The research process: an eight-step model

Research methodology is taught as a supporting subject in several ways in many academic disciplines at various levels by people committed to a variety of research paradigms. Though paradigms vary in their contents and substance, their broad approach to enquiry, in the author’s opinion, is similar. Such ideas have also been expressed by Festinger and Katz, who in the fore­word of their book Research Methods in Behavioral Sciences say that, ‘Although the basic logic of scientific methodology is the same in all fields, its specific techniques and approaches will vary, depending upon the subject matter’ (1966: vi). Therefore, the model developed here is generic in nature and can be applied to a number of disciplines in the social sciences. It is based upon a practical and step-by-step approach to a research enquiry and each step provides a smorgasbord of methods, models and procedures.

Suppose you want to go out for a drive. Before you start, you must decide where you want to go and then which route to take. If you know the route, you do not need to consult a street directory, but, if you do not know the route, then you need to use one. Your problem is com­pounded if there is more than one route. You need to decide which one to take. The research process is very similar to undertaking a journey. As with your drive, for a research journey there are also two important decisions to make. The first is to decide what you want to find out about or, in other words, what research questions you want to find answers to. Having decided upon your research questions or research problems, you then need to decide how to go about finding their answers. The path to finding answers to your research questions constitutes research methodology. Just as there are posts along the way as you travel to your destination, so there are practical steps through which you must pass in your research journey in order to find the answers to your research questions (Figure 2.1). The sequence of these steps is not fixed and with experience you can change it. At each operational step in the research process you are required to choose from a multiplicity of methods, procedures and models of research methodology which will help you best achieve your research objectives. This is where your knowledge base of research methodology plays a crucial role.

The aim of this article is to provide you with knowledge that will enable you to select the most appropriate methods and procedures. The strength of this book lies in anchoring the theoretical knowledge of the steps that you need to go through on your research journey. At each operational step, the book aims to provide, at a beginner’s level, knowledge of methods and procedures used by both qualitative and quantitative researchers, though there is an incli­nation towards the quantitative way of thinking.

Quantitative and qualitative research methodologies differ both in their underpinning philosophy and, to some extent, in the methods, models and procedures used. Though the research process is broadly the same in both, quantitative and qualitative research are differentiated in terms of the methods of data collection, the procedures adopted for data processing and analysis, and the style of communication of the findings. For example, if your research problem lends itself to a qualitative mode of enquiry, you are more likely to use the unstructured interview or observation as your method of data collection. When analysing data in qualitative research, you go through the process of identifying themes and describing what you have found out during your interviews or observation rather than subjecting your data to statistical procedures. Table 2.1 summarises the differences between qualitative and quantitative research.

Since, at a number of steps of the research process, the choice of methods and procedures is influenced by the quantitative/qualitative distinction, the methods and procedures discussed in some of the chapters in this book are dealt with under separate headings for qualitative and quantitative research; however, the author has tried to keep this distinction to a minimum as the model is applicable to both. Also note that this book is for beginners, it does not cover extensively the applicability and use of each method, model and procedure. In addition, the author has elaborated more on methods, models and procedures associated with quantitative research as compared with those linked with qualitative research. For a deeper understanding of a method or procedure relating to either, you may wish to consult other books identified in the text or in the Bibliography.

Figure 2.2 shows the proposed model. The tasks identified in arrows are the operational steps you need to follow in order to conduct a study, quantitative or qualitative. Topics identified in rectangles are the required theoretical knowledge needed to carry out these steps. The tasks identified in circles are the intermediary steps that you need to complete to go from one step to another. It is important for a beginner to work through these steps in the proposed sequence, though, as already stated, with experience you do not need to follow the sequence.

In this book the theoretical knowledge required is written around each operational step and follows the same sequential progression as is needed when actually undertaking a research investigation. For each operational step, the required theoretical knowledge is further organ­ised, in different chapters, around the operational step to which, in the author’s opinion, it is most logically related (Figure 2.3). Again, for a beginner, it is important to study this diagram to relate the theoretical knowledge to the operational steps.

The following sections of this chapter provide a quick glance at the whole process to acquaint you with the various tasks you need to undertake to carry out your study, thus giving you some idea of what the research journey involves.

Source: Kumar Ranjit (2012), Research methodology: a step-by-step guide for beginners, SAGE Publications Ltd; Third edition.

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