RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

F Course Outline                                           31/10/208

1. Definition of Research

2. Processes involved in research

  2.1 Getting a topic

  2.2 Getting materials

  2.3 Fieldwork

  2.4 Writing

     2.4.1 Pre-writing

     2.4.2 Writing

     2.4.3 Post-writing

2.5 Theoretical framework

3. Data collection procedures

  3.1 Interview

  3.2 Questionnaire

  3.3 Observation

     3.3.1 Participation

     3.3.2 Non-participation

3.4 Focus group discussion (FGD)

4. Analytical method

  4.1 Statistic

  4. 1.1 Descriptive statistics

  4.1.2 Inferential statistics

4.2 Description.

F Definition.

Research means a systematic investigation of a particular issue, with the aim of extending the frontiers of knowledge on that issue. This process involves painstaking activities; some of the activities are done indoors while some are done outdoors. The indoor activities include reading at home or in the library, brainstorming, and collection of data.

The outdoor activities include mainly fieldwork which may take the researcher away from his/her place of abode. Research is time consuming and capital intensive depending on the nature of that research.

There are different classifications of research.

1. Personal research.

This is a kind of research that one embarks on mainly for personal purposes

2. Commissioned research

This is a kind of research that certain institutions and organisation ask a person or persons to carry out. In most cases, the researcher gets some financial backing. There is always a special time for the execution for such a research.

3. Academic research.

This is about the commonest form of research. In this type of research, a student is required to carry out research on a given or a chosen topic and submit the report, for the award of marks or degrees. It could be a term paper, a seminar paper, a project, a dissertation or a thesis.

Therefore research methodology concerns the processes and procedures to be adopted in executing a research

F Processes involved in Research

2.1 Getting a topic.

A research topic is both easy and difficult but in certain cases, the topic may have been prepared for the researcher; but if this is not the case, the researcher has the responsibility of getting a topic to research on. A very good way of reducing the difficulty behind getting a topic is wide reading. Through wide reading, one knows the state of knowledge on the issue involved; this also ensures that there is no repetition of what has already been done elsewhere. Reading is not an easy task but if one imbibes it, it saves one from the greater difficulty involved in looking for a topic.

Apart from reading, listening to experts or just anybody could open your eyes to a particular issue. Topics could also be gotten from discussion with colleagues and members of the society. After getting a particular topic of interest, you have to narrow it down to researchable level. Research topic could also be got from works that have already been carried out. A topic that has already bee carried out in another locale could be investigated using a different locale, so as to either confirm or debunk claims made in an earlier research effort. The essence of research is to ensure that the living condition of humans and their environment is better; this is why as much as possible, originality in research work should not be compromised.

F    Getting materials: November 7, 2008.

The materials needed for research could be classified as either book materials or non-book materials. Under non-book materials, we have recording gadgets such as tape recorder, video recorder, camera etc.

As for books, an important source is the library which could be school library or a public library. Another source of getting book is the internet. There are some websites and search engines that make some articles and books available; some of these articles and books could be downloaded free of charge while some of them have to be subscribed for. Material for research could also be gotten from lecturers and colleagues.

An important way of knowing the books needed is to identify the key concepts in the topic. If there are no specific books on those concepts, one can check the index of books that address related concepts. After getting these materials, it is important to document the bibliographical details of such materials. These include the title or topic of the text, the author(s), the years of publication, the place of publication, the publisher, the page range (10-24). Taking note of all these details make referencing easy. This activity should not at any time be postponed as some of these materials may never be recovered again. Any time you read a material and you abstract or jotted some points from the text, ensure that below such point, you indicate all these bibliographical detail.

F    November 14, 2008

F    Fieldwork

Not all researches involve fieldwork. There are some researches that involve only analyses of texts and other already produced data. But there are some researches that involve going out to collect data. The nature of the research determines the kind of data to be collected. In some cases, the researcher has to go to remote areas to get data. It may even involve interacting with people from other cultures and regions; this means that the researcher must familiarise himself with the background of his subject. Failure to do this may be counter productive.

In some cases, the researcher may employ the services of assistance and other intermediary. If the people from whom the data is to be collected are from a linguistic background different from the researchers’, the researcher needs to get a competent interpreter.

In some other areas, the subject may prove difficult; they may not want to volunteer the needed information unless they are given some gratification. One of the reasons behind this attitude is illiteracy. Some people feel that all researches conducted involve financial rewards. At times, the researcher may be confronted with such expressions as “give me my own share now because when you finish the research, we may not see you again”.

The fieldwork may also take the researcher to other establishment that has to do with statistical information such as the Federal Office of Statistics and government offices among others. It is not also easy getting information from these sources because of some bureaucratic bottlenecks. Therefore the researcher must display a high level of maturity, diplomacy and humility.

A major hindrance to data collection is the secretive nature of many of people. This is particularly witnesses in researches that have to do with the oral tradition of our peoples. Some of our beliefs and cultural values are enshrouded in secrecy. Most of the custodians of these cultural heritages are not willing to divulge the information handed down to them by their forbears. Some researches that involve collection of objects of antiquity may be difficult to document. This is because some of these items are not properly dated. In most case, only approximations of the date, the source and the producer of such objects are available. This is a serious problem for the researcher.

While going for fieldwork, it is important to be fully prepared. Accurate documentation of data collected should not be compromised. Every bit of information got on the field should be noted. In a research involving several days of fieldwork, the researcher must cross-check the data collected at the end of each day. There should also be backups so that if there is any loss, there are other means of recovering the data.

It is essential to collect more than the needed amount of data while on the field. This ensures that after leaving the field and there is the need change or modify the data, there is something to fall back on.

In a research that employs focus group discussion (FGD), it is advisable to have audio, visual and pictorial recordings. This is to avoid the problem associated with the need to add some other things that were not envisaged at the inception of the research.

F    November 21, 2008.

·                     Data Collection Procedures.

F    Interview.

One of the veritable means of collecting data is interview. This is a procedure involving the researcher going out to elicit information from his or her subjects. An interview could be oral or written. In the oral interview, the researcher asks questions verbally and the respondent also gives verbal answer. These answers could be recorded through any recording technique, such as tape recording, video recording or mobile hone recording etc. The researcher or his/her research assistant could also jot the response of the interviewee.

In the written interview, the questions may be asked verbally or written down but the responses are expected to be put into writing.

The interview session should be conducted at the time most convenient for the subject. It should also be ensured that the recoding gadgets are functioning well; this will forestall loss of vital information. Therefore few seconds before the actual recording, the recording gadgets should be tested. Before leaving the interviewee, the recoded data should be replayed, at least in part. This will enable the researcher to know whether he/she should re-record.

Immediately after the fieldwork, it is advisable to transcribe the data and keep it in a secure place. The interview technique is particularly useful for researches requiring first-hand information from the subject and those where there is the need to back-up existing data with such information.

F    Questionnaire

    This is a method involving questions written down and meant to be distributed to the subjects, the questions therein, could be open-ended or closed-ended. An open-ended question gives room to the responder to give any answer. A close-ended question, limits a kind of response or responses that could be given, a popular pattern is the Likert’s Scale which has for items:

·                     Strongly agree (SA)

·                     Agree                (A)

·                     Strongly Disagree (SD)

·                     Disagree            (D)

An advantage which a close-ended type has over the open-ended type is that it makes the analyses easy. The open-ended type may contain vague information, which may be difficult to classify.

The questionnaire technique is more useful that other techniques in that the questionnaire could be administered to a large number of people at the same time. Besides, the questionnaire could be administered by persons other than the researcher. The disadvantage of the questionnaire technique is that some of them may not be retrieved; this is why more than needed copies is distributed.

Also some of the responses may be unreliable, as some people may tick any option without carefully considering the proposition or the question.

F    Observation Method – November 28, 2008

Observation involves carefully looking at certain events and issues critically. The researcher and his/her assistance go to the venue where the data is to be collected. He/she has certain questions in mind which will direct what is to be observed. If the observation involves the researcher actively participating in the event, the procedure is known as participant observation method. But if the researcher merely observes the happenings, like a spectator, the procedure is referred to as non-participant observation technique.

For example, if there is a traditional festival and the researcher wants to know how that festival is done; he may have to go there and see things for himself. If that researcher merely records the proceedings, without being involved, this is non-participant observation.

However, there are some festivals in which only few things could be observed without participating. Many African traditional festivals contain certain elements that are revealed only to the initiates. To carry out research on such festivals and cults, may require the researcher either to be full member or to just participate while the festival lasts.

Apart from these, some apparently ordinarily phenomena will involve active participation for the observation to be meaningful. At times, the researcher may have to disguise so that his subjects will volunteer the needed information. In a research involving the kegites, for example, the researcher may have to participate in some of the activities of the club, in order to get useful and reliable information.

F    Focus Group Discussion (FGD)

This is the method of data collection that involves discussing with selected people on a particular topic. It is not just anybody that could take part in this kind of discussion; the participants in this kind of discussion must be carefully selected so that the information to be collected will be reliable. In most cases, stakeholders in the particular area under investigations are the ones chosen for this kind of discussion.

This method of data collection is often used to supplement other methods. The discussion should be conducted in a relatively informal way; thus ensures that the participants are relaxed and are able to give the best information they know on the chosen topic.

The researcher should take cognisance of cultural imperatives so that the participants will be able to actively take part in the discussion. It is necessary to carefully document the preceding of such discussion. To confer authenticity on such a discussion, the researcher is advised to take pictures of such sessions. While writing the report, such pictures could be scanned and added to the final report. FGD is not applicable to all researches. Therefore it should be adopted only when it is considered necessary and useful.

F    Analytical Method.

There are different ways of analysing your data. In most cases, a combination of methods is adopted, in order words, it is not just one approach that is used to analyse data, in most cases. The choice of method is dictated by the kind of data collected; this means that you don’t impose a particular analytical tool on your data. Another thin to consider before choosing your tool of analyses is your research questions or hypotheses. Notice that a research is expected to contribute meaningfully to knowledge. It should fill some gap, therefore, the method of analyses should be such that clearly provide answer to the questions raised by the research; if this not done, it would be difficult to make reliable conclusions at the end of the research.

F    Descriptive Method

This is a method in which the data is merely described. It involves the researcher explaining what the data means. However, this should be based on a particular theoretical framework, which should have been fully discussed earlier. In this approach, the data is interpreted the way the researcher understands it. It is subjective to a great extent, but the researcher should aim at objectivity as much as possible, because one of the features of research, from the scientific perspective is reduplicability. This means that a good research should still maintain its essence if it is carried out by another person under the same conditions. Ratio Frequency Count.

F    Statistical Method.

Most researches employ statistics in their analyses. The statistical approach makes it possible to generalise. There are two main statistical approaches.

·                     Descriptive statistics

·                     Inferential statistics.

Descriptive method includes the following:

·                     Simple percentage

·                     Mean, mode and medial

Inferential statistics involve more complicated statistical analyses such as Analyses of Variance (ANOVA), Chi Square, T-test, Regression Analyses etc.