Conducting research is one of the most crucial and the stepping stones when you are writing your dissertation, thesis or any report. The methods you choose will have an impact on the success and overall quality of your job. The methodology you will work with will make sense of your topic, your experience and your skill level. Therefore, it is essential that you get the first step of your research right.
In this guide, we will discuss the research methodology in detail and help you identify the one method that will work best for your research.
Table of Contents
What is Research Methodology?
“The process of deciding how to systematically design research and conduct it is called Research Methodology “
A research methodology is basically an outline of how research is carried out. It explains the techniques or procedures that were utilised to identify and analyse information about a specific research topic. Through research methodology, researchers design their study in a way that allows them to get valid and reliable findings and meet the objectives of the research.
Importance of Research Methodology
A research methodology explains the reasoning behind your approach to your research. It provides your research legitimacy and scientifically sound founding. It also provides a plan to the researcher that will keep them on track which will in turn make the whole process much easier and manageable.
These are some of the benefits of having a sound research methodology:
- Researchers who want to take inspiration from your research will have enough information to do so.
- Researchers who receive criticism can refer to the methodology and explain their approach.
- It can provide a plan for the researcher to follow throughout their research.
- It can allow researchers to document what they intend to achieve with the research from the outset
The Different Research Methods
Research methodology is determined before research conduction. A correct choice of research methodology helps in determining the success and overall quality of your research study and its documentation. Furthermore, having the know-how of the research methods that are used in an area of study can help you understand it better.
Qualitative Research
The collection and analysis of written or spoken words, as well as textual data, is part of qualitative research. It may also focus on body language or visual characteristics, contributing to the development of a detailed description of a researcher’s findings. Researchers often collect qualitative data through interviews, observation, and focus groups with a small number of carefully selected participants.
The research methodology is subjective and takes longer to complete than quantitative data. When the study aims and objectives are exploratory, researchers frequently use a quantitative technique.
Quantitative Research
Quantitative research method is used when the objective of the research is to confirm something. In this method, the main focus is on collecting, testing and measuring numerical data, usually from a lot of participants. Popular methods used to gather quantitative data are:
- Surveys
- Questionnaires
- Test
- Databases
- Organisational records
Quantitative research is often quicker than qualitative research because researchers use software to collect and analyse the data.
Mixed-Method Research
Mixed method research combines quantitative and qualitative methodologies to provide new insights, paint a more complete picture, and provide multiple findings. Qualitative research explores a situation and develops a potential model of understanding, also known as a conceptual framework, and then uses quantitative methods to test that model empirically.
The Difference Between Quantitative and Qualitative Research
Quantitative and qualitative research methods have different ways of collecting data and they allow you to answer different kinds of research questions.
Quantitative Research
- This method focuses on testing hypotheses and theories.
- The data in quantitative research is analysed through maths and statistical analysis.
- It is mainly expressed in numbers, graphs and tables.
- Requires many respondents
- Closed question (multiple choice)
- Key terms that are used in quantitative research are measurement, testing, objectivity, and replicability.
Qualitative Research
- Focuses on exploring ideas and formulating a theory or hypothesis.
- The data in qualitative research is analysed by summarising, categorising, and interpreting
- It is mainly expressed in words
- Requires few respondents
- Open-ended questions
- Key terms that are used in qualitative research are context, subjectivity, complexity and understanding.
Factors to Consider Before Choosing the Research Methodology for Your Study
The nature of your research
Every research be it quantitative, qualitative or mixed have a different purpose and approach that helps in solving its question. Hence, the main factor for deciding which research methodology you should use depends on the nature of your research aims, objectives and research questions.
If the aims and objectives of your research are exploratory then the research will require qualitative data collection methods and if the aims and objectives of your research are to test or measure something then the research will require quantitative data collection. And if the aims and objectives of the research are exploratory and then to test it empirically the methodology you will use is mixed-method.
The Norms of Research Area
To correctly select the research methodology for your research also involves analysing and considering the approaches that were used by other researchers in the area of studies that have similar aims and objectives. Research that belongs to the same disciplines often follows a common methodology approach. While it doesn’t mean that it is set in stone that you have to follow the same approach, you can at least consider these approaches and analyse their merit to your research’s benefit.
The Practicalities
While most methodological techniques will theoretically produce the most rigorous scientific study design, the possibility of practical constraints cannot be ignored. This is the nature of doing research and there are always some kind of constraints, as with anything else.
When you are evaluating your methodological options, you need to consider the following constraints such as data access, time, equipment and software, money, etc. so there are various practicalities and constraints that you need to take into account when you are deciding which methodology to use.
If you have any questions or if you’d like a helping hand with your research methodology, feel free to contact us.
How to Write a Research Methodology
Now that you know how to choose the method that best suits your research, let’s go over how to write a research methodology using these four steps:
- In the first step, you can explain the overall methodological approach of your research. This part should be an explanation of your research question and the type of data (quantitative/qualitative) you will be using to answer it.
- In this step, you will have to describe the data collection method you will be using in your research.
- In the next step, you will be required to outline the methods of analysis. If you are using a quantitative method of analysis, you should include all your data collection techniques or even software that was used while conducting your research. And if you are using a qualitative method of analysis, you should include any method of content analysis that was used while conducting your research
- The last and final step is to justify your methodological choices. In this part you can explain why this research method is the best fit for your research and why other methods were not suitable for your research. You should also acknowledge the limitations and weaknesses of the chosen approach, while also justifying why this was still the better approach for your research.
Conclusion
Remember, your goal is not only to describe your methods but to show how and why you applied them and to be able to convince your readers why you choose this methodology and how it suits your objectives. Choose your methodology wisely as the choice of the method and its correct execution is what drives your research.
