Chapter 3 Research Design 1

Introduction When a particular research area has been identified, research problem defined, and the related literature in the area has been reviewed; the next step is to construct the research design choosing an appropriate research design is crucially important to the success of the research project The decision you make at this stage of your research study ultimately determine the quality of your research results. A faulty research design may result in misleading findings.

WHAT IS RESEARCH DESIGN ? A research design is the plan of attack: What approach to the problem will be taken? What methods will be used? What strategies will be most effective? Decisions regarding what, where, when, how much, by what means concerning an inquiry or a research study constitute a research design.

Meaning of research design A research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedure.

What are the essential elements of research design? Research design is an overall plan for the activities to be undertaken during the course of a research study The research design serves as a framework for the study, guiding the collection and analysis of the data, the research instrument to be utilized, and the sampling plan to be followed. It is an organized and integrated system that guides the researcher in formulating, implementing, and controlling the study The research design is a blueprint specifying the method to be adopted for gathering and analyzing data The research design is a strategy of obtaining information for the purpose of conducting a study and making generalizations about the population.

Research Design © 2009 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. www.wileyeurope.com/college/sekaran

In planning research investigation, Choices have to be made about research strategy ( experimental vs non-experimental) Research setting ( laboratory vs natural setting) Measures (questionnaires, observations, interviews) Data analysis (descriptive vs inferential statistics) and others.

Purpose of the Study Exploration Description Hypothesis Testing

Purpose of the Study Exploratory study: Example: is undertaken when not much is known about the situation at hand, or no information is available on how similar problems or research issues have been solved in the past. Example: A service provider wants to know why his customers are switching to other service providers?

Purpose of the Study Descriptive study: Example: is undertaken in order to ascertain and be able to describe the characteristics of the variables of interest in a situation. Example: A bank manager wants to have a profile of the individuals who have loan payments outstanding for 6 months and more. It would include details of their average age, earnings, nature of occupation, full-time/part-time employment status, and the like. This might help him to elicit further information or decide right away on the types of individuals who should be made ineligible for loans in the future.

Purpose of the Study Hypothesis testing: Example: Studies that engage in hypotheses testing usually explain the nature of certain relationships, or establish the differences among groups or the independence of two or more factors in a situation. Example: A marketing manager wants to know if the sales of the company will increase if he doubles the advertising dollars.

Type of Investigation Causal Study Correlational study it is necessary to establish a definitive cause-and-effect relationship. Correlational study identification of the important factors “associated with” the problem.

Study Setting Contrived: artificial setting Non-contrived: the natural environment where work proceeds normally

Population to be Studied Unit of analysis: Individuals Dyads Groups Organizations Cultures

Time Horizon Cross-sectional studies Multiple cross-sectional studies Snapshot of constructs at a single point in time Use of representative sample Multiple cross-sectional studies Constructs measured at multiple points in time Use of different sample Longitudinal studies Use of same sample = a true panel

Activity Below are three scenarios. For each, indicate how the researcher should proceed with the following, giving reasons: a. The purpose of the study b. The type of investigation c. The extent of researcher interference d. The study setting e. The time horizon for the study f. The unit of analysis.

Scenario A Ms. Joyce Lynn, the owner of a small business (a woman’s dress boutique), has invited a consultant to tell her how she is different from similar small businesses within a 60-mile radius, in regard to her usage of the most modern computer technology, sales volume, profit margin, and staff training. Scenario B A manager is intrigued as to why some people seem to derive joy from work and get energized by it , while others find it troublesome and frustrating.

Scenario C Mr. Paul Hodge, the owner of several restaurants is concerned about the wide differences in the profit margins of the various restaurants. He would like to try some incentive plans for increasing the efficiency levels of those restaurants that are lagging behind. But, before he introduces this, he would like to be sure that the idea will work. He asks a researcher to help him on this issue.

Classification of Research Design Exploratory research design Descriptive research design - Comparative research design - Correlational research - Causal-comparative research Interventional research design - True experimental research - Quasi-experimental research Qualitative research design Attempts to determine cause and effect  not as powerful as experimental designs  Alleged cause and effect have already occurred and are being examined after the fact (e.g., ex post facto)  Used when independent variables cannot or should not be examined using controlled experiments  A common design in educational research studies

Exploratory Study Exploratory Study is undertaken when not much is known about the situation at hand, or no information is available on how similar problems or research issues have been solved in the past An exploratory research is defined as “a study undertaken in areas where very little prior knowledge or information is available on the subject under investigation.” It is thus the initial research conducted to study and define the nature of a problem. The purpose of exploratory research is to achieve new insights into a phenomenon. The major emphasis in those studies is the discovery of new insights or ideas.

Purposes of Exploratory Research Diagnosing a situation Screening alternatives Discovering new ideas

Characteristics of Exploratory Study No set method of conducting. Key requirements are: imagination and flexibility Not very scientific in nature- not characterized by formal research design Use of informal approaches in attempting to define the problem and gather the data Provides low-risk form of research that may result in good outcomes Provides direction for a more formal research effort. Sabina Baniya/2013

Descriptive Research Design Descriptive research describes phenomena as they exist. Such studies involve the systematic collection and presentation of data to give a clear picture of particular situation. These studies attempt to obtain a complete and accurate description of a situation. Is undertaken in order to ascertain and be able to describe the characteristics of the variables of interest in a situation. In addition, descriptive studies are undertaken in organizations to learn about and describe the characteristics of a group of employees, as for example, the age, education level, job status, and length of service.

Example A bank manager wants to have a profile of the individuals who have loan payments outstanding for 6 months and more. This profile would include details of their average age, earnings, nature of occupation, full-time/ part-time employment status, and the like. The above information might help the manager to decide right away on the types of individuals who should be made ineligible for loans in the future Sabina Baniya/2013

Comparative Research Designs A correlational study: Is an inquiry to know the important variables associated with the problem. Researcher’s main interest is to determine whether two or more variables co-vary, and if so, to establish the direction, magnitude , and form of the observed relationships

Comparative Research Designs A causal study (explanatory studies): Is an inquiry to know the cause of one or more problems. Example A causal study question: Does smoking cause cancer? A correlational study question: Are smoking and cancer related? Or Are smoking, drinking, and chewing tobacco associated with cancer? If so, which of these contributes most to the variance in the dependent variable?

Interventional Research Design Interventional research studies, the researcher intervenes and manipulates a situation to measure the effects of the manipulation. Discovering causal relationships is key to experimental research.

Experiment Data collection method in which one or more IVs are manipulated in order to measure their effect on a DV, while controlling for exogenous variables in order to test a hypothesis Cause and effect relationship is established by Manipulation of independent variable Controlling for exogenous factors

Exogenous Variables Controlling for exogenous/confounding variables Eliminating other possible causal factors Eliminating alternative explanations Experimental designs available Two types of exogenous variables Related to participants Related other, environmental factors

Interventional Research Design Experimental research thus provides the best method possible to examine a cause and effect situation. Types of experimental design Pre-experimental design : This design follows basic experimental research steps but fails to include a control group. Hence only single group is often studied. There is no treatment group for comparison Quasi- experimental design : It ignores randomization True experimental design: It employs both control and experimental group and randomization exist Sabina Baniya/2013

Types of Experimental Research Three Types - Before-After design without control group After-Only with control group Before-After with control group

Types of Experimental Research Before-After design without control group Dependent variable before exposure to experimental variable Dependent variable after exposure to experimental variable Time

Types of Experimental Research After-only with control group Experimental Group Dependent variable after exposure to experimental variable in experimental condition Control Group Dependent in controlled condition

Types of Experimental Research Before-After design with control group Dependent variable before exposure to experimental variable Dependent variable after exposure to experimental variable Time Dependent variable without exposure to experimental variable Dependent variable without exposure to experimental variable Time

Common sources of error in Research Design Halo Effect Rating Error Hawthorne Effect Experimenter Bias effect or “Self-Fulfilling Prophecy” in research Placebo Effect Error of Misplaced Precision Beware of Typical Case studies The law of the instrument

Related to Participants Selection bias: improper assignment of participants to the experimental groups Matched groups: Match the different groups as closely as possible in terms of age, interest, expertise etc. Random assignment: Randomly assign members to different treatment groups. The differences will be randomly distributed. Systematic bias will reduce. Statistical control: Measuring the external variables and adjusting for their effect through statistical methods Mortality: Loss of participants during the experiment

Related to other actors History effects: External events occurring at the same time that may affect the DV Maturation effects: Changes in the participants as a passage of time that may affect the DV Testing effects: The experiment itself affect the responses Main testing effect: prior responses affect later responses Interactive testing effect: prior responses affect perception of IV Instrumentation effects: Changes in measuring instrument