First module

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RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
Dr. Asad Khan Deptt. of Library & Info. Science University of Peshawar
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MODULE 01
Introduction To Research
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Module 1: Introduction To Research (W 1-2)
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 Lesson 1: An Overview And Definitions Of Research
 Lesson 2: Origin, Sense And Analysis Of The Term Research
 Lesson 3: Why And Who Does The Research
 Lesson 4: Purposes Of Undertaking Research Studies
 Lesson 5: The Alternative Ways Of Knowing
 Lesson 6: Characteristics Of Research
 Lesson 7: Types Of Research
 Lesson 8: Research Ethics And Integrity
 Lesson 9: IN CLASS EXERCISES AND ASSIGNMENT DISPERSED
11/18/2019Dr. Asad Khan Deptt. of Library & Info. Science University of Peshawar
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Dr. Asad Khan Deptt. of Library & Info. Science University of Peshawar 11/18/2019

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What do you think about research?
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Let’s watch in videos how others think and say about
research in the public
File: What is research (V1_V7)
Dr. Asad Khan Deptt. of Library & Info. Science University of Peshawar 11/18/2019
An Overview And Definitions Of Research
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Effects Of Not Eating Breakfast Meal
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Effects Of Not Eating Breakfast Meal
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Evidences
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SCENARIO 1
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SCENARIO 2
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Who are likely to
suffer more from
depression
Male
Female
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Facts and Evidences
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Depression is a real mental illness, not a sign of weakness. Some
of the world's most famous and powerful leaders have suffered
from depression, including Winston Churchill, Abraham Lincoln
and Mahatma Gandhi.
 Women are twice as likely to suffer from depression as men;
 Women may be at higher risk of suffering depression partly
due to hormonal changes brought on by puberty, and
pregnancy (Depression.com, 2009)
 Women are twice as likely to suffer from anxiety or phobias
than men and when the anxiety is present alongside
depression, treatment can be a great deal more complicated
(Overcome Depression, 2009)
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Social Anxiety Disorder: Women are twice as
likely to be affected as men
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 The defining feature of social anxiety disorder, also called social phobia, is intense
anxiety or fear of being judged, negatively evaluated, or rejected in a social or
performance situation.
 People with social anxiety disorder may worry about acting or appearing visibly
anxious (e.g., blushing, stumbling over words), or being viewed as stupid, awkward,
or boring. As a result, they often avoid social or performance situations, and when a
situation cannot be avoided, they experience significant anxiety and distress.
 Many people with social anxiety disorder also experience strong physical symptoms,
such as a rapid heart rate, nausea, and sweating, and may experience full-blown
attacks when confronting a feared situation. Although they recognize that their fear
is excessive and unreasonable, people with social anxiety disorder often feel
powerless against their anxiety.
 Individuals diagnosed with social anxiety disorder commonly report extreme shyness
in childhood.

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LESSON ONE
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OVERVIEW AND DEFINITIONS
OF
RESEARCH
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Overview of Research
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 Research is going on all the time. You are surrounded by research.
Research is going on every minute of the day, and it is informing
all sorts of things, including the type of food that is available to
you in your local market, the type of television that is scheduled
for you to watch in the evening, what the current interest rates are
and what clothes are fashionable.
 Research is involved in majority aspects of human life. Your local
market will have researched what types of food are bought
regularly by people in your area, and this will inform what is
available. Television researchers will have found out what types
of programmes are more popular in the evening and this will
inform the schedules. Those determining interest rates will have
researched whether prices of a range of commodities will have
gone up.
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Overview of Research
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 Medical researchers investigate what are the best
types of drug.
 Librarians have researched that what kind of
information are required by library users; or how
library users need access to information resources.
 Surgeons will have determined what the best operating
procedures are.
 Doctors will have researched what is the best type of
care to provide to patients, for example in distress.
 Thus, research is simply the process of finding solutions
to a problem after a thorough study and analysis of the
situational factors.
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Definition Of Research
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 an organized, systematic, data-based, critical,
objective, scientific inquiry or investigation into a
specific problem, undertaken with the purpose of
finding solutions to it.
 links users, customers, and public with society
through information and guides researcher/
managers to make informed decisions to successfully
deal with problems;
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 Research specifies the information required to address
issues, designs the method for collecting information,
manage and implements the data collection process,
analyzes the results and communicates the findings and their
implications.
 The information provided could be the result of a careful
analysis of primary and/or secondary data. Data can be
quantitative (as generally gathered through structured
questions) or qualitative (as generated from the broad
answers to specific questions in interviews, or from responses
to open-ended questions in a questionnaire, or through
observation, or from already available information
gathered from various sources).
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 In the context of information and management
sciences research is:
 “The systematic1 and objective2 identification,
collection, analysis, dissemination and use of
information3 for the purpose of improving decision
making related to the identification and solution of
problems and opportunities in information
management”.
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 1) research is systematic which implies that systematic
(an orderly logical arrangement usually in steps)
planning is required at all stages of the research process.
The procedures followed at each stage are
methodologically sound, well document, and as much as
possible planned in advance;
 research is objective and should be conducted
impartially. Although research is always influenced by
the researcher’s philosophy it should be free from
personal biases of researchers or management. A biased
research always results in predetermined results;
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 3) research involves identification, collection, analysis,
dissemination and use of information. We identify or
define the research problem or opportunity and then
determine what information is needed to investigate it. The
relevant information sources are identified and a range of
data collection methods varying in sophistication and
complexity are evaluated for their usefulness. The data
collected, analyzed and interpreted are using the most
appropriate methods and inferences are drawn. Finally, the
findings, implications, recommendations are provided in a
format that follows the information to be used for decision
making.
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 This definition states that organizations/researchers
undertake research study for two primary reasons:
(1) to identify opportunities and problems, and (2)
to solve the problems.
 This distinction offers two categories of research;1)
Problem identification research and; 2) problem-
solving research.
 Note: first problem is identified and then solved.
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 Problem Identification Research
 identify problems
 not apparent on the surface and yet exist
 likely to arise in the future
 provides information about the environment
 diagnose a problem.
 Example: 1) decline in e-book usage indicates that libraries
are likely to have a problem achieving its usability targets. 2)
a problem exists if usability potential of a library is increasing
but losing its image; 3) recognition of educational, social or
cultural trends, such as changes in users’ behaviours may point
to essential problems or opportunities.
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 Once a problem or opportunity has been identified, problem-solving
research may be undertaken to help develop a solution.
1. findings are used in decision making
2. solve specific research problems.
3. issues solved by problem solving research include optimal system
characteristics/design of a digital library, importance of e-resources, its
types, price and overall selection; policies making regarding any aspect
of an information service and/or product, library demand, responses to
service changes, attitude of users towards the use of library etc.
Note: Classifying research into two main types is useful from conceptual as
well as practical perspectives. However, problem identification research and
problem-solving research go hand-in-hand, and a research project may
combine both types of research.
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 Also, research is simply defined as “activity of finding
solution of a problem”.
 This definition offers two broad categories of research;
1) finding out what happens (Descriptive research) and;
2)finding out why it happens (Hypothesis-testing
research).
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What is not research?
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 Just collecting facts or information with no clear
purpose;
 Re-assembling and re-ordering facts or information
without interpretation;
 As an esoteric activity with no or little relevance to
everyday life;
 As a term to get your product or idea noticed and
respected.
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LESSON TWO
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OPERATIONAL DEFINITIONS
OF
RESEARCH
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Origin Of Research
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Operational Definitions of Research
R • R-------Rational way of thinking
E • E-------Expert and exhaustive (comprehensive) treatment
S • S-------Search for solution
E • E-------Exactness
A • A------Analysis
R • R-------Relationships of facts
C • C-------Critical observation
H • H-------Honesty
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R: Rational way of thinking
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 know things logically which may be deductive or inductive logic.
 Logic is the science that evaluate arguments (a group of statements).
 In deductive style of research the approach is from general to specific. It is
a way of reasoning which constructs or evaluates deductive arguments.
 In deductive logic is a method of gaining knowledge, researchers make
conclusion followed from a set of premises.
 Premises are statements that lead to or validate a conclusion. In other
words, a premise is an assumption that something is true.
 In logic, an argument requires a set of (at least) two declarative sentences
or propositions (known as the Major premise- P1 and Minor premise- P2)
along with another declarative sentence or proposition (known as the
Conclusion-C).
 A deductive argument is valid if conclusion followed premises. For instance,
following are the examples of deductive logic:
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Examples
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P1: When it rains, the grass gets wet (Major premise)
P2: It rained (Minor premise)
C: Therefore, grass is wet (Conclusion)
P1: 90% of humans are right-handed
P2: Alizah is a human
C: Therefore, Alizah is probably right-handed.
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Examples
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P1 : Students who take notes on regular basis in the
class get high grades in examination;
P2 : Kashan is a students who takes regular notes in
the class;
C: Kashan grades should have higher grades
(which is probably not true because P1 and P2
are untrue)
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Examples
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P1: All men are mortal [major premise]
P2: Socrates is a man [minor premise]
C: Therefore, Socrates is mortal [conclusion]
P1 : All competent employees are good performers
P2 : Kashan is a competent employee
C: Kashan is a good performer
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Examples
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Deductive logic is also called top-down approach where
researcher designed a conceptual model of the study
based on previous theoretical models, then formulate
hypotheses, and confirm them after appropriate research
methods that lead further lead to generalization.
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DEDUCTIVE LOGIC
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INDUCTIVE REASONING
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 Inductive reasoning (based on observation) is the opposite of deductive reasoning
(based on theory) which makes broad generalizations from specific observations.
 Thus, it is the process of making generalized decisions after observing, or
witnessing, repeated specific instances of something. Basically, there is data, then
conclusions are drawn from the data.
 In inductive inference, we go from the specific to the general. We make many
observations, determine a pattern, make a generalization, and assume an
explanation or a theory.
 With inductive arguments, we don’t expect the conclusion to follow with certainty.
With inductive argument, conclusion only follows with some probability.
 This makes it a “risky” inference in the sense that, even if the premises are all true,
and we are 100 % convinced of their truth, the conclusion that we infer from them
could still be false.
 Inductive logic is also called bottom-up approach.

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INDUCTIVE REASONING
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Examples of Inductive Reasoning
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 Mahmood leaves for school at 7:00 a.m. Mahmood is
always on time. Mahmood assumes, then, that he will always
be on time if he leaves at 7:00 a.m.
 The cost of goods was $1.00. The cost of labor to
manufacture the item was $5. The sales price of the item
was $50; so, the item always provides a good profit.
 The chair in the living room is red. The chair in the dining
room is red. The chair in the bedroom is red. All chairs in the
house are red.
 Every time you eat peanuts, your throat swells up and you
can't breathe. So, you are allergic to peanuts.
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Deductive-Inductive Links
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 In general, deductive research is hypothesis and theory testing
while inductive research is used to form hypothesis and theory.
Often people link deductive research with quantitative research-
experiments or surveys, and inductive research with qualitative
research- interviews or ethnographic work.
 These links are not hard and fast – for instance, experimental
research, designed to test a particular theory through developing
a hypothesis and creating an experimental design, may use
quantitative or qualitative data or a combination.
 If your research starts with a theory and is driven by hypotheses
that you are testing (e.g. that social class background and social
deprivation or privilege are likely to affect educational
attainment), it is, broadly speaking, deductive.
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E stands for EXPERT AND EXHAUSTIVE treatment
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Research is carried out by experts that thoroughly
investigates all aspects of a problem. Expert
researchers possess high degree of knowledge and
skills that seek solution to a research problem.
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S stands for search for solution- it implies that
research is solution oriented. It gathers data based
systematically and find solution for problems.
E stands for exactness- it means quality or state of
being very accurate. Research findings are precise
and not approximate, and thus does not deviate from
reality. Exact research is based on accurate
measurements and provides inferences with small
margins of error and not approximately.
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A stands for ANALYSIS
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 Research examines data or facts in terms of quantity, quality,
attributes, traits, patterns, trends, relationships so as to answer the
research questions. Analysis involves statistical techniques and
procedures.
 Analysis may be of different types such as; 1) univariate analysis
(test data related with a single variable or here data is about
only a single variable and doesn’t deal with causes or
relationships. Its major purpose is to describe the data. It takes
data, summarize it, and finds patterns in the data); 2) bivariate
analysis (test two variables and determine how they differ with
one another. Here two variables are analyzed to determine
empirical relationships between them); 3) multivariate analysis
(tests three or more independent variables and identify their
degree of relationship with a dependent variable).

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 R stands for relationship of facts (reality of situation) -
research evaluates a formulated hypothetical relationships
between the facts (also known variables) which may be true
or untrue. Such relationship is called hypothesis or
proposition.
 C stands for critical observation- critical observation refers
to viewing of something with extended consideration to draw
sound conclusions about the problem. Critical thinkers
carefully analyze and evaluate information to probe for
faulty and poor reasoning. Critical thinking enables
researchers to draw valid inferences based on accurate
evidences and well-supported claims.
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H stands for HONESTY
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 It means conduct research honestly. Researchers must be
honest with the study participants and other team
members. They must share research findings results.
They should make clear, accurate and legible record of
research results.
 Researchers must keep records for an appropriate
period of time and allow adequate time for reviewing
results objectively. Researchers must be sure that
reports are free from false or misleading data.
Whenever possible, researcher should publish research
results in peer-reviewed journals etc.
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LESSON THREE
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Theme 1: Why Does The Research?
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Why Does The Research?
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1. to understand and evaluate research reports and
articles which one might come across in an academic
or professional context.
2. to understand the advantages and basis of such
reports and articles.
3. learning of research has academic purposes such as
students are engaged in research for own sake to
learn, in the interest of pursuit of knowledge (for
instance thesis).
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4. conduct research for professional purposes. Such as
policy-making, planning and from management
perspectives. All organizations including libraries and
information centers, engage in policy-making, planning
and managing resources to achieve their goals. Policy
refers to the statement of principles, intentions and
commitments of an organization. Similarly, plans are
detailed strategies designed to implement policies in
particular ways over a specified period of time.
Further, management is seen as the process of
implementing policies and plans.
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5. Research is carried to equip yourself with the information
needed to make intelligent decisions.
6. It assist to profile users’ information, identify their needs,
promote any information products, recognize changes in
users’ demands, offers innovative services and products to
facilitate the attainment of personal and organizational
goals.
7. It also inform about other competitors such Google, WWW
in the surrounding of library and information centers.
8. It is carried out to enhance several existing professional
practices used for the organization and retrieval of
information and knowledge resources.
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LESSON THREE
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Theme 2: Who Does The Research?
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Who Does The Research?
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1. Why research is undertaken?
2. Who is doing research?
3. Who paid for the research?
 Research actors are: students, professors,
commercial organizations, academic institutions,
consultants and managers.
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 1. ACADEMICS- the faculty members (professors, lecturers, and
research staff) of the academic institutions conduct research
 Typically, a quarter or third of an academic’s time might be devoted to
research and writing. At university level staff promotion depends partly
on the achievement of a satisfactory track record in published research.
 Publication can be published in various forms including; referred
journals, un-referred journals (such as professional magazines),
reports/monographs (published by academic institutions or other
agencies) and conference papers.
 As an example few referred journals in library and information science
are: The Electronic Library, Collection Building, Library Review,
Information and Learning Science, Journal for Education and
Information, Journal of Librarianship and Information Science etc.

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 Some research projects requires financial resources for travel,
interview, and equipment but some not, such as research
conducted on students.
 The main sources of funding are university funds, research
councils, trust/foundations, government departments or
agencies, commercial companies, and non-profit organizations.
 Most universities have their own research funding paid to the
faculty members to support research activities and promote
research culture. Universities tend to use their own funds to
support research which is initiated by academic staff and
where the main motive is the advancement of knowledge.
 Generally, such funds are issued to the academic staff if their
research interests coincide with university goals.
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 2: STUDENTS- PhD and Master’s degree students are major contributors
to research.
 Their research documents are published periodically in the form of lists of
theses and dissertations completed in a specific area of knowledge.
 Many universities publish their list of completed thesis and dissertation
online as open source; such as ProQuest's UMI Dissertation Publishing
Open (https://pqdtopen.proquest.com/search.html).
 Students conduct research individually or as a team member.
 In science, supervisor is mostly responsible to decide about the topic that
students need to research.
 However, in social science students have the freedom of choice in the
selection of research topic.
 PhD theses are the most significant form of student research, but research
done by Master degree students can be a useful contribution to
knowledge.
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 3: GOVERNMENT AND COMMERCIAL ORGANIZATIONS- they have
own in-house departments that conduct social, economic and
market research.
 However, sometime these organizations take help of
consultants to conduct research.
 Research conducted by commercial bodies is usually
confidential but by governmental agencies is generally
available to the public.
 Research reports from these organizations can be important
source of knowledge, especially of a more practically
oriented nature.

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 4: CONSULTANTS- they usually offer their research and advisory
services to organizations. Some consultancy organizations are
small, large or multi-national companies involved in research
projects in diverse fields/areas.
 5: MANAGERS- they see research as an integral part of their
responsibilities. Managers can carry out research on a range of
topics such as research and customers, staff, performance,
competitors, products etc.
 Successful management depends on good information available
as a matter of routine and does not require research. However,
the creative utilization of such data needs research. Managers
usually need research to collect information on their products,
customer services, and performance evaluation.
LESSON FOUR
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Purposes Of Undertaking Research
Studies
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Purposes Of Undertaking Research Study
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 According to Neuman (2007), the three dominant
reasons are;
 1) to explore a new topic (Exploration)
 2) to describe a phenomenon (Description)
 3) to explain why something happens (Explanation)

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 1). Exploration- the purpose of research is to
explore an area, which is new and has not been
investigated before.
 This type of research is called exploratory research
where researchers examine a new area of
research, has not been investigated before;
develop initial ideas, formulate precise research
questions that can be addressed in future research.
 It is usually considered the first stage in the research
studies and is mainly focused on research questions.
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 Exploratory research is used to understand deeply about the
topic and address the “what” questions for example: what
this social activity is about?
 It tends to use qualitative data and is not stick to a specific
research question or theory.
 It rarely provides decisive answers to a question because of
lack of guidelines to follow and thus researchers mostly
become frustrated.
 However, exploratory research is familiarize with the basic
facts, generate a generic picture of the issue, formulate
questions, generate new hypotheses, or ideas, provide
feasibility of undertaking the research, and develop
techniques for measuring and locating future data.
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 2). Description- the purpose of research is to describe the
phenomenon or behaviour.
 This type of research is called descriptive research which
presents a picture of the specific details of a situation, social
settings, or relationships.
 It focuses on “how and who” questions such as: How did this
happen? Who is involved in this situation?
 In descriptive research the mostly data gathering techniques
used include surveys, field research, content analysis, and
historical research. In descriptive research, a researcher
starts with a well-defined subject, conducts study, describe
facts, and details are presented.

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 3). Explanation- after exploring an idea and
describing the specific details, the purpose of the
research is to explain the patterns in details with the
intention to understand why it happens.
 This type of research is called explanatory research
that focuses on “why” questions such as: Why an event
occur or tries to test and build a theory.
 It identifies the sources of a behaviour, beliefs,
conditions, and events; documents causes, tests theories,
and provides reasons.
 It builds on exploratory and descriptive research.
A consolidated Example
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Consider a researcher is investigating to understand the
overall usability of e-book among the postgraduate
students in the University of Peshawar. Thus, research title
may be:
An Evaluation Of The Usability Of E-book Among
The Postgraduate Students: A Case Of University
Of Peshawar
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Research Objective 01
RO1: To identify the trends/styles/tendencies in the low use of
e-books
RO2: To identify the current level of e-book usage among the
students
RO3: To discovers the factors stimulating students towards the
use of e-books

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How to Achieve RO1(Strategies)
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 Researcher may use exploratory research to discover the trends (low,
medium or high) in the use of e-books.
 This objective was framed because there may be trends in the use of
e-books that were not studied before.
 However, researcher identified this opportunity after consulting with
the existing literature on e-book usability which states that Higher
Education Commission Digital Library (HEC DL) of Pakistan provides
free access to e-books. Thus, the research question for this objective
may be:
What Are The Trends In The Use Of E-books Among The
Postgraduate Students In The University Of Peshawar?
How to Achieve RO2 (Strategies)
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 To achieve this objective, a researcher may use descriptive research to
address who and how questions in terms of e-books usage.
 Thus, in terms of postgraduate students in the university of Peshawar the
possible research questions may be:
 Who is using the e-books?
 How e-books are used?
 The descriptive research in this case, for example may inform about the
usage percentage of e-books. For example: 20% of the students indicated
that they use e-books to define their variables in their research project.
 It may also tell about, for example comparison of male and female e-
books usage. For example: female students are the higher in the usage of
e-books (10%) than male students (5%).
How to Achieve RO3 (Strategies)
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 To achieve this objective a researcher may use explanatory research to
understand the causes of acceptance and rejection of the e-books among
the students.
 Thus, the possible research question may be: what factors influence
students toward the use of e-books in the University of Peshawar.
 The results of this study may inform about certain factors such as
aesthetics, access, quality etc. that motivate students the use of e-books.
 However, it may also provide the reasons of no, low or high use of e-
books among these students such as lack of power, don’t know how to
access an e-book, I don’t have computer or internet at the department or
at home, e-books are not provided off the university campus etc.

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 Jackson (2012) also provided three main purposes of the
scientific research:
 1. DESCRIPTION- it begins with careful observation and
describe patterns in behaviours, thought, and emotions in
humans.
 It helps the researcher to know what the behaviour is and
when it occurs and thus make possible to observe that two
events are systemically related to one another.
 For example: description of the type of paly behaviours in
children; description of channel changing behaviours among
male and female; to identify whether or not there are any
gender differences in channel changing.
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 2. PREDICTION- without description as a first step,
predictions cannot be made.
 Prediction tells use to identify the factors that indicate when
an event(s) will occur.
 In other words, knowing the level of one variable allows us to
predict the approximate level of the other variable. We
know that if one variable is present at a certain level, then it
is likely that the other variable will be present at a certain
level.
 For example, if we observed that men channel surf with
greater frequency than women, we could then make
predictions about how often men and women might change
channels when given the chance.
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 3. EXPLANATION- Finally, explanation allows us to identify the causes that
determine when and why a behaviour occurs.
 To explain a behavior, we need to demonstrate that we can manipulate the
factors needed to produce or eliminate the behaviour.
 For example, in our channel-surfing example, if gender predicts channel
surfing, what might cause it? It could be genetic or environmental. Maybe
men have less tolerance for commercials and thus channel surf at a greater
rate. Maybe women are more interested in the content of commercials and
are thus less likely to change channels. Maybe the attention span of women
is longer. Obviously there are a wide variety of possible explanations.
 As researchers, we test these possibilities to identify the best explanation of
why a behavior occurs. When we try to identify the best explanation for a
behaviour, we must systematically eliminate any alternative explanations.
 To eliminate alternative explanations, we must impose control over the
research situation.

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LESSON FIVE
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The Alternative Ways Of Knowing
(Sources Of Knowledge)
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Sources Of Knowledge
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 Most of what a person know about the world is not based on research.
 People probably learned most of the knowledge about the social world by
using an alternative ways of knowing.
 For example, it may be what their parents, and other people (e.g. friends,
teachers) have told them.
 They may acquire knowledge based on their experiences, the books,
magazines and the movies and television shows they have watched.
 They may use common sense. Knowledge from the alternatives is often
correct, but knowledge based on research is more likely to be accurate
and have fewer errors.
 Although research does not always produce perfect knowledge, compared
with the alternatives ways of knowing it is much less likely to be flawed.
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 1- SUPERSTITION- acquiring knowledge that is based on subjective
feelings, interpreting random events as non-random events, or
believing in magical events.
 For example, you may have heard someone say “Bad things happen
in threes.” Where does this idea come from? As far as I know, no
study has ever documented that bad events occur in threes, yet
people frequently say this and act as if they believe it.
 Some people believe that breaking a mirror brings 7 years of bad
luck or that the number 13 is unlucky.
 Once again, these are examples of superstitious beliefs that are not
based on observation or hypothesis testing. As such, they represent a
means of gaining knowledge that is neither reliable nor valid.

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 2- INTUITION- a process that gives us the ability to know something
directly without analytical reasoning, bridging the gap between the
conscious and nonconscious parts of our mind, and also between instinct and
reason.
 It means that we have knowledge of something without being consciously
aware of where the knowledge came from. For example “I don’t know, it’s
just an unconscious feeling” or “I don’t know, it just came to me, and I know
it’s true”.
 Sometimes we feel something based not on an unconscious feelings but on
events we have observed. The problem is that the events may be
misinterpreted and not representative of all events in that category. For
example people believe that more babies are born during a full moon. This
is an example of illusory correlation-the perception of a relationship that
does not exist.
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 3- AUTHORITY- When we accept what a respected or famous
person tells us, we are gaining knowledge via authority. You may
have gained much of your own knowledge through authority figures.
 As you were growing up, your parents provided you with information
that, for the most part, you did not question, especially when you
were very young. You believed that they knew what they were
talking about, and thus you accepted the answers they gave you.
 You have probably also gained knowledge from teachers whom you
viewed as authority figures, at times blindly accepting what they said
as truth. Most people tend to accept information imparted by those
they view as authority figures. Historically, authority figures have
been a primary means of information.
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 For example, in some time periods and cultures, the church and its
leaders were responsible for providing much of the knowledge
that individuals gained throughout the course of their lives.
 Even today, many individuals gain much of their knowledge from
authority figures. This may not be a problem if the perceived
authority figure truly is an authority on the subject.
 However, problems may arise in situations where the perceived
authority figure really is not knowledgeable about the material he
or she is imparting. A good example is the information given in
commercials.

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 Celebrities are often used to deliver the message or a testimonial
concerning a product. For example, a model may tell us about a
makeup product, or a piece of gym equipment. Does model have a
degree in dermatology? What does the model know about exercise
physiology? A model may be may be experts on acting or modeling,
but they are not authorities on the products they are advertising. Yet
many individuals readily accept what they say.
 Other examples may be 1) when we walk into a classroom, we take
for granted that the teacher or professor (authority) knows more than
we, as students, with regard to the overall subject matter we are
trying to learn; 2) We assume a prize-winning, best-selling author to
be good, regardless of his educational background.
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 In conclusion, accepting the word of an authority figure
may be a reliable and valid means of gaining knowledge,
but only if the individual is truly an authority on the subject.
 Thus, we need to question “authoritative” sources of
knowledge and develop an attitude of skepticism
(questioning the validity, authenticity or truth of something
claiming to be factual) so that we do not blindly accept
whatever is presented to us.
 A person who questions the validity, authenticity, or truth of
something purporting to be factual is called skeptic.
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 4- TENACITY- It is the mode of accepting knowledge because one is
comfortable with it and simply wants to hold onto it.
 Gaining knowledge via tenacity involves hearing a piece of information
so often that you begin to believe it true, and then, despite evidence to
the contrary, you cling stubbornly to the belief. This method is often used
in political campaigns, where a particular slogan is repeated so often
that we begin to believe it.
 Advertisers also use the method of tenacity by repeating their slogan
for a certain product over and over until people begin to associate the
slogan with the product and believe that the product meets its claims.
 For example, the makers of Visine advertised for over 40 years that “It
gets the red out,” and, although Visine recently changed the slogan,
most of us have heard the original so many times that we probably now
believe it.

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Visine advertised
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 The problem with gaining knowledge through tenacity is that we do
not know whether the claims are true. As far as we know, the
accuracy of such knowledge may not have been evaluated in any
valid way.
 5- TRADITION- Knowledge, doctrines, practices transmitted from one
person to another over a period of time. Tradition is a special case
of authority- the authority of the past. Tradition means you accepts
something being true because “it’s the way things have always been."
For example, my father says that drinking hot fluids cures a cold.
When I asked about his statement, he said that he had learned it
from his father when he was a child, and it had come down from past
generations.
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 Most people have traditional stories, legends, dreams, methods and practices
as means of transmitting specific human elements of traditional knowledge.
 Sometimes it is preserved in artifacts handed from father to son or mother to
daughter.
 Here is an example from the social world: Many people believe that children
who are raised at home by their mothers grow up to be better adjusted and
have fewer personal problems than those raised in other settings.
 People "know" this, but how did they learn it? Most accept it because they
believe (rightly or wrongly) that it was true in the past or is the way things
have always been done.
 People may adhere to traditional knowledge without real understanding; they
assume that because something may have worked or been true in the past, it
will continue to be true. Even if traditional knowledge was once true, it can
become distorted as it is passed on, and soon it is no longer true.

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 6- SENSORY EXPERIENCE- The information obtained through our
senses is the most immediate way of knowing something. For
example:
 1) Seeing the temperature on an outdoor thermometer can improve
our knowledge of how cold it is.
 2) A top-quality stereo system can help us hear music with greater
clarity.
 3) The murder rates are higher in the nations that do not have the
death penalty because people are less likely to kill if they face
execution for doing so.
 4) Poor youth are more likely to commit deviant acts (violation of
social norms such as crime etc.) than those from the middle class.
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 Many experiments in sensory perception have revealed that we are not
always wise to trust our senses completely. Our senses can deceive us.
 Common sense is valuable in daily living, but it leads to logical fallacies (an
error in reasoning that make an argument invalid) and thus we make error in
thinking. Thus, sensory data in terms of probability and facts is false e.g:
 If I have long string of losses playing lottery, the next time I play my
chances of winning be better.
 The gunshot we hear becomes a car backfiring,
 The water we see in the road ahead is an illusion,
 the chicken we thought we tasted turns out to be rabbit. Sensory knowledge
is undependable and also incomplete. Common sense originate in tradition.
It is useful and sometimes correct, but it also contains errors, misinformation,
contradiction, and prejudices.
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 7- AGREEMENT WITH OTHERS- One such source is the opinions of
others. Not only can we share our sensory understanding with
others; we can also check the accuracy and authenticity of these
sensations. For example:
 Does this soup taste salty to you?
 Did you hear someone cry for help?
 It smells like mustard, doesn’t it?
 Obviously, there is a great advantage to checking with others
about whether they see or hear what we do. It can help us reject
what is untrue and manage our lives more intelligently by focusing
on what is true.

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 Similarly, if, I do not hear the sound of an approaching automobile
but several of my friends do and alert me to it, I can proceed with
caution. Using agreement with others as a means of obtaining
information, the teacher for example, might check with her
colleagues to see if they find discussions more effective than lectures
in motivating their students to learn.
 The problem with such common knowledge is that it, too, can be
wrong. A majority vote of a committee is no guarantee of the truth.
My friends might be wrong about the presence of an approaching
automobile, or the automobile they hear may be moving away from
rather than toward us. Two groups of eyewitnesses to an accident
may disagree as to which driver was at fault. Hence, we need to
consider some additional ways to obtain reliable knowledge
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 7- PERSONAL EXPERIENCE- If something happens to you, if you
personally see it or experience it, you accept as true.
 Personal experience or seeing as believing has a strong impact and
is a powerful source of knowledge.
 Unfortunately, personal experience can lead you astray. What
appears true may be actually due to a slight error or distortion in
judgement.
 The four major errors in personal experience are:
 1. Overgeneralization
 2. Selective observation
 3. Premature closure
 4. Halo effect
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 1. Overgeneralization- it occurs when some evidence support your
belief, but you falsely assume that it applies to many other situations
too. Thus, some people generalize far beyond from their limited
evidence. For example; 1) three senior citizens died after receiving
swine flu vaccine in 1976. Thus, overgeneralization is that these
vaccines are bad for me;
 2) there have been a number of scandals involving financial firms
committing fraud. Hence, overgeneralization is that financial firms
and workers are thieves stealing money from society;
 3) I know five blind people that are very friendly. The
overgeneralization is that all blind people are friendly.

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Overgeneralization
88
 Thus, it is type of logical fallacy which is a failure of
reasoning.
 It is a broad claim of researcher than can not be
proved or disapproved.
 A researcher has two motives for overgeneralization-
1) to create an illusion of authority; 2) influence
opinion of readers (here a sensational language is
used).
 Through overgeneralization the author/researcher hide
the weak or unsupported assertions behind authritative
language.
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 2. Selective observation- people observe or take notice of those
events or facts that support their preconceived beliefs or whatever
facts match with their personal experience. On the other side,
these people ignore the facts that contradict with their beliefs.
 The ability to miss what is going on in the world around us is
demonstrated in the below two videos.
 The first video (here’s the link: V8:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ahg6qcgoay4) asks for the
viewer to pay attention to how many passes a group of people
make with a basketball.
 After watching this video, watch a similar video- V9:
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IGQmdoK_ZfY).

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 While watching these videos, you are told to focus on a
specific observation;
 you expect a certain observation and so you see it.
 If you don’t know to look for something, you may be blind
to it.
 There are so many observations that we have been taught
to look for, and we therefore see these observations easily.

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 3. Premature closure- it occurs when you feel you got the
answer and do not need to listen, seek information, or raise
questions any longer.
 We take a few pieces of evidences or look to an event for a
short time and then think we have known. Here we look for
an evidence to accept or reject an idea and stop when we
get it. It means we jump to the conclusion.
 For example, I want to learn whether or not people support
co-education in the University of Peshawar. I asked 20
people, 16 say they support while 4 say no. Thus, I stop
there and believe that people do not like co-education
system in universities.
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 4. Halo effect- it refers to the widespread human tendency
in impression formation to assume that once a person
possesses some positive or negative characteristic, other as
yet unknown qualities will also be positive or negative.
 It is a type of cognitive bias in which our overall impression
of a person influences how we feel and think about his or
her character.
 Essentially, your overall impression of a person (He is nice)
impacts your evaluations of that person's specific traits (He is
also smart).
 In the classroom, teachers are subject to the halo effect
rating error when evaluating their students.
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 For example, a teacher who sees a well-behaved student might tend to
assume this student is also bright, diligent, and engaged before that
teacher has objectively evaluated the student's capacity in these areas.
When these types of halo effects occur, they can affect students' grades.
 Similarly, external, physical appearance often serves as the basis for
inferring internal, unrelated personal qualities. An example may be that
physically attractive women are judged to have more desirable internal
qualities (personality, competence, happiness, etc.) than ordinary,
unattractive looking women.
 In a similar way, several studies found that attractive looking people are
often judged less harshly when they commit a misbehaviour, and;
 Attractive looking children are punished less harshly than unattractive
children when committing the same misbehaviours.

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 Watch videos on Halo Effect
 Video file: V10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15
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 8- EXPERT OPINION
 Experts are the particular individuals that we consult- experts in their
field.
 These are the people that know more about what we are interested
in finding out. We believe a well-known expert, for example, if he
says that Mr. X has a bad heart.
 Similarly, an expert with a PhD knows more than a person having
master degree about what we want to find out.
 To use expert opinion as a means of obtaining information, perhaps
the LIS teacher should ask a noted authority in the LIS field whether
ability in automation correlates (has relationship) with ability in
customer services. It depends on the credentials of the experts and
the nature of the question about which they are being consulted.
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 Mr. X asked an authority in the LIS field whether ability in automation
correlates (has relationship) with ability in customer services. Answer
is it depends on the credentials of experts and nature of the question
about which they are being consulted.
 Experts can be mistaken. All their study, training, or what they know is
still based on what they have learned from reading and thinking,
from listening to and observing others, and from their own
experience. No expert, however, has studied or experienced all there
is to know in a given field, and thus even an expert can never be
totally sure. All any expert can do is given us an opinion based on
what he or she knows, and no matter how much this is, it is never all
there is to know.

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97
 9. LOGIC/RATIONALISM- Gaining knowledge via rationalism
involves logical reasoning. With this approach, ideas are precisely
stated and logical rules are applied to arrive at a logically sound
conclusion. Rational ideas are often presented in the form of a
syllogism. For example:
 All humans are mortal; I am a human; Therefore, I am mortal.
 This conclusion is logically derived from the major and minor premises
in the syllogism. Consider, however the following syllogism:
 All attractive people are good;
 Mr. X is attractive;
 Therefore, Mr. X is good.
9.LOGIC/RATIONALISM
98
 This syllogism should identify for you the problem with
gaining knowledge by logic. Although the syllogism is
logically sound, the content of both premises is not necessarily
true.
 If the content of the premises were true, then the conclusion
would be true in addition to being logically sound. However,
if the content of either of the premises is false (as is the
premise “Attractive people are good”), then the conclusion is
logically valid but empirically false and therefore of no use
to a scientist. Logic deals with only the form of the syllogism
and not it’s content.
 Obviously, researchers are interested in both form and
content.
9. LOGIC/RATIONALISM
99
 A syllogism is a form of logical reasoning that joins two or
more premises to arrive at a conclusion. For example: “All
birds lay eggs. A swan is a bird. Therefore, a swan lays
eggs.”
 Syllogisms contain a major premise and a minor premise to
create the conclusion, i.e., a more general statement and a
more specific statement. In the example, the major premise is
that all birds lay eggs. The minor premise is that a swan is a
bird. The conclusion links these two propositions to conclude
that if a swan is a bird it must lay eggs.
 Syllogistic arguments are generally presented in this three-
line format. The word syllogism comes from the Greek word
syllogism, which means “a conclusion” or “inference.”

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10. Empiricism
100
 Knowledge via empiricism involves gaining knowledge
through objective observation and the experiences of your
senses or everything you know and believe comes from what
you physically experience.
 Empiricism is the philosophy of knowledge by observation. It
holds that the best way to gain knowledge is to see, hear,
touch, or otherwise sense things directly. An individual who
says “I believe nothing until I see it with my own eyes” is an
empiricist.
 The empiricist gains knowledge by seeing, hearing, tasting,
smelling, and touching. This method dates back to the age of
Aristotle. Aristotle was an empiricist who made observations
about the world in order to know it better. Some few
examples of empiricism are:
10. Empiricism
101
 If you know that concrete is hard, it’s only because
you fell on a concrete floor once and realized this.
 If you know that your father is kind, it’s because he’s
done kind things in the past and your sense
experience tells you that this is true. Basically, they
applied this principle to life.
 Kid walks up and touches a hot stove; he never does
it again.
10. Empiricism
102
 This movement of empiricism is contrasted by Rationalism
which believe that know things by logic. In rationalism, if you
meet 10 fathers who are kind you might be able to assume
that all fathers are kind. Empiricism would not make this
assumption. You would have to meet every father to know
from sense experience that they are kind. However,
empiricism alone is not enough.
 Empiricism represents a collection of facts. If, as scientists, we
relied only on empiricism, we would have nothing more than a
long list of observations or facts. For these facts to be useful,
we need to organize them, think about them, draw meaning
from them, and use them to make predictions. In other words,
we need to use rationalism together with empiricism to make
sure that we are being logical about the observations that
we make which is called science

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11. Science and Scientific Method
103
 Gaining knowledge via science contains the unification
of rationalism and empiricism. Scientists prefer the
empirical method in their work, however, because the
topics of science lend themselves to observation
(empiricism) and measurement (rationalism).
 When something cannot be observed or measured,
scientists are likely to conclude that it is outside the realm
of science, even though it may be vitally important in
some other realm.
 Scientists collect data (make empirical observations) and
test hypotheses with these data (measure them using
rationalism).
104
 A hypothesis is a prediction regarding the outcome of a
study.
 This prediction concerns the potential relationship
between at least two variables (a variable is an event
or behaviour that has at least two values).
 Hypotheses are stated in such a way that they are
testable. By merging rationalism and empiricism, we
have the advantage of using a logical argument based
on observation.
 We may find that our hypothesis is not supported, and
thus we have to revaluate our position.
105
 On the other hand, our observations may support the
hypothesis being tested.
 In science, the goal of testing hypotheses is to arrive at
or test a theory- an organized system of assumptions
and principles that attempts to explain certain
phenomena and how they are related.
 Theories help us to organize and explain the data
gathered in research studies. In other words, theories
allow us to develop a framework regarding the facts in
a certain area.

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106
 For example, Darwin’s theory organizes and explains
facts related to evolution. To develop his theory, Darwin
tested many hypotheses.
 In addition to helping us organize and explain facts,
theories help in producing new knowledge by steering
researchers toward specific observations of the world.
 Students are sometimes confused about the difference
between a hypothesis and a theory.
 A hypothesis is a prediction regarding the outcome of a
single study. Many hypotheses may be tested and
several research studies conducted before a
comprehensive theory on a topic is put forth
107
 Once a theory is developed, it may aid in generating future
hypotheses. In other words, researchers may have additional
questions regarding the theory that help them to generate new
hypotheses to test. If the results from these additional studies further
support the theory, we are likely to have greater confidence in the
theory.
 However, further research can also expose weaknesses in a theory
that may lead to future revisions of the theory.
 Thus, science is a way of thinking about and observing events to
achieve a deeper understanding of these events. Researchers apply
the scientific method to their study of human beings and other
animals. The scientific method involves invoking an attitude of
scepticism.
108
 A skeptic is a person who questions the validity,
authenticity, or truth of something purporting to be
factual.
 In our society, being described as a skeptic is not
typically thought of as a compliment.
 However, for a scientist, it is a compliment. It means
that you do not blindly accept any new idea that
comes along. Instead, the skeptic needs data to
support an idea and insists on proper testing
procedures when the data were collected.

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LESSON SIX
109
Characteristics and Value of Research
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Characteristics and value of Research
110
 Generally, research is a process of collecting,
analyzing and interpreting information to answer
the research questions. However, to qualify as
scientific research, such processes must have certain
characteristics. These are as
Value And Characteristics Of Research
1. Purposive 2. Rigour 3. Testability
4. Replicability/
Replication
5. Accuracy,
Precision and
Confidence
6. Objectivity 7.
Generalizability
8. Parsimony
9.Reliability 10. Validity
111

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Value And Characteristics Of Research
112
Let us consider the case of a manager who is
interested in investigating how employees
‘commitment to the organization can be
increased. We shall examine how these
characteristics apply to this investigation so that
it may be considered- scientific research.
PURPOSIVENESS
113
 Research must have definite aims or purposes.
 Keeping in view the above example, researcher has
started the research with a definite aim or purpose. The
purpose is to increase workers’ organizational
commitment, because it will be beneficial for organization
in many ways. An increase in employee commitment will
decrease turnover, absenteeism, and probably increase
performance levels. Thus, research must have definite
aims or purposes. Other examples may be:
PURPOSIVENESS
114
Topics of research Purposes/Purposive focus
The effect of social media on the
library usability in developing
countries
RO: to identify how social media influences the use
of libraries in developing countries
Assessment of the factors affecting
the adoption of digital libraries in
Pakistan
RO2: to explore the factors that affect the
acceptance and rejection of digital libraries
Why adoption of digital reference
services in university libraries of
Pakistan is slow: An empirical
assessment
RO3: to investigate the causes of slow adoption
of the digital reference services in the university
libraries of Pakistan.

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Rigor/Rigorous
 Rigorous research means that it
applies appropriate instruments to
meet the stated objectives of
investigation for the level of
precision in analysis. A good
theoretical base and a sound
methodological design would add
rigor to a purposive study. Rigor
means carefulness, diligence, and
the degree of accuracy in research
investigations.
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115
Rigor/Rigorous
116
 In the manager example, let us say the manager of asks 10 to 12 of its
employees to indicate what would increase their level of commitment. If,
only based on their responses, the manager reaches several conclusions on
how employee commitment can be increased, the whole approach to the
investigation would be unscientific. It would lack rigor for the following
reasons:
 1. the conclusions would be incorrectly drawn because they are based on
the responses of just a few employees whose opinions may not be
representative of those of the entire workforce;
 2. the manner of framing and addressing the questions could have
introduced bias or incorrectness in the responses and;
 3. there might be many other important influences on organizational
commitment that this small sample of respondents did not or could not
verbalize during the interviews, and the researcher would have failed to
include them.
Rigor/Rigorous
117
 Therefore, conclusions drawn from an investigation that
lacks a good theoretical foundation, as evidenced by the
above reason (3), and methodological sophistication, as
evident from the above reasons (1) and (2) above,
would be unscientific.
 Rigorous research involves a good theoretical base and
a carefully thought-out methodology. These factors
enable the researcher to collect the right kind of
information from an appropriate sample with the
minimum degree of bias, and facilitate suitable analysis
of the data gathered.

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Testability
118
 Developing a set of research questions or hypotheses to be
tested, must be testable and analysable.
 For instance, the researcher might hypothesize that those
employees who perceive greater opportunities for
participation in decision making would have a higher level of
commitment.
 This is a hypothesis that can be tested when the data are
collected. A correlation analysis would indicate whether the
hypothesis is validated or not.
 Scientific research thus lends itself to testing logically
developed hypotheses to see whether or not the data support
the educated conjectures/guesses or hypotheses that are
developed after a careful study of the problem situation.
Testability
119
 Testability refers to the ability to run an experiment to test a hypothesis or
theory. When designing a research hypothesis, the questions being asked by
the researcher must be testable.
 Some questions are unable to be answered due to limited access or inability
to implement the investigation (e.g., not having the means available to conduct
the research). For example, a three-year longitudinal study would be
impossible for a student to complete during a semester-long class.
 Similarly, a chemistry experiment can be recreated in a lab and show the
same results every time and this is considered a highly testable result.
However, a sociological experiment can be constructed and carried out and
conclusions can be drawn from the results. If someone tries to replicate this
experiment, no matter how closely they try to come to the original population
sample used, they will come up with somewhat different results. This would be
considered a much less testable .
Replicability/Replication
120
 Results of the test of research objectives should be
supported again and again when the same type of
research is being repeated in other similar circumstances.


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Replicability/Replication
121
 Let us suppose that the researcher, based on the results of the
study, concludes that participation in decision making is one of the
most important factors that influences the commitment of
employees to the organization.
 We will place more faith in these findings and conclusion if similar
findings emerge on the basis of data collected by other
organizations employing the same methods.
 the results of the tests of hypotheses should be supported again
and again when the same type of research is repeated in other
similar circumstances.
 Thus, we will gain confidence in the scientific nature of our
research. In other words, our hypotheses would not have been
supported merely by chance, but are reflective of the true state of
affairs in the population.
Accuracy, Precision and Confidence
122
 In research, we rarely have the chance of being able to draw
final conclusions on the basis of the results of data analysis.
 This is because we are unable to study the entire universe of
items, events, or population, and have to base our findings on a
sample that we draw from the universe.
 In all probability, the sample in question may not reflect the
exact characteristics of the phenomenon we try to study.
 Measurement errors and other problems are also bound to
introduce an element of bias or error in our findings.
 However, we would like to design the research in a manner that
ensures that our findings are as close to reality (i.e., the true state
of affairs in the universe) as possible, so that we can place
reliance or confidence in the results.
Precession
123
 The closeness of the findings to reality based on a sample.
Precision is how close two or more measurements are to each
other. For example your actual height is 5.9. If you
consistently measure your height as 5.0″ with a yardstick,
your measurements are precise but not accurate.
 For example, one researcher estimated the number of
production days lost during the year due to absenteeism
between 30 and 40.
 A 2nd researcher estimated days lost between 20-50.
 Actual days lost throughout the years are: 35
 Which one has precision or whose results are favorable:
researcher 1

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Accuracy
124
 Accuracy refers to the closeness of a measured value to a
standard or known value or how close you are to the true
value.
 For example, let’s say you know your true height is exactly
5.9″.
 You measure yourself with a yardstick and get 5.0″. Your
measurement is not accurate.
 You measure yourself again with a laser yardstick and get
5.9″. Your measurement is accurate.
 Note: The true value is sometimes called the theoretical value.
Precision and Accuracy
125
More examples
126
 Which set of data is more precise, measure the range (the
difference between the highest and lowest scores).
 For example, let’s say you had the following two sets of
data:
Sample A: 32.56, 32.55, 32.48, 32.49, 32.48.
Sample B: 15.38, 15.37, 15.36, 15.33, 15.32.
 Subtract the lowest data point from the highest:
 Sample A: 32.56 – 32.48 = .08.
 Sample B: 15.38 – 15.32 = .06.
 Sample B has the lowest range (.06) and so is the more
precise.

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More examples
127
Accurate and precise: If a weather thermometer reads 75oF
outside and it really is 75oF, the thermometer is accurate. If the
thermometer consistently registers the exact temperature for
several days in a row, the thermometer is also precise.
Precise, but not accurate: A refrigerator thermometer is read
ten times and registers degrees Celsius as: 39.1, 39.4, 39.1,
39.2, 39.1, 39.2, 39.1, 39.1, 39.4, and 39.1. However, the
real temperature inside the refrigerator is 37 degrees C. The
thermometer isn’t accurate (it’s almost two degrees off the true
value), but as the numbers are all close to 39.2, it is precise.
Confidence
128
 It refers to the possibility that our estimations are correct.
That is, it is not merely enough to be precise, but it is also
important that we can confidently claim our results as
true and there is only a specific chance of our being
wrong. This is also known as confidence level.
 It is expressed as a percentage and represents how
often the true percentage of the population who would
pick an answer lies within the confidence interval. The
95% confidence level means you can be 95% certain;
the 99% confidence level means you can be 99%
certain. Most researchers use the 95% confidence level.
Confidence
129
 In social science research, a 95% confidence level-
which implies that there is only a 5% probability
that the findings may not be correct- is accepted as
conventional, and is usually referred to as a
significance level of .05 (p = .05). Thus, precision
and confidence are important aspects of research,
which are attained through appropriate scientific
sampling design. The greater the precision and
confidence we aim at in our research, the more
scientific is the investigation and the more useful are
the results.

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Confidence
130
 The larger your sample, the more sure you can be that
their answers truly reflect the population. This indicates
that for a given confidence level, the larger your
sample size, the smaller your confidence interval.
 Note: Population size is only likely to be a factor
when you work with a relatively small and known
group of people .
Objectivity
Conclusion drawn for the
study should be based on
the facts derived from the
results of data analysis,
and not based on one’s
own subjective or
emotional values. Much
damage can be sustained
by organizations that
implement non data-
based or misleading
conclusions drawn from
research.
131
Generalization
132
 When a researcher conducts a study he/she chooses a
target population and from this population he/she takes a
small portion/sample to conduct the research.
 This sample is representative of the whole population so the
findings should also be.
 Then the findings are applied from that chosen sample to the
population and are called generalization. The reverse
process is called localization.
 Thus, generalizability refers to the possibility of applying of
the research findings in one organizational setting to other
settings.

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Generalization
11/18/2019
133
Examples of Generalization
Alizah asks a question from his
brother Mahmood "what is
generalization?" Mahmood
replies his sister like this "you
are a girl and you do not know
the word "generalisation".
Therefore, girls never know the
meaning of words ending in
"tion" (it's a generalization).
134
135

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136
137
 Animal is a generalization of bird because every bird is an
animal, and there are animals, which are not birds (dogs,
for instance).
 Old coins and stamps are valuable." (They can be, but some
are and some aren't. It depends on supply and demand.
 Generalizability is the process of testing 1500 University of
Peshawar senior students on a standardized exam,
calculating the average of those scores, and generalizing
that the calculated average applies to all University of
Peshawar senior students with similar demographics.
 We can make the generalization that people who eat at
McDonald's generally like their food.
 All animals that have feathers are birds (misleading)
138
 All parents try to make life difficult for their children.
 Every salesman lies to make more money on a sale.
 Women all want to have large families.
 Men are all afraid of commitment.
 The best way to make new friends is to just start talking to
people.
 Nobody really believes that the Earth is flat.
 Most politicians are greedy and manipulative.
 Cats are meaner than dogs.
 Dogs are smarter than cats.

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139
 Learning to drive isn’t difficult.
 Rich people are greedy.
 Poor people are lazy.
 Men don’t enjoy window shopping.
 Children should be seen and not heard.
 If you believe you can do it, you will always succeed.
 All success is brought about by good luck.
 Police officers are corrupt.
 All women want men to be romantic.
Parsimony
140
 The parsimony principle is basic to all sciences and tells us to
choose the simplest scientific explanation that fits the evidence.
 Research needs to be conducted in a parsimonious i.e. simple and
economical manner. It can be achieved by ways of considering
less number of variables leading to greater variance rather than
considering more number of variables leading to less variance.
 Clear understanding regarding the problem and factors
influencing the same will lead to parsimony in research activities.
It refers to simplicity in explaining the problems, and in
generating solutions for these problems, is always preferred to
complex research frameworks that consider an unmanageable
number of factors.
Parsimony
141
 For instance, changes in two or three specific variables
that raise the organizational commitment of the
employees by 45% would be more useful and valuable
than changes in 10 different variables that increase
organizational commitment by 48%.
 A large unmanageable number of variables are usually
beyond the researcher’s control to change. Therefore, the
achievement of a meaningful and parsimonious, rather
than an elaborate and bulky, model for problem solution
becomes a critical issue in research.

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Parsimony
142
 Economy in research models is achieved when we build in
research framework a lesser number of variables that would
explain the variance far more efficiently than a complex set
of variables that would only marginally add to the variance
explained.
 Parsimony can be introduced with a good understanding of
the problem and the important factors that influence it. Such
a good conceptual/ theoretical model can be recognized
through unstructured and structured interviews with the
concerned people, and a thorough literature review of the
previous research work in the particular problem area.
Reliability
143
 It refers to the consistency of a measure. It is the degree of
consistency between two measures of the same thing. The
measure of how stable, dependable, trustworthy, and
consistent a test is in measuring the same thing each time.
Reliability
144
 If any research yields similar results each time it is
undertaken with similar population and with similar
procedures, it is called to be a reliable research. A
correlation coefficient can be used to assess the degree of
reliability. If a test is reliable it should show a high
correlation value. A test is considered reliable if we get the
same result repeatedly.
 1) suppose a research is conducted on the effects of
separation between parents on class performance of the
children. If the results conclude that separation causes low
grades in class, these results should have to be reliable for
another sample taken from similar population. More the
results are similar; more reliability is present in the research;

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Reliability
145
 if a test is designed to measure a characteristic (such as
shyness), then each time the test is administered to a subject,
the results should be approximately the same.
 if a researcher is interested to measure the length of a
piece of wood, the tape used must give the same measure
each time. Even if you had someone else to re-measure the
wood, the result should be consistent. Further, for a test to be
valid, or truthful, it must first be reliable. Thus, reliability
comes first than validity. A valid test is always reliable but a
reliable test is not necessarily valid. Reliability is much
easier to assess than validity.
LESSON SEVEN
146
Types Of Research
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Types of Research
147

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Types of Research
148
Research can be divided into different types based on
diverse parameters
 Applications
 objectives,
 inquiry mode employed used for a research study
1. Basic Research
149
According to applications/ purposes research has two types-
basic and applied:
1. Basic Research
 describe and explain fundamental principles;
 involves developing and testing of hypotheses and theories that
are intellectually challenging;
 findings may have or not practical applications at the present or
in future.
 extend the level of current knowledge and seek general
conclusions about the phenomenon
 driven by a scientist's curiosity or interest in a research question
1. Basic research
150
 key purpose of this type of research is to expand humans’
knowledge, and not to create or invent something;
 expand man’s knowledge and accordingly stimulates new
ways of thinking and develops new theories, principles and
ideas;
 no obvious commercial value of the findings of basic
research;
 Theoretical, pure, primary, fundamental or discipline
oriented research;
 not concerned with day-to-day problems and its solutions
but deals with basic truth and laws or finds law or theories
and stops at that.

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1. Basic research
151
 No immediate application but gaining knowledge;
 conducted in the university, field or laboratory settings;
 broad generalization, theories, or principles;
 basic research is purely theoretical to increase our understanding
of certain phenomena or behaviours but does not seek to solve
any existing problem. In the basic research, general theories,
ideas, and questions are explored and tested, for example where
the universe comes from and how animals communicate. Some
people have suggested that this type of research should not have
priority, because it doesn't always result in an immediate benefit
to humans, but without basic research, many applied research
programs cannot be started. Doing basic research ensures that
applied researchers don't need to reinvent the wheel every time
they start on a new project, because the groundwork has been
done.
Examples of the basic research
152
 Identifying difference in capacity and duration in short-term memory and long-
term memory;
 Researcher is interested to know whether personal characteristics influence people's
career choice;
 A basic research may identify answers to questions such as a researcher is
interested to investigate the factors that motivate to the adoption of Facebook.
After gathering information, the researcher may identify the personal. System
and/or environmental factors that influence the adoption of Facebook among the
students or it may include age, gender, attractiveness, friendship or socialization,
social influence etc. as influencing factors.
 A neurologist who studies the brain to learn about its general workings is doing
basic research, while a neurologist who is searching for the origins of Alzheimer's
disease is involved in applied research.
2. Applied Research
153
 solve specific questions/issues that have practical significance and
potential solution;
 assist in policy formulation, administration and understanding of a
phenomenon;
 Solution is applied immediately;
 private businesses and government agencies;
 testing of theories, laws or principles ;
 involves seeking new applications of scientific knowledge to the
solution of a problem, such as a development of a new system or
procedure, new device, or new method in order to solve the
problem;
 also called field research or practical research or functional
research.
 direct applications of a solution

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2. Examples of Applied Research
154
 To determine how stress affect the immune system
 To explore the accuracy of eyewitness testimony
 To find out the therapies that are effective in the treatment of depression
 To know what factors motivate the use of libraries
 To understand what are the causes of gaining weight among the high school
students
 The reorganization of an office layout, to improve the safety at workplace or
reduction of wastage of raw materials in a factory process is example of
applied research.
 Apple IPhones are not selling in Pakistan well. A researcher is wants to find the
reasons for this in order to take corrective actions.
 Applied researchers may investigate ways to: improve agricultural crop
production; treat or cure a specific disease; improve the energy efficiency of
homes, offices, or modes of transportation.
Difference between Basic & Applied Research
155
Types of Applied research
156
1. Evaluation Research Study
o investigate whether a program, policy or marketing
campaign is effective. In other words “does it work?”
o used in large bureaucratic organizations such as businesses,
schools, hospitals, government, and large non-profit
organization;
o objectives are narrow
o applied in a specific and practical situation
o Examples- “does blended learning or students centered
learning improve learning better than lecture-only
learning?” “Does capital punishment/death sentence reduce
killing among the society”, “Does law enforcement program
of arrest reduce youth offences?”

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Types of Applied Research
157
2. Action research
o learning by doing” - a group of people identify a problem,
do something to resolve it, see how successful their efforts
were, and if not satisfied, try again.
o aims to contribute both to the practical concerns of people in
an immediate problematic situation and to further the goals of
social science simultaneously
o a dual commitment in action research to study a system and
concurrently to collaborate with members of the system in
changing it in what is together regarded as a desirable
direction.
o requires the active collaboration of researcher and client, and
thus it stresses the importance of co-learning as a primary
aspect of the research process
Action Research
158
 This is a decision-oriented research involving the
application of steps of scientific method in response
to an immediate need to improve existing practices.
It is also called action or policy oriented research. It
is similar with applied in many ways but it is carried
on a smaller sample to get an immediate solution.
Inventions are usually done at this stage.
Action Research
159
Solve specific and practical questions for policy formulation,
administration and understanding of a phenomenon;
Always done on the basis of basic research;
involves seeking new applications of scientific knowledge to
the solution of a problem, such as a development of a new
system or procedure, new device, or new method in order to
solve the problem.
Also called field research or practical research or functional
research.
Finds direct applications in field;
Finds direct solution to the problem faced by the humans

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Types of Research based on
objectives/purposes
160
1. Descriptive
2. Correlational
3. Explanatory
4. Exploratory
1. Descriptive Research
161
 describe existing conditions without analyzing
relationships among variables;
 undertaken to describe the characteristics of variable;
e.g. a descriptive study of a class in terms of percentage
of students may describe the variables such as gender,
age, number of semesters left until graduation, number of
courses taken.
 describes characteristics of a population or variables or a
phenomenon and determine answers to who, what, when,
where and how questions.
162

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163
1. attempts to describe a situation, problem, phenomenon,
service or program; or attitude towards an issue;
2. provides information about living conditions of a
community,
3. used when a researcher has a clear idea about a social
phenomena or behaviour under investigation;
4. provides details about a situation, setting or social
relationship.
5. undertaken to describe the characteristics of employees
e.g. age, educational level, job status, and length of
service etc.
Examples of Descriptive Research
164
 1. A researcher investigates customer satisfaction about
the use of a new soap called Product A. The researcher
wants to find:
1. What percent of customers prefer to use product A;
2. Where do they usually purchase product A;
3. On average, how many times per month do they
purchase Product A
165
 2. A researcher wants to have a profile of the individuals
who have taken loan from the bank.
 She is interested to know the profile of those who have not
paid their loan instalments for the last 6 months.
 She used descriptive research and identified the profile
information as average age, earnings, nature of occupation,
full-time/part-time employment status, and others.
 This will help to elicit other information or to take decision on
the eligibility and illegibility criteria for future loan.

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166
 3. An information officer is interested to implement digital
reference services in a university library.
 She may carry out descriptive research on the
organization (library) and may identify the
library/organization profile information such as age of
library, location, number of users, resources, circulation
statistics, budget, sources of funding, levels of
expenditure, demand from the users, etc.
Limitation of Descriptive Research
167
 Descriptive research does not help us
o to understand why people feel or think or behave in a certain
way;
o why programs possess certain characteristics,
o why a particular strategy is to be used at a certain time,
 We may learn what happened, or where or when (and even
how) something happened, but not why it happened.
 As a result, our understanding of a situation, group, or
phenomenon is limited.
 For this reason, scientists highly value research questions that
suggest relationships to be investigated, because the answers to
them help in explaining the nature of the world in which we live.
Correlational research/studies
168
 discovers or establishes the existence of relationship
between two or more than 2 variables or aspects of a
situation.
 carried out by researchers to identify important factors
related with the problem.
 It is a quantitative method of research in which
researcher has 2 or more quantitative variables from the
same group of subjects, and is trying to determine if
there is a relationship (or co-variation) between
variables.

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169
 A correlational study investigates connection between two or
more variables. The variables that are compared are already
present in the group or population.
 For example, a study examine the proportion of males and
females that would purchase professional audio/video player
software
 Study the relationship between gender and music preference.
 There are three possibilities of a correlational research:
positive correlation, negative correlation, and no correlation.
 The correlation coefficient is a measure of correlation strength
and can range from –1.00 to +1.00 or possible correlations
range from +1 to –1. A zero correlation indicates that there is
no relationship between the variables.
170
 A correlation of –1 indicates a perfect negative
correlation, meaning that as one variable goes up, the
other goes down. A correlation of +1 indicates a
perfect positive correlation, meaning that both variables
move in the same direction together (both increase or
decrease). The closer the numbers go to +1 or -1, the
stronger the correlation.
 The strength has nothing to do with whether the number
is positive or negative. A correlation of -.88 is stronger
than one that is +.56. The closer the number gets to
zero (whether positive or negative), the weaker the
correlation.
171

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172
172
Important Tips about correlation
173
 Co-relationship between two variables cannot prove that
one variable causes a change in another variable.
 In other words, correlation does not explain causation.
 For example, a correlational study might suggest that
there is a relationship between academic success and
self-esteem, but it cannot show if academic success
increases or decreases the self-esteem.
 Other variables might play a role, including social
relationships, cognitive abilities, personality, socio-
economic status, and many other factors.
Examples
174
 Imagine that a health psychologist is interested in testing the
claim that people with more friends tend to be healthier.
 She surveys 500 people in her community, asking them how
many friends they have and getting some measures of their
overall health.
 Then she makes a scatter plot and sees that there is a
positive correlation between these variables. Specifically,
she finds that r = +.3, concluding that there is a moderate
tendency for people with more friends to be healthier.

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