Research methods theory. Methodology, Method, and Theory 2022-10-30
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In the field of research, a theory is a set of interconnected ideas that explains a phenomenon or set of phenomena. It is a proposed explanation for a phenomenon that is based on evidence and can be tested through further investigation. Theories are important in research because they provide a framework for understanding and explaining the observations and data that have been collected.
There are several different research methods that can be used to develop and test theories. Some of the most common methods include:
Experimental research: This method involves manipulating one or more variables in a controlled setting to observe the effects on a dependent variable. This is often used in the natural and social sciences to test hypotheses and theories.
Observational research: This method involves observing and recording the behavior of individuals or groups without manipulating any variables. This can be done through naturalistic observation, where the researcher observes the subject in their natural environment, or through structured observation, where the researcher follows a predetermined set of guidelines for observing the subject.
Survey research: This method involves collecting data from a large group of people through self-report measures such as questionnaires or interviews. This is often used to gather information about attitudes, beliefs, and behaviors.
Case study research: This method involves in-depth analysis of a single case or a small number of cases. This is often used to explore unique or unusual situations and can be useful for generating new theories or testing existing ones.
The choice of research method will depend on the specific research question being addressed and the resources available to the researcher. No matter which method is used, it is important for researchers to be rigorous and systematic in their approach in order to ensure the reliability and validity of their findings.
In conclusion, research methods and theory are closely related in the field of research. Theories provide a framework for understanding and explaining observations and data, and research methods are used to collect and analyze data in order to test and refine these theories. The choice of research method will depend on the specific research question being addressed, and it is important for researchers to be rigorous and systematic in their approach in order to ensure the reliability and validity of their findings.
Theories in scientific research
The researcher would then analyze the data to see if themes emerge, and if the interview and observational data results are similar. Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press. GDT examines why certain individuals engage in deviant, anti-social, or criminal behaviors. Semi-structured Interviews This is the most common type of interview where researchers aim to get specific information so they can compare it to other interview data. The questions can vary from one interview to another following the path of discussion with respondent.
Commercial use of the content of this website is not allowed. Typical contracts that are behaviour-based, such as a monthly salary, cannot overcome these problems. The goal of agency theory is to specify optimal contracts and the conditions under which such contracts may help minimise the effect of goal incongruence. When researchers use surveys they value the ability to solicit a larger number of people and make generalizations from the responses. Retrieved from Olson, L. At its essence, a theory is simply a person's attempt to explain or understand something.
How do you know if its a quantitative approach? If a theory is to be properly used or tested, all of the implicit assumptions that form the boundaries of that theory must be properly understood. These questions are results from the gaps between theory based on literature review presented in Chapter 2 and analyzing and findings of primary data based in the following Chapter 5. The researcher might then propose changes to the organization to enhance communication and performance for the organization. The researcher of the presented issue wanted to compare and contrast the findings with the theory expressed in literature review and was able to give the suggestion and recommendation to the company or other companies in the same work filed and future prospective through exploratory research design which is briefly presented in Chapter 6. The core assumptions of this theory are that human beings are self-interested individuals, boundedly rational, and risk-averse, and the theory can be applied at the individual or organisational level. As you will learn in the coming chapters, each method used to collect data carries with it a different implied theory about how knowledge should be, or is formed. Data, facts, and findings operate at the empirical or observational level, while theories operate at a conceptual level and are based on logic rather than observations.
This ability and motivation to elaborate is called elaboration likelihood. Furthermore, observing certain patterns of events will not necessarily make a theory, unless the researcher is able to provide consistent explanations for the observed patterns. The definition of framework is a support structure or system that holds parts together, has something stretched over it or acts as the main structure. The methodology section or methods section tells you how the author s went about doing their research. Those secondary data can provide wide range of sales and marketing data, production data, financial data, personnel, transcripts of speeches, administrative and public record data followed by external record such as newspapers articles, journals, internet, official statistics, etc. If you have ideas on the above topics, you are a theorist. New York: Free Press.
Elaboration likelihood model Whether people will be influenced by the central or peripheral routes depends upon their ability and motivation to elaborate the central merits of an argument. Just as a nuclear explosion requires a critical mass of radioactive material to sustain a nuclear explosion, Markus suggested that a network requires a critical mass of users to sustain its growth, and without such critical mass, users may leave the network, causing an eventual demise of the network. Thus the collected data can summarize both qualitative and quantitative information and have impact in exploratory study. Because theories are also intended to serve as generalised explanations for patterns of events, behaviours, or phenomena, theoretical explanations are generally nomothetic in nature. Retrieved from Mitchell, K. Thus, as students, future practitioners and scholars, we need to employ a wide range of scholarly approaches.
Selective coding Selective coding is a process used in Grounded Theory to analyze data. In this chapter, we will examine what a theory is, why we need theories in research, the building blocks of a theory, how to evaluate theories, how can we apply theories in research, and also present illustrative examples of five theories frequently used in social science research. Because of the extreme interdisciplinary nature of film-making and performance studies, no one research method or chapter is dedicated to them. This requires asking the same questions for each interview, but keeping their responses flexible. Example 2: Linguistics research Investigate to determine how many people in the Basque Country speak Basque. But most people agree that there are several overarching categories of methodologies, such as post-positivist, constructivist, and interpretivist, and that within those overarching categories there are more specific methodologies, such as post-modernism and phenomenology.
And being educated includes questioning the results of each method. Qualitative researcher, Loren Olson 2010 , wrote an autoethnography of her personal experience as a battered woman. Two utilitarian philosophers of the eighteenth century, Cesare Beccaria and Jeremy Bentham, formulated general deterrence theory GDT as both an explanation of crime and a method for reducing it. You will learn how to synthesize information, assess a current state of knowledge, think creatively, and make a plan of action for original research gathering and application. Each group was provided different measurement tools.
What makes a good qualitative researcher? These kinds of debates keep some academics in full-time work and are much too complex to summarise in a blog post. You might collect some data or try and recall what information you have , you might discard data that comes from non-credible sources, and then you might assess your options. A casual study is focused on finding casual relationships between variables. In other words, theories cannot be theories unless they can be empirically testable. Theories are designed to be simple and parsimonious explanations, while reality may be significantly more complex.
The reader-friendly, jargon-free style makes this book accessible to both novice and experienced researchers, emphasizing the role of a theoretical framework in designing a study while providing practical guidance. Theories can be strongly supported by data, but they can also be little more than educated guesses. The process of collecting primary data requires more time, effort and resources comparing with secondary data providing more relevant answers on the research questions. The field of communication is highly applied. In this chapter, we discuss the importance of researcher ethics. The information gathered in this way is not used for anything in particular because this kind of research aims to learn more.
