1. RESEARCH: A WAY OF THINKING
Research is not only a set of skills, but also a way of thinking. It is an integral part of good
professional practice in many professions and has been responsible for greatly influencing the
practice procedures and outcomes in these professions.
Research and practice are two sides of the same coin that should and cannot be separated. The
greater the integration between research and practice in profession, the greater the progression in
its theoretical and practice knowledge base.
Evidence-based practice (EBS) has a medical origin, but it is now being promoted as an acceptable
and scientific method for policy formulation and practice assessment. EBS is the delivery of services.
The concept of EBS encourages professionals and other decision-makers to use evidence regarding
the effectiveness of an intervention in conjunction with the characteristics and circumstances of a
client and their own professional judgement to determine the appropriateness of an intervention
when providing a service to a client. You must be accountable to your clients as well as your
profession. As a professional you should be able to demonstrate the effectiveness of the services
you provide.
Applications of research in practice development and policy formulation
Very little research in the field is ‘pure’ in nature, that is, very few people do research in research
methodology per se. The use of research skills is mostly applied (often used in the development of
practice skills and procedures, and the formulation of practice policies).
The four different perspectives of the application of research:
1. The service provider;
2. The service administrator, manager and/or planner;
3. The service consumer; and
4. The professional.
Research has multiple meanings and its definition varies from discipline to discipline and expert to
expert. Research means using one of the methods to find answers to your questions. However,
when you say that you are undertaking a research study to find answers to your question, you are
implying that the process being applied:
1. Is being undertaken within a framework of a set of philosophies;
2. Uses procedures, methods and techniques that have been tested for their validity and
reliability;
3. Is designed to be unbiased and objective.
Your philosophical orientation may stem from one of the several paradigms and approaches in your
research, and the academic discipline in which you have been trained.
The concept of validity can be applied to any aspect of the research process. It ensures that correct
procedures have been applied to find answers to the questions. Reliability refers to the quality of a
measurement procedure that provides repeatability and accuracy.
Unbiased and objective means that you have taken each step in an unbiased manner and drawn
each conclusion to the best of your ability and without using your own opinion.
Subjectivity is an integral part of your way of thinking that is ‘conditioned’ by your educational
background, academic discipline, philosophy, experience and skills. Bias, on the other hand, is a
deliberate attempt to either conceal or highlight something because of your vested interest.
,When you succeed to fulfil the three criteria mentioned above, it’s enables to be called ‘research’.
However, the degree to which these criteria are expected to be fulfilled varies from discipline to
discipline.
Physical sciences: a research is expected to be strictly controlled at each step.
Social sciences: control cannot be enforced.
Despite these differences among disciplines, their broad approach to enquiry is quite similar.
Not all research studies are based upon complex and technical methodologies and have to use
statistics and computers.
The difference between research and non-research activity is the way we find answers to our
research questions. For a process to be called a research, it is important that it meets certain
requirements and possesses certain characteristics.
The research process: its characteristics and requirements
• Controlled
• Rigorous
• Systematic
• Valid and verifiable
• Empirical
• Critical
The mode of enquiry perspective classifies the research types on the basis of different philosophies
that guide them, while the application and objectives perspective look at the research classification
from the uses and purposes points of view.
The three perspectives that form the basis of this classification:
1. Applications of the findings of the research study;
2. Objectives of the study;
3. Mode of enquiry used in conducting the study.
The classification of the types of research on the basis of these perspectives is not mutually
exclusive. For example, a research project may be classified as pure or applied research (application
perspective), as descriptive, correlational, explanatory or exploratory (objective/purposes
perspective) and as qualitative, quantitative or mixed methods (enquiry mode method perspective).
Application perspective
The application perspective has two broad categories: pure research and applied research.
Pure research involves developing and testing theories and hypotheses that are challenging to the
researcher but may or may not have practical application at the present time or in the future. Thus
work often involves the testing of hypotheses containing very abstract and specialized concepts. The
knowledge produced through pure research is sought in order to add to the existing body of
knowledge of research methods.
Pure research is also concerned with the development, examination, verification and refinement of
research methods, procedures, techniques and tools that form the body of research methodology.
Examples of pure research: developing an instrument.
Most research is applied: the research techniques, procedures and methods that form the body of
research methodology are applied to the collection of information about various aspects of a
,situation, issue, problem or phenomenon so that the information gathered can be used in other
ways.
Objectives perspective
A research from this perspective can be classified as descriptive, correlational, explanatory or
exploratory.
Descriptive study attempts to describe systematically, or provides information, or describes
attitudes towards an issue. The main purpose of such studies is to describe what is prevalent with
respect to the issue or problem under study.
Correlational study discovers or establishes the existence of a relationship, association or
interdependence between two or more aspects of a situation or phenomenon. For instance: what is
the relationship between fertility and mortality?
Explanatory research attempts to clarify why and how there is a relationship between two aspects
of a situation or phenomenon. For example, it attempts to explain why stressful living results in
heart attacks.
Exploratory research is undertaken with the objective either of exploring an area where little is
known or of investigating the possibilities is undertaking a particular research studies. A good study
combines all three objectives. When the purpose of a study is to determine the feasibility, it is also
called feasibility study or pilot study. It is usually carried out when a researcher wants to explore
areas about which s/he has little or no knowledge. A small-scale study is undertaken to decide if it’s
worth carrying out a detailed investigation. On the basis of the assessment made during the
exploratory study, a full study may eventuate. Exploratory research studies are also conducted to
develop, refine and /or test measurement tools and procedures.
Most of enquiry perspective
There are three approaches that are used in social research to find the answers to your research
questions. These are:
• The quantitative or structured approach;
• The qualitative or unstructured approach; and
• The mixed methods approach.
The difference between the three methods is the extent of flexibility permitted to you as a
researcher in the research process. The quantitative approach is predetermined. The qualitative
approach allows flexibility. Some aspects of the mixed methods approach may have flexibility and
others may completely lack it, depending upon the paradigm to which they belong.
Quantitative approach follows a rigid, structured, and predetermined set of procedures to explore;
aims to quantify the extent of variation in a phenomenon; emphasizes the measurement of variables
and the objectivity of the process; believes in substantiation on the basis of a large sample size; gives
importance to the validity and reliability of findings; and communicates findings in an analytical and
aggregate manner, drawing conclusions and interferences that can be generalized.
Qualitative approach is embedded in the philosophy of empiricism; follows an open, flexible and
unstructured approach to enquiry; aims to explore diversity rather than to quantify; emphasizes the
description and narration of feelings, perceptions and experiences rather their measurement; and
communicates findings in a descriptive and narrative rather than analytical manner, placing no or
less emphasis on generalization.
,Mixed method approach uses the strengths of both the approaches mentioned above. This
approach to social research combines two or more methods to collect and analyze data pertaining to
the research problem. It could be a combination of quantitative and qualitative or belong to only
one paradigm. Quantitative approach is to determine the extent of the problem, whereas the
qualitative approach is used to explore its nature.
The choice of quantitative, qualitative and mixed methods approaches should depend on:
• The aim of your enquiry – exploration, confirmation or quantification;
• The use of the findings – policy formulation or process understanding.
A study is qualified as qualitative if the purpose is to describe, that is, if the information is gathered
through the use of variables measured on nominal or ordinal scales; and if the analysis is done to
establish the variation without quantifying it.
A study is qualified as quantitative if information is gathered using predominantly quantitative
variables; and if the analysis is geared to ascertaining the magnitude of the variation.
The main function of statistics is to act as a test to confirm or contradict the conclusions that you
have drawn on the basis of your understanding of analyzed data. It helps to quantify the magnitude
of an association or relationship, provide an indication of the confidence you can place in your
findings and help you to isolate the effect of different variables.
It is important that you do not lock yourself into becoming either solely a quantitative/qualitative
researcher. The research problem itself should determine whether the study is carried out using
quantitative or qualitative methodologies. (Kumar 2014: 18)
The mixed multiple methods approach
The core of this approach is the use of multiple methods belonging to both paradigms, or simply of
more than one method from one paradigm. Most major areas of research in social and behavioral
sciences now use multiple methods as a matter of course. They use more than two methods, either
from one or both the paradigms, to enhance accuracy of the findings.
Defining the approach
The mixed methods approach is rather a philosophy, to social enquiry that uses two or more
methods, processes and philosophies. It believes that different paradigms and methods have
different strengths, and therefore their combined strength would result in improving the depth and
accuracy of the findings. (see page 21, Figure 1.3)
Mixed methods approach is used for situations where different elements of the research process
are combined from both the quantitative and qualitative approaches. The multiple methods
approach is used when the methods selected are from one paradigm only.
A study will be classified as mixed/multiple methods approach
• Collecting data
• Collecting the required information from different groups of people (different samples)
• Using different ways of data analysis and information dissemination.
Rationale underpinning the approach
The rationale underpinning the mixed/multiple methods approach is based upon two beliefs:
1. The ability of the methods of a paradigm to provide accurate answers to all your research
questions in all situations
, 2. Relates to the belief that the use of more than one method in most situations will provide a
better and more complete picture of a situation or phenomenon than a single method
alone.
When to use the multiple/mixed methods approach
• When you want to explore from both perspectives
• When accurate and complete information from once source is difficult to obtain
• A must for good quality research
• When you need to make generalizations
• When you need to find an explanation for your findings
• When you want to develop a good data collection instrument and ascertain the validity of
the questions.
• When you undertake studies with multiple objectives
Ways of mixing methods
It depends on what is being mixed, when in the research process, at what stage of the research
process mixing is taking place, in what order mixing occurs, and to what extent.
In terms of what:
• Mix methods belonging to both paradigms either for the whole or a part of the research
process.
• Mix methods belonging to only one paradigm either for the whole part of the process.
In terms of when:
• Use two or more methods one after the other (sequentially) either for the whole research
process or a part of it. (Sequential studies)
• Use two or more methods currently either for the whole or part of the process. (Parallel or
simultaneous studies)
In terms of stage:
• Mix them for the whole of the research process.
• Mix them for only one or some operational steps.
In term of order:
• Use qualitative methods followed by quantitative.
• Use quantitative methods followed by qualitative.
• Use qualitative methods followed by quantitative followed again by qualitative.
In term of extent:
• Use both methodologies equally (equivalent status studies)
• Use one methodology predominantly (dominant/less dominant studies).
Advantages Disadvantages
• Enhancement of research possibilities • More data means more work and
resources
• Better for more complex situations • Requires additional and diverse skills
• Enrichment of data • Contacting two study populations
• Collecting additional research evidence • Resolving disagreements in data
