Practical Research 1

2nd Semester | 3rd Quarter (Mid-Terms)

Vince Cedric C. Resultay | STEM 11 – St. John

QUALITATIVE AND QUANTITATIVE

• Qualitative Research – an inductive / exploratory
research that seeks to understand or make sense
of the world based on how individuals experience
RESEARCH and perceive it.
• Definition of Research o It is used to gain an understanding of
o a systematic investigation into and study underlying reasons, opinions, and
of materials and sources in order to motivations. It is used to uncover trends
establish facts and reach new in thought and opinions, and dive deeper
conclusions into the problem.
o a careful consideration of study • Quantitative Research – a deductive research that
regarding a particular concern or a seeks generalizability through controlled, value-
problem using scientific method free processes. It is used to quantify the problem
o a systematic inquiry to describe, explain, by way of generating numerical data.
predict, and control the observed o It is used to quantify attitudes, opinions,
phenomenon behaviors, and other defined variables.
• Research requires data collection, analysis,
interpretation, and inquiry to understand, describe,
predict, and control a phenomenon.
• Research involves:
o investigation
o experimentation
o testing
o exploration
o analysis
o fact-finding
o examinations
o scrutinization
o probing
• Research has 2 types: scientific and non-scientific
o Scientific – can be reproduced and
demonstrated to be consistent. It is an
investigation of scientific theories and Key Differences:
hypotheses. Qualitative vs. Quantitative Research
o Non-scientific – acquiring knowledge and
truths about the world using techniques 3 TYPES OF RESEARCH IN TERMS OF PURPOSE
that do not follow the scientific method
• Exploratory – conducted for a problem that has
• Research becomes scientific if it satisfies 2
not been studied more clearly. It is intended to
requirements:
establish priorities, develop operational
1. It contributes to a body of science.
definitions, and improve the final research design.
2. It follows the scientific method.
• Descriptive – describes the characteristics of the
• Scientific Method – a standardized set of
population or phenomenon that is being studied. It
techniques for building scientific knowledge.
focuses more on the “what” of the research
o It allows researchers to independently
subject rather than the “why” of the research
and impartially test preexisting theories
subject.
and prior findings, and subject them to
• Explanatory – explains why events occur to build.
open debate, modifications, or
It allows research to test very specific theories
enhancements.
and make amends to previous theories.
• There are 2 ways of conducting scientific
research: inductive and deductive.
o Inductive Research – a theory-building 2 TYPES OF SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH IN
research that infers theoretical concepts TERMS OF PURPOSE
and patterns from observed data. It
• Basic / Theoretical Research – aims at testing
makes specific instances into a
existing theories or generating new theories to
generalized conclusion.
advance knowledge or understanding. It discovers
o Deductive Research - a theory-testing
new phenomena or ideas of general interest.
research that test concepts and patterns
known from theory using new empirical • Applied Research – uses knowledge acquired
data. It also refines, improve, and extend through research in order to contribute directly to
a theory. It starts with a premise, the understanding or resolution of practical issues.
generalized principles that are known to
be true, that leads to more specific
conclusions.
 COMPONENTS OF THE RESEARCH PROCESS interpreting the structure and content of
the themes.
• Research Questions – specific questions about a
• Grounded Theory – a set of inductive data
behavior, event, or phenomena of interest that
collection and analytic methods with the purpose
you wish to seek answers for in your research.
of constructing theories.
• Literature Review – has a 3-fold purpose:
• Case Study – a in-depth investigation of complex
1. to survey the current state of knowledge
issues within a specific context. It is based on
in the area of inquiry
small group or individuals as subjects of the study.
2. to identify key authors, articles, theories,
• Discourse and Conversation Analysis – focuses
and findings in that area
on text as “object of analysis”.
3. to identify gaps in knowledge in that
o It examines recorded naturally-occurring
research area.
language, usually of conversations
• Research Design – the entire strategic plan of
between individuals within the study
how to go about finding the answers of your
population.
research question. It is like a blueprint for the
• Narrative Analysis –focuses on the narratives
collection, processing, measurement, and
(storytelling) used as source of data. It is akin to
analysis of data.
life history research.
• Research Methodology – includes the rationale for
the research.
o Rationale: provides the justification for ETHICS IN RESEARCH
your research design. It bridges your • Ethics – refer to the standards on what is morally
assumptions or positions to your choice right or wrong. It involves human issues of values.
of data collection and analysis methods • Treat animals with care and respect when
and procedures. studying them in your research and adhere to
o Paradigm – helps us understand the ethical guidelines.
phenomena that we want to study • Respect intellectual property, privacy, and
• Research Methods – tools and techniques that confidentiality and give proper credit for any
researchers use to gather data. contributions from other researchers.
• Don’t use any external research data (published
or unpublished) without permission.
• Don’t support irresponsible publication practices.
Your main goal should be to advance science and
share your knowledge within the community.
• Maintaining a good record of all your research
activities and report your data as carefully and
objectively as possible.
• Fabrication, manipulation or misrepresentation of
CHARACTERISTICS OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH data is not allowed.
o Qualitative researchers are concerned with
process, rather than outcomes or products. ETHICAL GUIDELINES AND INFORMED CONSENT
o Qualitative researchers are interested in meaning.
• Subjects or respondents in research project must
o Data are mediated through human instrument (the
be aware that their participation in the study in
researcher) rather than through inventories.
voluntary.
o Qualitative research involves fieldwork.
• They are free to withdraw their participation from
o Qualitative research is descriptive in that the
the study anytime without any unfavorable
researcher is interested in process, meaning, and
repercussions
understanding gained.
o The process of qualitative research is inductive. • They are not harmed as a result of their
participation or non-participation in the research
project.
TYPES OF QUALITATIVE RESEARCH • The subject has the right to know:
• Phenomenology – a philosophy and research o they are being researched
method that emphasizes individual experiences, o inform the nature of research
beliefs, and perceptions. o right to withdraw anytime
o It is how an individual makes sense of
the world.
o It is a study wherein human experience
is examined.
o It is an approach applied in clinical
psychology.
• Ethnography – “to write about a group of people.”
o Its roots are grounded in the field of
anthropology.
o It is focused on studying shared
practices and belief systems
o A researcher is immersed within the
community he/she is studying for
extended periods of time.
• Inductive Thematic Analysis – the most common
qualitative data analysis method primarily
concerned with presenting the stories and
experiences voiced by study participants.
o It is the process of reading through
contextual data, identifying themes in the
data, coding those themes, and then