Types of Research Methods Research methods can be defined as a systematic and scientific procedure of data collection, compilation, analysis, interpretation, and implication pertaining to any business problem. Types of research methods can be classified into several categories according to the nature and purpose of the study and other attributes.
1.Descriptive research : Descriptive research tries to explain systematically a research problem, phenomenon or service or gives information about community or population, or describes attitude about a subject. This type of research describes, interprets and clarifies what in the present. It is conducted through surveys, observations, questionnaires or schedules.
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Fundamental research: Fundamental research is mainly concerned with generalizations and with the formulation of a theory. “Gathering knowledge for knowledge’s sake is termed ‘pure’ or ‘basic’ research.” Research concerning some natural phenomenon or relating to pure mathematics are examples of fundamental research. Similarly, research studies, concerning human behaviour carried on with a view to make generalizations about human behaviour, are also examples of fundamental research. Basic research is directed towards finding information that has a broad base of applications and thus, adds to the already existing organized body of scientific knowledge.
Following are the main differences between applied research and fundamental research. Similarities between applied and fundamental (basic) research relate to the adoption of a systematic and scientific procedure to conduct the study.
Applied Research tries to eliminate the theory by adding to the basics of a discipline, problems are analysed from the point of a discipline, forecasting method is implemented, generalizations are preferred, assumes that variables do not change and reports are complied in a technical language of a discipline.
Fundamental research tries to solve a problem by including the field of discipline, several disciplines work together for solving a problem, individual cases
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Qualitative research: Qualitative research is concerned with qualitative aspects involving quality or kind. For instance, when we are interested in investigating the reasons for human behaviour (i.e., why people think or do certain things), we quite often talk of ‘Motivation Research’, an important type of qualitative research. This type of research aims at discovering the underlying motives and desires, using in depth interviews for the purpose. Other techniques of such research are word association tests, sentence completion tests, story completion tests and similar other projective techniques. Attitude or opinion research i.e., research designed to find out how people feel or what they think about a particular subject or institution is also qualitative research. Qualitative research is specially important in the behavioral sciences where the aim is to discover the underlying motives of human behaviour. Through such research we can analyse the various factors which motivate people to behave in a particular manner or which make people like or dislike a particular
Based on the preceding ontological and epistemological assumptions a researcher then makes methodological assumptions. Having decided on exactly what is to be studied the researcher then decides how the research can best be managed thus formulating a plan of action. Considerations include whether the research used should be primary or secondary. Whether one will test an existing hypothesis or whether one will construct a theory after having collated evidence. Finally one can draw conclusions as to which strategy to implement with the ultimate goal of producing the type of knowledge that is required. This then results in the type of method or methods of research to be used.
Parahoo (2014) refers basic research to as pure research conducted to develop, test and refine theories and generate new knowledge to help in provision of quality and effective health services to patients. In other cases, basic research is said to seek more knowldeg for knowdleg sakes. Basic research mainly makes use of animal testing to come up with new ways and medication
According to Smith (1983) quantitative research is to explain, predict and develop laws that can be universally applied and Qualitative research is the interpretation and understanding of what people give to their situation. The researchers clearly stated the purpose of their studies, aim, objectiv...
Research can be quantitative and qualitative. Quantitative research is objective and involves measuring the phenomena under investigation. Qualitative research is subjective, explores experiences and feelings, and involves the recording of phenomena that cannot easily be quantified (Toates, 2010, pp. 5-6). Both are empirical since they involve data collection (OU, n.d.).
Quantitative research may be seen as the less contentious of the two because it is more closely aligned with what is viewed as the classical scientific paradigm. Quantitative research involves gathering data that is absolute, for example numerical data so that it can be examined as unbiased as possible. The main idea behind quantitative research is that it is able to separate things easily so that they can be counted. The researcher generally has a clear idea of what is being measured before they start measuring it, and their study is set up with controls. Qualitative research on the other hand is a more subjective form of research, in which the research allows themselves to introduce their own bias to help form a more complete picture. Qualitative research may be necessary in situations where it is unclear of what is exactly being looked for in a study, while quantitative research generally knows exactly what it is looking for. Questionnaires and surveys are quantitative socio-legal research, because it is the collection of numerical data, or data that can be easily being turned into a numerical form. In terms of analysing quantitative data, Excel is the b...
There are two types of research, the first qualitative; an in-depth broad investigation, detailed analysis looking at opinions, the data collected will be rich, and will have understandings. This, according to Bell (2010, p.5) is “concerned to understand individuals perceptions of the world”
Quantitative research uses a deductive reasoning also known as top to bottom or (top down approach) starting with a theory, then the hypothesis, followed by observation and finally confirmation , going from the general to the more specific. Quantitative methods use numbers and statistics to show the results of the research exercise and mainly are concerned with mathematics and statistics. In quantitative research there are levels of measurement being firstly nominal which are names of things followed by ordinal sequence of things, interval where the sequence has equal distance between each item, and ratio where there is a true zero (Alston & Bowles, 2003, p. 7-9).
Descriptive research is used because descriptive studies hold a large volume of market research. The main emphasis is to provide a correct picture of the some aspects of the market environment. The objective of this research is to define the data and characteristics about what is being studied. This research is used to study the frequencies and other statistical calculations. This research is highly true; it does not gather any false statement behind a situation. Research is basically done when a researcher wants to gain some better understanding of a topic.
Application research focuses on the need to discover specific facts and findings (Maxfield & Babbie, 2009). Application research evaluates the effectiveness of a policy or program and determines whether or not the policy or program is functioning as planned (Maxfield & Babbie, 2009). For example, once the Chief of Police identifies which areas have the highest crime rates and implement a policy to address the issues, application research can be used to evaluate the effectiveness of the policy. The two major types of application research: evaluation research and policy analysis (Maxfield & Babbie,
Research is systematic way to find out facts and knowledge as Kothari (2006) has analyzed that research is the pursuit of truth with the help of study, observation, comparison and experiment; the search for knowledge through objective and systematic method of finding solutions to a problem. However there are two types of researches one is by Purpose and other is by method. The type by purpose falls into three categorize such as Basic, Applied and Action Research.
...tion. Research methods are tools to aid communicators in understanding the communication process and predicting the effects of their efforts.
On the other hand, quantitative research allows you to test hypothesis derived from theories, associated with the issues being investigated. It is less flexible, as there are standardized procedures and techniques for collecting, organizing and analyzing the data (Kuada, 2012).
Every research study should describe the methods used for collecting, analysing and interpreting data. Research methodology is a systematic solving of the research problem and includes all the tools and methods used in the research process.
Quantitative research involves the collection and converting of data into numerical form to enable statistical calculations be made and conclusions drawn. It provides a measure of how people think, feel or behave and uses the statistical analysis to determine the results. However, this measurement results in numbers, or data, being collected, which is then analyzed by using quantitative research methods (Byrne, 2007).
Research which is also known as the search for knowledge is an art of scientific search for specific information. According to Clifford Woody, the research includes defining and redefining problems, formulating hypothesis and suggested solutions, collecting, organising and evaluating data, making deductions and reaching conclusion and further testing whether the conclusion will fit into formulating hypothesis. Research Methodology is a scientific and systematic way of finding solution to a problem. In this research, researcher has studied various steps for research like problem along with the logic behind them. For this study, researcher must know various research techniques like mean, mode,