Research methodology (for the 2nd year english students) introduction what is research practical research planning and design

Research Methods UNIVERSITY OF DANANG COLLEGE OF FOREIGN LANGUAGES DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH Research Methodology (For The 2nd Year English Students) DANANG 2007 0 Research Methods Table of content Table of content Introduction What is research? Purposes of Research Some early steps in research Research Proposals Aims Your Goal How to structure the proposal? Review of the literature Theoretical Orientation The Design Methods and Procedures 10 Limitations and Delimitations 10 Research program timetable: milestones 11 Tentative thesis chapter outline 11 References 11 A suggested format for research proposal 12 Literature Review 13 Introduction 13 Things to before writing the literature review 14 Strategies for Writing the Literature Review 15 Writing the literature review 17 Research Design & Methodology 21 Definitions of some terms 21 Some key methodological frameworks 22 Research Design 23 Data collection 26 Primary and secondary data 26 Data collection techniques 26 Reliability and validity 26 Sampling 27 Data collection methods 29 Writing a Thesis 45 Sizing up your topic 45 0 Research Methods Creating a timetable 45 Reading strategies 46 Writing as you research 46 Taming "The Beast" 46 Writing your thesis sentence 47 Considering structure 47 Questions to guide you in the revision process 47 The worst part about writing a thesis 48 The best part about writing a thesis 48 General advice for non-majors 50 General advice 50 Evidence and Methods 50 Structuring the Argument 51 Preferred style of writing 51 References 52 0 Research Methods INTRODUCTION What is research? The term research has been used in so many contexts and with such a variety of meanings that it is difficult for the student to sort it all out Much of what we have been taught about research is based on misconceptions Teachers give students an assignment called a "research paper" which mainly consists of gathering information from books and encyclopedias and reorganizing it and regurgitating it on a student -authored paper This and other activities have been mislabeled research They are more correctly, information gathering, note taking, or library skills According Webster, to research is to search or investigate exhaustively (Webster, 1985) It is a careful or diligent search, studious inquiry or examination especially investigation or experimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revision of accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts or practical application of such new or revised theories or laws True research is a quest driven by a specific question that needs an answer Paul Leedy, in his book "Practical Research: Planning and Design" (Leedy, 1993) lists eight characteristics of research which serve well in defining research Here are those eight characteristics • Research originates with a question or a problem • • • • Research requires a clear articulation of a goal Research follows a specific plan of procedure Research usually divides the principal problem into more manageable sub-problems Research is guided by the specific research problem, question, or hypothesis Research accepts certain critical assumptions These assumptions are underlying theories or ideas about how the world works • Research requires the collection and interpretation of data in attempting to resolve the problem that initiated the research • Research is, by its nature, cyclical; or more exactly, spiral or helical • Purposes of Research Research is done for a variety of purposes These include exploring, describing, predicting, explaining, or evaluating some phenomenon or set of phenomena Some research is aimed at replicating results from previous studies; other research is focused on quantitatively synthesizing a body of research These two types of efforts are directed at strengthening a theory, verifying predictions, or probing the robustness of explanations by seeing if they hold true for different types of individuals, organizations, or settings Exploration Very little may be known about some phenomena such as new types of settings, practices, or groups Here, the research question focuses on identifying salient characteristics or features that merit further and more concerted examination in additional studies Description Often, research is initiated to carefully describe a phenomenon or problem in terms of its structure, form, key ingredients, magnitude, and/or changes over time The resulting profiles can either be qualitative or narrative, quantitative, or a mixture of both 0 Research Methods Prediction Some questions seek to predict the occurrence of specific phenomena or states on the basis of one or more other characteristics Short-and long-term planning is often the main rationale for this type of research Explanation It is possible to be able to predict the occurrence of a certain phenomenon but not to know exactly why this relationship exists In explanatory research, the aim is to not only predict the outcome or state of interest but also understand the mechanisms and processes that result in one variable causing another Evaluation Questions of this nature focus on evaluating or judging the worth of something, typically an intervention or program Of primary interest is to learn whether an organized set of activities that is aimed at correcting some problem (e.g., poor academic skills, low selfesteem, disruptive behavior) is effective When these efforts are targeted at evaluating the potential or actual success of policies, regulations, and laws, this is often known as policy analysis Replication Some questions revolve around whether a demonstrated relationship between two variables can be again found in different populations or different types of settings Because few studies can incorporate all relevant populations and settings, it is important to determine how generalizable the results of a study to a particular group or program are Synthesis Taking stock of what is known and what is not known is a major function of research "Summing-up" a body of prior research can take quantitative (e.g., meta-analysis) and qualitative (narrative summaries) forms Some early steps in research Defining the research problem Research forms a cycle It starts with a problem and ends with a solution to the problem The problem statement is therefore the axis which the whole research revolves around, because it explains in short the aim of the research What is a research problem? A research problem is the situation that causes the researcher to feel apprehensive, confused and ill at ease It is the demarcation of a problem area within a certain context involving the WHO or WHAT, the WHERE, the WHEN and the WHY of the problem situation There are many problem situations that may give rise to research Three sources usually contribute to problem identification Own experience or the experience of others may be a source of problem supply A second source could be scientific literature You may read about certain findings and notice that a certain field was not covered This could lead to a research problem • Theories could be a third source Shortcomings in theories could be researched • • Research can thus be aimed at clarifying or substantiating an existing theory, at clarifying contradictory findings, at correcting a faulty methodology, at correcting the inadequate or unsuitable use of statistical techniques, at reconciling conflicting opinions, or at solving existing practical problems 0 Research Methods Identification of the problem The prospective researcher should think on what caused the need to the research The question that he/she should ask is: Are there questions about this problem to which answers have not been found up to the present? Research originates from a need that arises A clear distinction between the PROBLEM and the PURPOSE should be made The problem is the aspect the researcher worries about, think about, wants to find a solution for The purpose is to solve the problem, i.e find answers to the question(s) If there is no clear problem formulation, the purpose and methods are meaningless Keep the following in mind: • • Outline the general context of the problem area Highlight key theories, concepts and ideas current in this area • • What appear to be some of the underlying assumptions of this area? Why are these issues identified important? • What needs to be solved? Read round the area (subject) to get to know the background and to identify unanswered questions or controversies, and/or to identify the most significant issues for further exploration The research problem should be stated in such a way that it would lead to analytical thinking on the part of the researcher with the aim of possible concluding solutions to the stated problem Research problems can be stated in the form of either questions or statements The research problem should always be formulated grammatically correct and as completely as possible You should bear in mind the wording (expressions) you use Avoid meaningless words There should be no doubt in the mind of the reader what your intentions are Demarcating the research field into manageable parts by dividing the main problem into subproblems is of the utmost importance Reviewing the literature This means reading other researchers' studies to learn how they did their research and what they found It has been said that contemporary researchers are "great because they stand on the shoulders of those who have completed earlier research," that is, because they can utilize the knowledge learned by earlier researchers Although it is very time consuming, reviewing the literature will help you decide which variables (i.e., factors) are important to study, how to measure (i.e., assess) them, and what findings to expect Remember, you can "borrow" anything you want from other studies as long as you give the authors proper credit In fact, you are expected to use their work to make your study better If you don't review the literature, you are missing out on a lot of good information and you will be considered "lazy" by other researchers In short, the library is your friend! (See Literature Review for more details) Determining the research question The research question is the question you hope to answer with your study The literature review will help you decide which questions are important, especially as you gain familiarity with the topic and begin to see its finer nuances 0 Research Methods Determining the research question is an important step because it will help guide the design of your research study Example 1: Research topic: Memorization and EFL Students' Strategies at University Level in Vietnam (Duong & Nguyen, 2006) Research Questions Is memorization considered a learner strategy? What are students' beliefs and attitudes towards memorization in learning EFL? Example 2: Research topic: Task Difficulty in Oral Speech Act Production (Taguchi, 2007) Research Questions This study used social variables to develop different task situations for speech acts and analyzed L2 speech acts according to three criteria: overall appropriateness, planning time, and oral fluency operationalized as speech rate The study also examined whether the task characteristics showed differential effect according to learners’ proficiency levels Three research questions guided this investigation: Do the type of social situations and L2 proficiency have differential effects on the appropriateness of L2 speech act production? Do the type of social situations and L2 proficiency have differential effects on the planning speed of L2 speech act production? Do the type of social situations and L2 proficiency have differential effects on the speech rate of L2 speech act production? Developing a hypothesis According to Vogt's Dictionary of Research Methods and Statistics (1993, Sage Publications), a hypothesis is: "A statement of the relationships among the variables that a researcher intends to study." This definition brings out two important ideas First, hypotheses are assertions about how two or more variables are related to or associated with each another Assume that we're interested in studying why the second year English students fail to pronounce English final sounds properly One possible hypothesis is: Students fail to pronounce English final consonants properly because they are not properly trained This hypothesis posits that students' poor pronunciation and training are related, and suggests that those who are not properly trained will fail to pronounce English final consonants properly It is testable, because we could see if students fail because they are not properly trained (versus poor pronunciation for other reasons) Hypotheses should both say what we expect to find in our research and be testable The second concept the definition illustrates is the idea that hypotheses are formulated for variables that we intend to study In other words, the hypotheses are formulated before we our research It's not considered proper to the research, poke around in the data, and then write up a hypothesis that "fits" what we found Hypotheses should be based on theory and what previous researchers have found; they are not just made up "off the cuff." Hypotheses are scientifically reasonable predictions Remember, all good hypotheses are testable, and make specific predictions about what the researcher expects to find in his/her research The development and testing of hypotheses is one of the important things that makes research scientific 0 Research Methods Example: Research Topic: Language Learning Strategies Used by Non-English Majors in A Chinese University — Individual and Cultural Factors (Rao, 2004) Hypotheses: This study is located as a part of research on LLS worldwide It is based on two hypotheses for the learning strategies used by Chinese university students First, it is hypothesized that the success of good English learners could be attributed in part to their use of learning strategies, including using a range of strategies with greater frequency, choosing appropriate strategies for different learning tasks, and managing English learning effectively Such a link is anticipated from the existing findings of Chamot and Impink-Hernandez (1988), Green and Oxford (1995), Politzer and McGroarty (1985), and Wharton (2000) Second, it is hypothesized that Chinese students’ EFL learning is influenced by their cultural and educational background, and that there might be some distinctive characteristics in their strategy use related to this This hypothesis is based on the findings of Cortazzi and Jin (1996), Hau (1992) and Hofstede (1991) Constructing a research proposal A research proposal is a specific kind of document written for a specific purpose Research proposals are used when beginning a research project They are used when other people are involved in formulating, supervising or conducting the research Once developed, the research proposal serves as a plan for conducting the research It should provide: • • • • an outline of the research project; a rationale that explains why the research is important; some background information about the field of the research; information about the method, methodology and analytic approach adopted; • • • • a realistic timetable for completion of the research; information about ethical considerations and special requirements; information about anticipated problems and how they will be dealt with (See Research proposal for more details) 0 Research Methods RESEARCH PROPOSALS A research proposal is similar in a number of ways to a project proposal; however, a research proposal addresses a particular project: academic or scientific research The forms and procedures for such research are well defined by the field of study, so guidelines for research proposals are generally more exacting than less formal project proposals Research proposals contain extensive literature reviews and must offer convincing support of need for the research study being proposed The proposal must be accepted by a panel of experts/lecturers before the actual research can begin In addition to providing rationale for the proposed research, the proposal must describe a detailed methodology for conducting the research The sections below offer explanations of research proposals Aims The aim of the research proposal is to convince your Department and College that: • • There is a need for the research; it is significant and important You are contributing something to the field • • • The topic is feasible in terms of availability of equipment, supervisors, and data The research can be completed in the expected time period The topic matches your interests and capabilities Your Goal The research proposal helps you focus your research aims, clarify its importance and the need, describe the methods, predict problems and outcomes, and plan alternatives and interventions How to structure the proposal? The following sections are recommended for your research proposal report Check with your supervisor(s) for optional sections, variations and additional sections that may be required Routine Information This can be a full cover page or a quarter page header • Name of College • • • Name of Department Research proposal title Your name • • • Supervisor's and co-supervisor's names Address, telephone and email details Date Statement of Topic Introduce the reader to the recognized general subject area and how your topic is related Briefly point out why it is a significant topic and what contribution your work will make 0 Research Methods Aims of the thesis Set out aims and specific objectives of the research For example, the aims and objectives of a study entitled "Chinese Learners and English Plural Forms" by Jing, Tindall, & Nisbet are set as follows: This study explores the challenges that Chinese students encounter in the formation of English plurals To this end, the authors (a) examine linguistic features of Chinese and English that may affect plural formation in English, (b) highlight specific areas of challenge for Chinese learners, and (c) present an array of recommended instructional practices (Jing, Tindall, & Nisbet, 2006) Review of the literature This, together with the following section on the theoretical orientation, will be the main substance of the proposal and will lay the basis for your discussions of your methods and your total research program The literature review should explain the relation of your topic and research aims to significant literature and recent (and current) research in your field The form of the literature review may vary according to the nature of the field: experimental, philosophical, theoretical, comparative, etc., but its purpose will be the same in all fields The literature review should place your proposed research topic clearly in its relevant research context, and should demonstrate your awareness of significant similar or relevant research Be careful not to allow the evaluation of previous work to become a large open-ended task You should consult with your supervisors on the types of questions you need to be asking and what boundaries you should place on your literature review In one sense the literature review for the proposal is incomplete You will continue to expand and update the literature as your research progresses and as you locate new publications The final literature review will be included in your thesis (See the chapter Literature Review for more details) Theoretical Orientation Your aim here is to state your basic ideas on the topic • • • • • • • First, state the various theoretical approaches taken in your topic Which one you propose to use in your research and why? Where, tentatively you stand on the topic? If there are various theories on your topic or in your field, which one(s) will you use in your conceptual framework for your thesis? Which terms or trends you wish to follow up from the literature review? Do you have any fresh suggestions of an explanatory, interpretative, or programmatic kind? Ask Yourself Which pieces of research seem to have been most successful, the most promising and which less so? What are the major lines of criticism that can be leveled at previous work? What major omissions, gaps or neglected emphases can be identified? Perhaps the best way to approach this section is to set down your main insights, hypotheses, hunches, or even hopes about your topic 0 Research Methods Postal survey Cost (assuming a good Often lowest response rate) Ability to probe Telephone survey Personal interview Usually in-between Usually highest No personal contact Some chance for gathering or observation additional data through elaboration on questions, but no personal observation Respondent ability to Yes complete at own convenience Perhaps, but usually no Interview bias Some, perhaps voice inflection No chance due Greatest opportunity for observation, building rapport, and additional probing Perhaps, if interview time is prearranged with respondent to Greatest chance Ability to decide who Least actually responds to the questions Some Impersonality Greatest Some due to lack of face- Least to-face contact Complex questions Least suitable Somewhat suitable More suitable Visual aids Little opportunity No opportunity Greatest opportunity Potential negative ‘Junk mail’ respondent reaction ‘Junk calls’ Invasion of privacy Interviewer control Least over interview environment Some in selection of time Greatest to call Time lag between Greatest soliciting and receiving response Least Suitable questions types Greatest May be considerable if a large area involved of Simple, mostly Some opportunity for open- Greatest opportunity dichotomous (yes/no) ended questions especially open-ended questions and multiple choice if interview is recorded Requirement for Least technical skills in conducting interview Medium Greatest Response rate Usually high High Low for Focus group interviews A focus group is an interview conducted by a trained moderator in a non-structured and natural manner with a small group of respondents The moderator leads the discussion The main purpose of focus groups is to gain insights by listening to a group of people from the appropriate target talk about specific issues of interest Table Elements of focus groups 39 0 • rejects positivist view of science and insists that soc within their historical and cultural circumstances; • rejects 'traditional theory' that seeks to understand so social practices, institutions and events; • aims to offer critical knowledge of socially constituted re underpin experience and events Structuralism • associated with a period of research conducted princip 1970s; • arises within a diverse discipline base including anthro psychoanalysis, political theory; • is strongly influenced by the structural linguistics of Sau • understands language as an autonomous and closed rules that precede and structure consciousness; • society becomes intelligible through the study of its structures; • society cannot be understood in isolated parts, but in make up the whole Research Design Research design provides the glue that holds the research p structure the research, to show how all of the major parts of to try to address the central research questions In other words, once the problem has been carefully define the plan that will outline the investigation to be carried ou steps that will be taken and in what sequence they occur There are two main types of research design: Exploratory Research As the term suggests, exploratory research is often conduct clearly defined as yet, or its real scope is as yet unclear It him/herself with the problem or concept to be studied, and tested It is the initial research, before more conclusive r research helps determine the best research design, data 0 it even concludes that the problem subjects, and sometimes Another common reason for conducting exploratory resea are put in the marketplace, always a very costly endeavor provided either with a written concept or a prototype for a n product, service or strategy Exploratory research can be quite informal, relying on seconda available literature and/or data, or qualitative approaches such students, teachers, or educational administrators, and more fo depth interviews, focus groups, case studies or pilot studies The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for dec but they can provide significant insight into a given situati qualitative research can give some indication as to the "why", " occurs, it cannot tell us "how often" or "how many" In other wo generalized; they are not representative of the whole population Conclusive Research As the term suggests, conclusive research is meant to provide reaching conclusions or decision-making It tends to be quantitat the form of numbers that can be quantified and summarized It r particularly existing databases that are reanalyzed to shed light o original one for which0 they0 were constituted, and primary r gathered for the current study The purpose of conclusive research is to provide a reliable or population through the use of a valid research instrument In th will also test hypothesis Conclusive research can be sub-divided into two major categorie Descriptive Research Descriptive research or statistical research provides data abou being studied But it can only describe the "who, what, when, w not what caused it Therefore, descriptive research is used when systematic description that is as factual and accurate as possibl times something occurs, or frequency, lends itself to stati determining the average number of occurrences or central tenden One of its major limitations is that it cannot help determine wh motivation or occurrence In other words, it cannot establish a between variables The two most commonly types of descriptive research designs techniques (See Data Collection for more details) Causal Research If the objective is to determine which variable might be cau whether there is a cause and effect relationship between varia undertaken In order to determine causality, it is important to hol to cause the change in the other variable(s) constant and then me variable(s) This type of research is very complex and the resear certain that there are not other factors influencing the causal dealing with people’s attitudes and motivations There are often considerations, that even the respondent may not be aware of 0 There are two research methods for exploring the caus variables: Experimentation One way of establishing causality between variables is th This highly controlled method allows the researcher to variable in order to determine what effect this manipulati variables Experimentation also calls for a control group as and subjects would be assigned randomly to either group whether the experiment should take place in a laborator setting as opposed to an "artificial" one Laboratory resear and/or eliminate as many intervening variables as possible The experimental design is conclusive research that Experimentation is a quantitative research technique, but d set up, it may relate more to observation than direct commu Simulation Another way of establishing causality between variables is A sophisticated set of mathematical formula are used situation By changing one variable in the equation, it is the other variables in the equation However, in languag simulation and model building is rarely used Its use tends and forecasting studies The simulation design is conclusive research that is second is a quantitative research technique 0 D0 ATA COLLECTION Primary and secondary data There is a basic distinction in data collection between primary data are data collected by the immediate user(s) of the data ex survey being conducted It is this data that we will normally b about "collecting data" By contrast, secondary data refers to any data collected by a pers the user(s) of the data Where does such data come from? If, a variety of individuals and organizations actually collect data, it that data will come to be made available to other individuals and be of considerable value, although the exact value will depend carried out Data collection techniques Data collection techniques (Summerhill & Taylor, 1992) include records and reports, direct observation of behavior, face-to interviews, focus group discussions, and questionnaires If available in records and reports, then further data collection may observation is feasible and will provide the information needed, ask people to respond to questions However, these techniques inadequate to provide the quality or quantity of information d instruments may be necessary to gather data from which judgm made To select a survey instrument, there are several factors to conside technical adequacy: reliability, validity, freedom from bias, e practicality: cost, political consequences, duration, personnel ethics: protection of human rights, privacy, legality, etc One should consider all of these factors to arrive at a decisio reached that will produce a balance among these criteria withou point that the technique is inadequate, unfeasible, or ethical 1985) Reliability and0 validity It is generally agreed that "good" measures must be reliable an concerned with stability over time Validity is concerned with wh elicits the intended information Understanding these two terms measurement in both theoretical and applied data gathering 1979) Reliable items A reliable questionnaire item consistently conveys the sam the question interpret it the same way each time he or sh convey a single meaning to a given person, we cannot be had in mind when answering the question A simple and expedient way to test the reliability of items of the respondent groups, etc.) to tell in their own words w this process, one can identify items that may not have a group, and can adjust them accordingly Specificity contrib Valid Items Questionnaire items are0 valid if they are successful in elic information desired If the response is to be valid, it understand the question as it is understood by those conduc Also the respondent must be able to respond; he or she respondent does not have the information, a "don’t kno question valid To check validity, use the same approach as testing for relatives, friends, etc.) to explain what the question is ask identify questions that not seem to elicit the kind of info Sampling1 What is a sample? A sample is a finite part of a statistical population wh information about the whole (Webster, 1985) When deali a set of respondents (people) selected from a larger populat A population is a group of individuals persons, objects, taken for measurement for example a population of p students What is sampling? Sampling is the act, process, or technique of selecting a s part of a population for the purpose of determining parame population What is the purpose of sampling? To draw conclusions about populations from samples, we m enables us to determine a population's characteristics by d sample) of the population We obtain a sample rather than of the population for many reasons Obviously, it is cheap whole, but we should prepare ourselves to cope with the tutorial, we will investigate various kinds of sampling proc but all may yield samples that are inaccurate and unreliab This section is adapted from (Mugo, 2007) 0 these dangers, but some potential error is the price we must savings the samples provide Types of samples There are three primary kinds of samples: the convenience, th random sample They differ in the manner in which the elementa The convenient sample A convenience sample results when the more convenient eleme population for observation The judgment sample A judgment sample is obtained according to the discretion of s the relevant characteristics of the population The random sample This may be the most important type of sample A random sampl that each elementary unit will be chosen For this reason, it i probability sample This is the type of sampling that is used 0 example, if you want to select 10 players randomly from a pop their names, fold them up, mix them thoroughly then pick ten any equal chance of being picked Random numbers can also be Types of random samples A simple random sample A simple random sample is obtained by choosing elementary un unit in the population has an equal chance of being selected A systematic random sample A systematic random sample is obtained by selecting one u choosing additional elementary units at evenly spaced interval units is obtained For example, there are 100 students in your cl from these 100 and you have their names listed on a piece of pa order If you choose to use systematic random sampling, divid Randomly select any number between and five Suppose the n that will be your starting number So student number has been select every 5th name until you reach the last one, number one h 20 selected students A stratified sample A stratified sample is obtained by independently selecting a se from each population stratum A population can be divided into d on some characteristic or variable like income of education Lik 0 education will be in group A, between 10 and 20 group B These groups are referred to as strata You can then ran given number of units which may be based on proportio while group B has 50, and C has 30 you may decide you up with 10 from group A, from group B and from group A cluster sample A cluster sample is obtained by selecting clusters from the random sampling The sample comprises a census of e example, a cluster may be some thing like a village or a sc elementary schools in New York State are clusters You w use simple or systematic random sampling to select the s becomes a cluster If you interest is to interview teache program which has been introduced, then all the teachers in Sample size Before deciding how large a sample should be, you have to question of how large a sample should be is a difficult one various constraints (e.g the available funding) In general of the analysis to be performed, the desired precision of th the kind and number of comparisons that will be made, th be examined simultaneously and how heterogeneous a univ Deciding on a sample size for qualitative inquiry can be e because there are no definite rules to be followed It will the purpose of the inquiry, what is at stake, what will be us what can be done with available time and resources Data collection methods In primary data collection, you collect the data yourself usi key point here is that the data you questionnaires The research and, until you publish, no one else has access to it There are many methods of collecting primary data and the • questionnaires • case • interviews • diari • • focus group interviews observations • • criti port The primary data, which is generated by the above meth (usually in the form of words) or quantitative (usually in can make counts of words used) Following are brief descri Questionnaires Questionnaires are a popular means of collecting data, but are require many rewrites before an acceptable questionnaire is prod Advantages Can be used as a0 method in its own right or as a basis fo survey • Can be posted, e-mailed or faxed • • • • Can cover a large number of people or organizations Wide geographic coverage Relatively cheap • No prior arrangements are needed • • • Avoids embarrassment on the part of the respondent Respondent can consider responses Possible anonymity of respondent • No interviewer bias Disadvantages • Design problems • Questions have to be relatively simple • • • Historically low response rate (although inducements may Time delay whilst waiting for responses to be returned Require a return deadline • • Several reminders may be required Assumes no literacy problems • No control over who completes it • • • Not possible to give assistance if required Problems with incomplete questionnaires Replies not spontaneous and independent of each other • Respondent can read all questions beforehand and then d not For example, perhaps because it is too long, too co personal Design of postal questionnaires Theme and covering letter The general theme of the questionnaire should be made expli should state who you 0are; why the data is required; give, if confidentiality and/or anonymity; and contact number and addre ensures that the respondents know what they are committing the understand the context of their replies If possible, you shou completion time Instructions for return should be included with For example: ‘It would be appreciated if you could return t at all possible’ Instructions for completion You need to provide clear and unambiguous instructi questionnaires these are general instructions and specific structures It is usually best to separate these, supplying the to the questionnaire, but leaving the specific instructions apply The response method should be indicated (circle, ti and certainly if a slightly unfamiliar response system example Appearance Appearance is usually the first feature of the questionnai neat and professional look will encourage further consid In addition, your response rate careful thought to layout sh a number of simple rules to help improve questionnaire app ... explains in short the aim of the research What is a research problem? A research problem is the situation that causes the researcher to feel apprehensive, confused and ill at ease It is the demarcation... finding the answers to questions'' (Neuman, 2000: 515) Research design: The research plan that is devised to obtain answers to the research questions The research design can encompass the research. .. causality, it is important to hold the variable that is assumed to cause the change in the other variable(s) constant and then measure the changes in the other variable(s) This type of research is very