A PRESENTATION ON RESEARCH METHODS: SELECTION OF A RESEARCH TOPIC, FORMULATING A HYPOTHESIS, PHILOSOPHICAL ISSUES IN RESEARCH, QUANTITATIVE VS QUALITATIVE DEBATE & SELECTION OF A RESEARCH METHOD

1. RESEARCH
METHODOLOGY
Dr. Devika Vashisht
Assistant Professor
IBS Gurgaon, India

2. KEY POINTS
 How to select a research problem
 Constructing a hypothesis
 Kinds of philosophical issues
 Qualitative vs Quantitative debate
 Selecting a method for research

3. 1
RESEARCH
PROBLEM

4. SOURCES OF RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Any question one wants to answer
 Challenge any assumption
 Requires knowledge of both the subject and the research
method
 Note: All questions can not be converted into research
problems

5. SELECTING A RESEARCH TOPIC
 State of scientific discipline
 A social problem
 Personal values of a researcher
 Sources of selection: Research conducted by others,
review of literature, experience, government priorities,
prevalent theories, imagination, some observed
phenomenon

6. CONSIDERATIONS IN SELECTING A
RESEARCH PROBLEM
 Interest
 Measurement of Concepts
 Level of expertise
 Relevance
 Availability of data
 Ethical Issues

7. IMPORTANCE OF FORMULATING A
RESEARCH PROBLEM
 It is the foundation of a research study that determines:
 Study Design
 Sampling Strategy
 Research instrument that can be used or developed
 Type of analysis that can be undertaken

8. STEPS IN FORMULATING A RESARCH
PROBLEM
1
• Identification of field/subject area of interest
2
• Dissect into sub-areas
3
• Selecting of what is interesting to the researcher
4
• Raise research questions
5
• Formulate objectives
6
• Assess objectives

9. TECHNIQUES OF DEVELOPING
RESEARCH QUESTIONS
 Record all questions coming to mind after reading
literature and thinking about the issue
 Do they fall within the scope of the research
 Classification of questions
 Scope of the questions
 Separate major and minor questions

10. 2
CONSTRUCTING
A HYPOTHESIS

11. WHAT IS A HYPOTHESIS
 An assumption about relationships between variables
 A conjectural statement of the relationship between two
or more variables to be tested empirically verified or
rejected
 A tentative assumption made in order to draw out and
test its logical/empirical consequences
 Test means to prove it correct/wrong
 Excludes all opinions, value judgment statements
 It carries clear implications for testing the stated
relationship, i.e. it contains variables that are measurable
and specifying how they are related

12. 3
PHILOSOPHICAL
ISSUES

13. KINDS OF PHILOSOPHICAL ISSUES
 Social science is a science: Objective discovery
 Theory survives because they explain facts
 Questions the distinction between facts and theories

14. 4
QUALITATIVE VS
QUANTITATIVE

15. RESEARCH DESIGN
 It’s a blueprint or framework for conducting the research
project.
 It specifies the details of the procedures necessary for
obtaining the information needed to structure and to
solve the research problem.
 Types: 1.Exploratory and 2. Conclusive: 2.1 Causal and
2.2 Descriptive

16.  Content Analysis
 Interpretative Study of
Text /Documents
 Ethnographic Study
 Visual Research
 Experimental Design –
Randomly assigned;
Control and Treatment
Groups – Between
Subject Design
 Quasi-Experimental
Design – Non random;
Existing group – make
use of only 1 group
(within subject design or
pre-post test design)
QUALITATIVE QUANTITAIVE

17. EXPLORATORY DESCRIPTIVE CAUSAL
Objective: Discovery
of ideas and insights
Objective: Describe
market characteristics
or functions
Objective: Determine
cause-effect
relationship
1. Flexible and
versatile
2. Often the front end
of total research
design
1. Marked by prior
formulation of specific
hypotheses.
2. Preplanned and
structured design
1. Manipulation of
one or more I.Vs.
2. Measure the effect
on D.Vs.
3. Control other Vs.
Methods: Expert
surveys, Pilot surveys,
Case studies,
Secondary data
analysis: Qualitative
research
Methods: Secondary
data analysis:
Qualitative research,
Surveys, Panels,
Observation
Methods: Experiments

18. INSTRUMENT VALIDITY
VALIDITY
FACE
VALIDITY
CONTENT
VALIDITY
CONCURRENT
VALIDITY
PREDICTIVE
VALIDITY
CONSTRUCT
VALIDITY

19. RELIABILITY
TEST-RETEST ALTERNATE FORMS
SPLIT-HALF INTERNAL
CONSISTENCY

20. SAMPLING STRATEGIES
SAMPLING
RANDOM
SIMPLE SYSTEMATIC STRATIFIED CLUSTER
NON-RANDOM
CONVENIENCE QUOTA PURPOSIVE SNOWBALL