The Research Process: The process of research involves various scientific activities in order to produce knowledge. Research is a process that requires patience and thought. There is no check list to make certain you have exhausted every resource and found the best research. Research is more of an art rather than a science. There are steps you must take, however to thoughtfully go through this process. There are some common activities in every research project which are interdependent. The research process is a system of these interrelated activities. Some of the steps included in these activities are as follows:
■ Selection and formulation of a Problem
■ Formulation of Hypothesis
■ Formulation of Research Design
■ Collection of Data
■ Analysis and Interpretation of Data
■ Generalizations
The stages mentioned above are interrelated. The first stage is selecting and formulating the problem and then in the second stage the researcher has to keep in mind the problem and the hypothesis. Then in the next two stages, a researcher who has no knowledge of how to collect and analyse the data, may find it difficult to formulate a testable hypothesis or formulate the research design. Thus, we can say from the above discussion that all the stages of research are interdependent.
he research process is not complete even at the sixth stage i.e., Generalization. After the stages are over, there may be two situations. The first situation may be that the data did not support or partially support the hypothesis and in that case the researcher returns to the first stage and start the research again. In the second situation, the research may be successful, but it is advisable to repeat the experiment with different sample and reconfirm the findings. The process of exact repetition of study is called as replication.
The research process also include the self correction stage in a situation when the data does not support or partially support the hypothesis. The researcher has to confirm that the failure of the hypothesis is due to the error in selecting the sampling design or in the measurement of the concepts and the analysis of data. The researcher designs the study in such a way that others can replicate it for their study.
Formulation of Research Problem
The first stage in the research process is the formulation of the research problem. Research, the foremost step that comes into play is that of defining the research problem and it becomes almost a necessity to have the basic knowledge and understanding of most of its elements as this would help a lot in making a correct decision. The research problem can be said to be complete only if it is able to specify about the unit of analysis, time and space boundaries, features that are under study, specific environmental conditions that are present in addition to pre-requisite of the research process. There are two issues involved in the formulation of the research problem i.e., understanding the problem thoroughly and rephrasing the same into meaningful terms form the analytical point of view.
The problem can be discussed with an expert in the subject. During the process, the researcher can examine all the available literature and study the related concepts and theories. This will help the researcher to give his research a meaningful context. The researcher can then rephrase the problem into analytical or operational terms. It is important to verify the authenticity and validity of the collected facts concerning the problem. The statement of the problem determines the data which are to be collected, the characteristics of the data which are relevant and the relations between variables which are to be examined and the choice of method and techniques to be used in these investigations.
The terms should be defined clearly alongwith the task of formulating the problem and then a formulation are set up with each formulation more specific than the preceding one and is more realistic in nature.
Definition of the Problem
The next step in the process after the identification of the problem is to define the problem which means specifying it in detail and narrowing it down to workable size. At this stage the scope and the limit of the investigation is determined and each questions and subordinate questions to be answered are specified. The plan of research is set out in a logical order to check out if it makes sense.
Another important aspect in defining the problem is to review previous studies in order to determine what is to be done. The assumptions made in the process should be explicitly stated.
Statement of the Problem
After the defining of the problem, the next step is the clarification of the problem i.e., What is to be determined or solved or what is the research question? The scope of study should be specific and workable. The requirement is to describe the background of the study, the related theory and assumptions and specify the issues in terms of the concrete, specific and workable questions. The questions raised must be related to the problem. The major element should be divided into secondary elements and then arranged in a logical order under the major divisions.
Operationalisation of Variables
In this step, the most important aspect is to specify the variables involved in the problem and then define them in operational terms. The problem should be specified with much greater precision. Let us take for example, that one wants to study “Effectiveness of Self-help groups on the Empowerment of Rural Women”, then the meaning of effectiveness and its indicators should be precisely specified. Also the variable empowerment should be defined in terms of the operations or processes that will be used to measure them.
The problem can be stated in the way that it indicates the relationship between two or more variables. It should neither involve philosophical issues, values nor questions of judgement that cannot be answered by scientific investigations.
Evaluation of the Problem
The next important step is the evaluation of the problem and find out possible difficulties in the availability of data, the financial and the field constraints, and the limitations of time. This broad research problem is then narrowed down to a highly specific research problem. The problem can be formulated by stating specific questions for which the answers are found out through the application of the scientific method.
There are some questions that would be helpful in the evaluation of the problem on various criteria and must be answered before the study is undertaken.
(i) Is the problem researchable?
The process of research cannot reach certain problems. A researchable problem is always concerned with the relationship between two or more variables that can be defined and measured. There should be workable research question to the problem that can be answered empirically.
(ii) Is the problem new?
The problem should be not be duplicate and should be examined carefully in the field concerned. The problem should be new which has never been investigated successfully before. A researcher may repeat a study in order to verify its conclusions or its validity of the findings to a situations that has never existed before or is different from the previous one.
(iii) Is the problem significant?
The objective behind solving the problem should be to fill the gaps in the existing knowledge, to help solve some of the inconsistencies in the research done earlier or help in the interpretation of the known facts. The results of the findings should lead to a theory, generalizations or principles. The research should lead to a new problem for further research.
(iv) Is the problem feasible for the particular researcher?
(a) Research Competencies: The researcher should be qualified and competent in the area in which research is to made and should have necessary skills and competencies that may be needed to develop and administer the data gathering tools and interpret the data available for analysis. Another requirement on the researcher side is the necessary knowledge of the research design, quantitative and qualitative techniques of data analysis, etc., which are required to carry out the research.
(b) Interest and Enthusiasm: It is important that the researcher is genuinely interested and enthusiastic about the problem in order to take the research.
(c) Financial Considerations and Feasibility: The researcher should take the financial considerations and the necessary resources in order to carry out the study. The cost of the project should be estimated properly and the availability of the funds should be assessed. This will help in the actual examination of the project.
(d) Administrative Considerations: Some administrative constraints should be considered by the researcher like nature of data, equipment, specialized personnel and administrative facilities which are required to complete the study successfully. The researcher should be able to get the cooperation from various administrative resources for the collection of various types of data.
(e) Time: The projects are time bound exercises and hence it is important to assess the time required to complete the study. The span of the year should be identified beforehand in relation to the nature of the study.
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