RESEARCH DESIGN

Research Design



Research Design

Introduction

Research design is the plan that provides the logical structure that guides the investigator to address research problems and answer research questions. It is one of the most important components of research methodology. Research methodology not only details the type of research design to be implemented but includes the approach to measuring variables and collecting data from participants, devising a strategy to sample participants (units) to be studied, and planning how the data will be analyzed. These methodological decisions are informed and guided by the type of research design selected. There are two broad categories of research design: observational and interventional. Each research design emphasizes a different type of relationship to be explored between variables.

The social issue or problem that needs further exploration and study is articulated in the research problem statement, which conceptualizes the problem or issue and identifies the main salient variables to be examined. Based on this conceptualization, research questions are developed to isolate the specific relationships among variables to be assessed: correlational and causal. The kind of research questions that the investigator wishes to answer will help determine the specific type research design that will be used in the scientific inquiry. Determining what kind of research questions should be posed and answered is one of the most important decisions to be made in the planning stages of a research study. It provides the foundation for selecting the actual design to be used in the study.

Discussion

At the heart of the distinction between these various scientific methods are differing ontological, epistemological, and theoretical worldviews. Ontology refers to the nature of reality. Ontological questions interrogate fundamental ideas about what is real. Epistemology refers to a theory of knowledge. Epistemological discussions interrogate how we know the world, who can know, and what can be known. Theoretical perspectives are the philosophical stances that provide the logic and the criteria that organize methodology (the overall research strategy) and methods (the specific tools or techniques used in collecting and interpreting evidence). In short, basic philosophical differences in these worldviews have a direct impact on the research design. Coherent research designs demonstrate consistent and integrated ontological, epistemological, theoretical, and methodological positions.

Research Problem

The research problem is an area of concern that the investigator is interested in exploring. It reflects a gap in knowledge about a specific social issue or problem discussed in the scientific literature. Often a research problem focuses on a situation that arises out of everyday life and that calls for a solution, an improvement, or some alteration; it is a problem that needs to be solved. Conceptualizing and describing the social problem lead the investigator to identify the most salient concepts or variables involved and guide the investigator's thinking about why and how the variables are connected to each other. Through this process of articulating and framing the research problem, investigators may discover that little is known about an issue or that there is conflicting information about it within the scientific ...