CHAPTER THREE: DESIGN AND METHODOLOGY
This chapter comprises three parts: The purpose of the study and research design, the methodology used and the statistical data analysis instruments and procedures. Many people consider this to be the most challenging section to write, but don’t worry! This article will teach you everything you need to know about writing a quality design and methodology chapter.
Chapter Three of your dissertation or research is a significant part of your research project writing. In this chapter, you explain the different methods used in the research project, including the research design, study design in research, area of study, population of the study, etc. You also include the reasons you chose a particular analysis method and how you plan to analyze your data.
A research design helps structure the research and show how all the major parts of the research project work to address the research problems or questions in the study.
A methodology is the collection of the most effective methods and approach to meeting your research objectives. It is the rationale for the research approach and the lens through which analysis occurs. The methodology impacts which methods you select for your research endeavor to generate compelling data. Your methodology should aim to provide you with the information to answer your thesis problem or question.
The purpose of the design and methodology chapter is to give an experienced researcher enough information to replicate your study.
Types of Research
Depending on the type of research you’re carrying out in your thesis or dissertation, the methodology used will vary. There are generally two types of research in this respect:
Quantitative Research
This type of research is based generally on the scientific method. It uses deductive reasoning to form a hypothesis, collect data for investigation, and analyze the data gotten to make conclusions and prove the hypothesis. It is usually involves numbers, tables and graphs.
The data collection methods for quantitative research include surveys in which a list of closed or multiple-choice questions is distributed to your sample, experiments where you control and manipulate variables, and observations of subjects in a natural environment where variables can’t be controlled.
Qualitative Research
This type of research is more inductive in its reasoning. It often involves words or languages, as compared to numbers by quantitative research. It is used to grasp concepts, thoughts or experiences. Qualitative research enables you to gather in-depth insights on topics.
Common data collection methods for qualitative research include interviews in which you ask open-ended questions to respondents. Others include focus groups for gathering opinions useful for further reading, ethnography where you closely observe culture and behaviour in a community, and literature review.
How to Structure Your Research Design and Methodology
The general structure of your design and methodology will differ based on the type of research as outlined above.
Quantitative Research
Introduction – In this preamble section, you are to restate the problem statement, the purpose of your study, the research questions and the theoretical framework. This allows your future reader to be up to speed on your research as they start the chapter.
Research Design – In this section, you outline the research design, for example, a survey research design, and state why you chose the design. Show how the method you chose helped accomplish the goals of your research. Discuss in detail the steps taken when using the design.
Participants, Subjects or Target Population of Study – Here, you state the criteria you chose the participants or population for your study. Outline the procedures you used to select the sample. Include the justification for the sampling method. Provide enough information on the qualities of the subjects, why you chose them, their number and the setting.
Instruments – State the instruments you used to collect your data. If you created the instruments, provide information on the process used. If you used an existing instrument, describe the background of the instrument and the measures used to validate it. The instruments could be a scale, interviews, or questionnaires.
Procedures This section is where you itemize your appendices and demonstrate the methods and steps you used for performing the study. You should state the specific techniques and procedures utilized when analyzing your data.
Data Analysis – You discuss the statistical tools and methods applied to analyze the information and measures used in the research.
Limitations – Include the limitations of your study, the constraints on your design and methodology in this section. It helps strengthen your study by identifying any problems before others find them and shows you’ve considered your research weakness thoroughly and have a good grasp of your topic.
Summary – Here, you summarise the key points and the research design and prepare your reader for the next chapter.
Quantitative Research
Research Strategy, Method, and Approach –This section tells the reader the methods chosen, why you chose the methods, and how you plan to analyze your data. A common design method for qualitative research is the use of surveys. You can survey a particular location or behaviour by using instruments such as structured questionnaire, interviews or experiments. Describe your investigation approach and cite the relevant literature.
Research Strategy, Method, and Approach –This section tells the reader the methods chosen, why you chose the methods, and how you plan to analyze your data. A common design method for qualitative research is the use of surveys. You can survey a particular location or behaviour by using instruments such as structured questionnaire, interviews or experiments. Describe your investigation approach and cite the relevant literature.
Subject Sample – Explain the strategies used when selecting your participants and describe the systems you used for collecting and storing the information gathered in your surveys.
Study Setting – Describe the environment where you collected the data and your role in gathering data.
Data Collection Methods – Here, you outline the methods you used to gather the data. This could be in the form of interviews, role-playing, games, observations, focus group discussions, ethnography or literature reviews.
Questionnaires – Include a sample questionnaire you utilized in your research. All the questions should be open-ended and well set to determine the reliability of the instrument. Outline the measures taken to determine the validity of the questionnaire.
Data Analysis – In this section, you analyze the data gotten from the surveys and questionnaires. The Likert scale can be used to analyze each of the questionnaire items.
Ethical Considerations – Here, you state the procedures for the protection of the participants of your research. This is important, especially about planning, conducting and evaluating research. Your study should present minimal risk (physical or psychological) to your participants.
Summary – As with quantitative research, you should summarize the key points of your research and lead the reader to the next chapter. State the purpose of your design and how all the methods stated above helped to achieve that purpose.
In conclusion, this chapter can be challenging to write, but with the tools outlined above, you should have a solid foundation for tackling it effectively.
