Quantitative & Qualitative Research

DesignsE. HAIPINGE

07 APRIL 2015

INTRODUCTION

By the end of the lecture, students should be able to:

Define research design

Identify quantitative research designs

Identify qualitative research designs

Define each research design

Understand the appropriate use of each research design

RESEARCH DESIGN

A detailed outline of how a research investigation will take place

It includes: how data is to be collected, what instruments will be employed, how the instruments will be used and the intended means for analyzing data collected.

The function of a research design is to ensure that the evidence obtained enables us to answer the initial question as unambiguously as possible

DESIGN vs METHOD

Research design

A logical structure of the inquiry

Examples Cross-sectional design Case study SurveyNarrative

Research method

A mode of data collection

ExamplesQuestionnaireObservation Interview Focus group

Quantitative Research Designs

Quantitative Research Designs

Experimental design

Ex Post Facto design

Correlational design

Survey design

Experimental Design

Research in which the investigator manipulates one or more independent variables (the treatment) and observes the effect on one or more dependent variables

It involves an experiment: An experiment is an orderly procedure carried out with the goal of verifying, refuting, or establishing the validity of a hypothesis.

Experiments provide insight into cause-and-effect by demonstrating what outcome occurs when a particular factor is manipulated.

Data collection methods: standardized tests, measuring tests, questionnaires,

Characteristics of Experimental Design

Random assignment: randomly assigning individuals to experimental or control groups

Control over extraneous variables: factors other than independent variable that may influence the outcome of the experiment

Manipulation of the treatment conditions: interventions made by researcher to change conditions of experimental group

Outcome measures: assessing whether treatment conditions influence outcome (dependent variable)

Group comparison: comparing the test scores and variation between experimental and control group

Ex Post Facto Design

A type of research that attempts to determine the causes for, or the consequences of, differences that already exist in groups of individuals.

ex post facto (Latin: after the fact) indicates that ex post facto research is conducted after variation in the variable of interest has already been determined in the natural course of events.

Examples of attribute variables (characteristic that participants already had before the study began) that cannot be manipulated Home environment, motivation, intelligence, home language, parental reading habits, age, ethnicity, gender, etc.

Data collection methods: measuring tests, questionnaires

Example: the effect of students anxiety in an achievement testing situation on their examination performance.

Correlational Design

Research that attempts to determine the extent and the direction of the relationship between two or more variables.

Unlike experimental and ex posto facto designs that compares variables between groups, correlational research assesses the relationships among two or more variables in a single group.

Correlation indicates whether the relationship between variables is positive or negative and the strength of this relationship.

Data collection methods: measuring tests, questionnaires, existing data

Value of houses Value of vehicles

Survey Design

Survey research, describes the distributions of variables in a specified group

In survey research, investigators ask questions about peoples beliefs, opinions, characteristics, and behavior

Types of surveys: Census (the whole population is surveyed)

Census of tangibles (desks in school); census of intangibles (ICT literacy level)

Sample survey (a representative small group is selected from the total population)

Longitudinal surveys (panel studies, trend studies, and cohort research)

Cross-sectional surveys (study a cross section [sample] of a population at a single point in time)

Data collection methods: questionnaires, checklists, observation

Types of Longitudinal Surveys

Panel studies In panel studies, the same subjects are surveyed several times over an extended period of time Example: a study investigating development of vocabulary in learners will select an exact same sample to be followed

through successive grade levels and tested each year to assess how their vocabulary develops (e.g. learners 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 & 10 in Grade 1A; then the same learners in Grade 2A; then again in Grade 3A; then finally when in 4A)

Trend studies Here, different individuals randomly drawn from the same general population to be surveyed at intervals over a period

of time. This general population changes in membership over time. Example: each year, a sample is randomly drawn from general population of learners in each grade to study the

development of their vocabulary (e.g. a random sample of 30 learners each year from grades 1A, 2A, 3A and 4A)

Cohort studies A specific population is followed over a length of time with different random samples studied at various points A cohort study samples a specific population whose members do not change over the duration of the survey Example: random sample selected from grade 1A class of 2015 at various points in time (e.g. 2A in 2016; 3A in 2017)

Qualitative Research Designs

Qualitative Research Designs

Basic qualitative studies

Case studies

Content/ document analysis

Ethnography/ Ethnographic studies

Grounded theory studies

Historical studies

Narrative research

Phenomenological research

Phenomenographical research

Basic Qualitative Studies

They are interpretive studies that describe and attempt to interpret experience

Simplistic and not restricted to a particular phenomenon

Use a variety of data collection techniques: interviews, observations, review documents

Draw from diverse theoretical orientations

Data analysis: categorization, development of patterns or themes, coding and looking for recurring themes

Interpreted through disciplinary lens

Data collection methods: Interviews, observations, focus groups, document review

Case Studies

Case study focuses on a single unit to produce an in-depth description that is rich and holistic

unit can be an individual, a group, a site, a class, a policy, a program, a process, an institution, or a community

Theyre particularistic, descriptive and heuristic

Asks: What are the characteristics of this particular entity, phenomenon, person, or setting?

Seeks to understand the whole case in the totality of the environment

Data collection methods: Interviews, observations, focus groups, document review

Types of Case Studies

Intrinsic case study

Conducted to understand a particular case that may be unusual, unique, or different in some way.

It does not necessarily represent other cases or a broader trait or problem

Instrumental case study

Selected because it represents an issue under investigation and the researcher believes this particular case can help provide insights or help to understand that issue

Multiple/ collective case study

Uses several cases selected to further understand and investigate a phenomenon, population, or general condition

Studying multiple units can provide better illumination

Content/document Analysis

A research method applied to written or visual materials for the purpose of identifying specified characteristics of the material

Examples: textbooks, newspapers, web pages, speeches, television programs, advertisements, musical compositions

Purpose is to:

Identify bias, prejudice, or propaganda in textbooks

Analyze types of errors in students writings

Describe prevailing practices

Discover the level of difficulty of material in textbooks or other publications

Discover the relative importance of, or interest in, certain topics

Data collection methods: document, audio-visual review

Steps in Content Analysis

1. Specifying the phenomenon to be investigated

2. Selecting the media from which the observations are to be made

3. Formulating exhaustive and mutually exclusive coding categories

4. Deciding on the sampling plan to be used in order to obtain a representative sample of the documents

5. Training the coders so that they can consistently apply the coding scheme

6. Analyzing the data, which may involve more descriptive accounts

Ethnography

Ethnography is the in-depth study of naturally occurring behavior within a culture or entire social group

Seeks to understand the relationship between culture (shared beliefs, values, concepts, practices, and attitudes) and behavior of a specific group of people

Typically describe, analyze, and interpret culture over time using observations and field work as the primary data collecting strategies

The final product is a cultural portrait that incorporates the views of participants

Data collection methods: Interviews, participant observations, field notes

Grounded Theory

It seeks to inductively build a theory about a practice or phenomenon using interviews and observation as the primary data collection tools

It focuses on gathering data about peoples experiences in a particular context and then inductively building a theory from the bottom up.

The theory is grounded in the data to a particular context, situation, or experience.

It moves beyond description to generate or discover a theory that emerges from the data and that provides an explanation of a process, action, or interaction.

Data collection methods: Interviews, observations, focus groups

Steps in Grounded Theory

1. Identify an event, experience, phenomenon, topic

2. Draft research questions

3. Select sample (individuals who experienced the phenomenon

4. Collect data through interviews and observations

5. Analyse the data to inform future interviews

6. Generate concepts/ theory

7. Focus on different experiences to confirm/ refute a theory

8. Formulate hypotheses

9. Review literature and write a report

Grounded Theory Research

Process

Topic & open research

questions

Identify participants Purposive sampling

Collect data(interview/

observation)

Theoretical sampling/

modify questions

Saturated data:

categories, themes

Formulate substantive

theory/ hypothesis

Review literature;

report findings

Analyse data & develop

codes

Historical Studies Historical studies seek to establish facts and arrive at conclusions concerning the past

The historian systematically locates, evaluates, and interprets evidence from which people can learn about the past

It systematically locates, evaluates, and interprets evidence from which people can learn about the past

Conclusions drawn increase knowledge of how and why past events occurred and the process by which the past became the present

Goal is increased understanding of the present and a more rational basis for making choices

Data collection methods: Interviews, document review

Sources of Historical Data Primary sources: information directly from observers

Original documents (correspondence, diaries, reports, etc.)

Relics, remains, or artefacts

Minutes of meetings

Unedited video tape records

Secondary sources: when the mind of a non-observer comes between the event and the user of the record History books

Articles in encyclopedias, and

Reviews of research

Reports from primary sources

Narrative Research

Narrative research focuses on stories (spoken or written) told by individuals about their lives.

The researcher seeks to understand the lived experience of an individual or small group

The researcher emphasizes sequence and chronology and a collaborative re-storyingprocess

Primary sources of data: direct participant recollection through interviews

Secondary sources of data: documents produced by the participant diaries, journals, letters, blogs, created artifacts, e-mail exchanges, memos, photographs, memory boxes, audio recordings

Data collection methods: Interviews, written accounts, existing recordings, publications

Phenomenological Research

Designed to describe and interpret an experience by determining the meaning of the experience as perceived by the people who have participated in it

Asks: What is the experience of an activity or concept from the perspective of particular participants?

It aims to determine the essence (meaning) of the experience as perceived by the participants.

Example: a study of the integration of special needs children into a regular classroom would focus on asking what this experience means to the parties involved: the special needs children, other students, and the teacher.

Key questions involve exploring what has been experienced in terms of the phenomenon and what contexts affected or influenced those experiences.

Data collection methods: Interviews, observations

Reference

Ary, D., Jacobs, L. C., Razavieh, A., & Sorensen, C. (2010). Introduction to research in education (8th ed.). Canada: Cengage Learning.

Businessdictionary.com. (2015). Research design. Retrieved from: http://www.businessdictionary.com/definition/research-design.html#ixzz3Wbh6JwOG