no clear
path to a marketable
product.

9. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Pharmaceuticals and
scientific research and
development service
industries tend to invest the
most in basis research, since
they are more directly tied
to advances in science and
technology. In 2011, the
business sector performed
17% of the basic research,
57% of the applied research,
and 88% of the development
in the United States.

10. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Most basic research is done
in academic laboratories, but
government agencies and
nonprofit organizations are
also major contributors. (The
U.S. academic sector
performed 15% of all
research, but 55% of basic
research in 2011.) More than
half of all basic research
funding comes from
government sources.

11. Applied Vs Basic Research
• The exploratory nature of
basic research requires a
high tolerance for
uncertainty, an ability to
deal with ambiguity, and
perseverance to continue
after a setback. Coming
up with new ideas
requires curiosity and the
ability to recognize
interesting and unusual
areas to pursue.

12. Practical Implications of Basic
Research
• When cell phones were first
introduced, cognitive scientists
began to worry about whether
their use while driving could
lead to increased numbers of
automobile accidents. The
worry was not because drivers
would take one hand off the
wheel when using the phone,
but because of the attention
requirements of talking on the
phone. These predictions were
derived from basic theories on
limited attention capacities.

13. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Classical and operant
condition principles were
developed mostly from
experimenting on non-
human subjects. Since the
discovery of these principles,
they have been applied to a
wide array of human
problems, such as teaching
declarative knowledge,
treating autistic children,
treating overweight
individuals, and treating
phobias, just to name a few.

14. Difference between applied and basic
research
• Differences in purpose.
– Purpose of applied
studies is closely
associated with the
solution of specific
problems, while the
purpose of fundamental
studies relate to creation
of new knowledge or
expansion of the current
knowledge without any
concerns to applicability.

15. Difference between applied and basic
research
• Differences in context.
– In applied studies
research objectives are
set of clients or sponsors
as a solution to specific
objectives. Fundamental
studies, on the other
hand, are usually self-
initiated in order to
expand the levels of
knowledge in certain
areas.

16. Difference between applied and basic
research
• Differences in methods.
– Research validity
represents an important
point to be addressed in all
types of studies.
Nevertheless, applied
studies are usually more
concerned with external
validity, whereas internal
validity can be specified as
the main point of concern
for fundamental
researchers.

17. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Other examples of basic
research with practical
implications include:
– Discovery of x-rays which led
to studying bone fractures.
– Discovery of chlorpromazine,
a drug used in the treatment
of schizophrenia.
– Discovery of dark adaptation
which helped establish a
theory of basic visual
processes that led to
applications in treating night
blindness and reading x-rays.

18. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Other examples of basic
research with practical
implications include:
– Psychological studies of
decision making that led to
important finding in the
fields of education,
medicine, and economics.
– Findings from psychology
applied in various contexts
within the legal system:
evidence evaluation,
eyewitness testimony,
validity of recovered
memories, and so on.

19. Applied Vs Basic Research
• Both applied and basic
research are important
to the scientific process.
It is a mistake to pit
them against each
other.

20. Applied Vs Basic Research
• In conclusion, I will leave you
with the words of Keith
Stanovich:
• [I]t is probably a mistake to
view the basic-versus-applied
distinction solely in terms of
whether a study has practical
applications, because this
difference often simply boils
down to a matter of
time. Applied findings are of
use immediately. However,
there is nothing so practical as
a general and accurate theory.
(2007, p.107)