WHAT JUSTIFICATION NEEDED FOR A RESEARCH METHOD CHOICE?

Why people want to do research? Different people may have different reasons. Some may be
because they want to earn for their living, want to solve problems, learn new things, discover
new knowledge, observe new phenomenon or understand the world in a new profound way.
Research can be a powerful tool to search for the truth and providing evidence. Research is a
critical process for asking and attempting to answer questions about the world (Dane, 2010). By
doing research, research questions can be answered systematically so that research findings
are relevant and contribute to the better world.

Politicians, policy makers, managers and those who are in position in making decision would
like to have researched information regarding certain situations. If the research findings want to
be trusted, referred and translated into practice, its need to be examined carefully and
investigate thoroughly. The evidences gathered should be done in a right way, form and scope.
However, how the researchers determine which way to do the research? How can the
researchers identify which is the best method to address it? Why one particular method is more
appropriate to use than the other? How to ensure the method chosen is suitable for the
sampling?

When choosing which method to use, researchers must first identify what are their research
problems. Defining the research problems will help a lot if it was done properly from the very
beginning. Researchers must know what they want to study deciding on the general subjects
area initially and then move to a specific one before formulating the research problems (Kothari,
2004). Method chosen to be used must fit the question posed. The link between the method and
the research problems must be link, can be clearly explained and justified. The researchers
must understand their research problems thoroughly and this can be done so by examine all
available literature from previous studies or by consulting colleagues and expertise in the area.
By doing this, researchers can plan the types of data they want to collect, what kind of data is
relevant, which sample of population will be engaged, what is the best techniques, what cost or
resources will involve and available, how much time will be permitted and what skills needed to
analyze the data.

Once the research problems have been identified, researchers must now identify their research
objectives. Research objectives will define what researchers expect to find at the end of the
study. When the researchers aware what they want to solve, it will help them to shape the
research thus design their research.
Researchers must choose which research design is the best to help them to meet and achieve
their research objectives. The research design provides a framework for the collection and
analysis of data and subsequently indicates which research methods are appropriate (Walliman,
2011). Other than that, according to Kothari (2004) "the most desirable approach in regard to
the selection of the method depends on the nature of the particular problem and on the time and
resources (money and personnel) available along with desired degree of accuracy. But, over
and above all this, much depends upon the ability and experience of the researcher." Which
method selected will also affect how the end result will be presented. Some may prefer
numerical data with statistical description that can be quantified and presented in graphs, charts
and figures. Some may prefer to provide their findings narratively, using non-numerical data with
detailed description of a topic. If the first is the choice, the researcher may choose quantitative
method while the latter qualitative method will be more suitable.

Quantitative is a more straightforward method and commonly used in social sciences such as
economics, sociology, psychology and political science. It is also widely used in science and
engineering research. If the researchers want to do objective measurement and need data that
provides numerical using inferential statistic, quantitative method is more suitable. Researchers
must be able to gather data through structured research instruments like polls, surveys and
questionnaires. It is also used for experimental research where control groups and experiment
group can be administered differently to study the causal and effect relationship. It strengths are
in the analysis and explanation of causal dependencies in social phenomenon.

Quantitative is deductive, begins from a theory and established to test a theory using
hypothesis. It is under positivism paradigm that belief reality can be measured objectively. It is
concerned to look at relationship between variables under controlled situation and what is the
cause and effect of social phenomenon. Quantitative method is also good to be use when
researchers need to generalize results from a larger population sample. It is possible to gather
data from a lot of people at once and cost effective. The results can be easily and quickly
analyzed using statistical package and can be presented systematically.
Quantitative method will help respondents to feel more comfortable since it can be administered
anonymously. This is suitable if the phenomenon that researchers wish to study is case
sensitive and respondents might refuse to talk openly.

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However, quantitative methods have several disadvantages. It might restrict some answers from
the respondents if it was structured using scales or was given objective style of answers. Some
important findings might be missing and failed to be captured if researchers fail to identify the
important questions to be asked or omit the possible answers. It is only applicable in
phenomena that can be quantified and not in complex reality for example in sensitive topics like
child abuse or domestic violence. It is also difficult to apply in phenomena that are dynamic.
Quantitative method helps to look on the surface in a research, but if researchers want to study
in a longer process, it would become a longitudinal study. It also inadequate to study changes
involve in emotions, feelings and behavior.

On the contrary, qualitative is exploratory research and commonly used in the fields such as
religion, education and social sciences. It is also increasingly used in medical and science field.
Qualitative method has its own strengths. It helps researchers to study things in their natural
setting. The results gathered from qualitative study can be used to formulate theory. A
qualitative approach emphasizes the qualities of entities, processes and meanings that are not
experimentally examined or measured in terms of quantity, amount, intensity or frequency
(Denzin and Lincoln 2000). It is used in study of children behavior, focus group discussion,
interviews and participant observation. Qualitative method is more useful if researchers want to
explore in depth and give detail description and interpretation of particular case. Antipositivism
employed qualitative method and emphasize interpretive means in studying social
phenomenon. It is more suitable to be chosen if the researchers want to describe a
phenomenon naturally without any interference or manipulation. It is also can employed if the
researchers want to study in depth about a certain behavior.

The findings from qualitative research help us to understand a phenomenon holistically and
inductively. It promotes new ideas, provides insight into the problem and helps to develop a new
theory or framework. It gives a more comprehensive understanding of any issue at hand.
Qualitative method is suitable if the research involves reviewing texts, manuscripts, interviews,
observations, participations and discussions. Researchers will interact with subjects and have a
close distant to the subjects studied. The sample size used usually smaller and harder to
analyze compared to quantitative study. It is more subjective and provides more in depth
information and description from those involved. The underlying reasons and hidden factors can
be uncovered compared to quantitative method where there is a risk if the researcher failed to
recognize and identify them.

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There are several qualitative research designs including case study, ethnography,
phenomenological study and grounded theory. Case study involves case centered approach in
single individual, group, family, community and society. Ethnography is known as participant
observation in naturalistic setting. Among the famous ethnography researcher is Christiaan
Snouck Hurgronje or Abdul Ghafar (1857-1936), a controversial Dutch scientist that wrote a
book "Mekka in the Latter Part of 19th Century". He was also said had written more than 1,400
papers on the situation in Aceh and about the position of Islam in Dutch East Indies. The
outcome of his research was called "the secret report" which reports on the religion-political
conditions in Aceh (Carvalho, 2010). He embraced the religion and the culture and successfully,
gave people impression that he was one of them.

Other qualitative research design is phenomenological study which is to describe a lived

experience. This can be achieved through interviews, self reports and aesthetic expressions.
Grounded theory is also one of qualitative study and sometimes is also used in quantitative
study. It involves the generation of innovative theory derived from data collected from real-life
situations that is relevant to the research problems. Below is a personal reflection of the
researchers in a study that used grounded theory :
"Grounded theory allowed us to enter the field to discover the phenomena of greatest
importance to the participants. We had been floundering around for sometimes, unable
to conceive appropriate research questions which would allow the execution of more
conventional research. Grounded theory provided the opportunity to get on with the
study" (Jones & Alony, 2011).

Qualitative methods also have some disadvantages that researchers need to consider before
deciding to do one. It is more costly and time consuming compared to quantitative methods in
certain things. It involves non numerical data means that the potential data sources can come
from settings, environments, people, organizations and events. Researchers need to identify
their parameters such as the location, the subjects to be observed and the process they want to
study. Researchers need to recognize and carry out the best way to record their study,
interviews or observations so that they do not have to repeat the process and help them to
collect data sufficiently. Researchers must be aware that sometimes the subjects may not
behave as usual because they know that they are being observed.

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Both quantitative and qualitative methods have their own strengths and weaknesses.
Researchers must be able to identify which method is better to be used for their research
needs. Sometimes, researchers have their own preference on certain method compared to the
other. However, they must aware that certain data can also be gathered using other research
methods available. For example research studying about social phenomenon examining
people's feeling, belief or preference. It might sound very subjective and unable to be measured
quantitatively. However, by using questionnaires, respondents would be able to rate their
feeling, belief or preference using scales such as Likert scales. Respondents can express
themselves such as 1 strongly disagree, 2 slightly disagree, 3 neutral, 4 slightly agree and 5
strongly agree. Respondents can also give ratings from one to ten how strongly they feel or
agree about something. This helps the researchers to translate a phenomenon into a quantified
data. Researchers, therefore, should take proper consideration in analyzing and deciding which
method to be use and which will give better results to obtain data as desired.

Since both methods have their limitations, some researchers choose to use both methods
together in a research. This is called mixed method. Mixed method can be defined as:
the collection or analysis of both quantitative and qualitative data in a single study in
which the data are collected concurrently or sequentially, are given a priority, and involve
the integration of the data at one or more stages in the process of research (Hanson,
Creswell, Clark, Petska, & Creswell, 2005).
Mixed method can be employed when a research needs both methods' uniqueness and
strengths to describe a more complete and comprehensive understanding. It is also help to
leverage either disadvantages or weaknesses that each approach has. For complex, uncertain
and multifaceted social phenomena, mixed method is more suitable (Bhattacherjee, 2012). In
health research community where quantitative methods are used dominantly, is reported to be
more receptive of qualitative methods in the last two decades. Growing interest in combining
both methods can be seen increasingly used in health services research. In a research
undertaken in health services in England, it was found that studies classified as mixed methods
raised from 17% in the pre 1995 to 30% in the year 2002-2004 (OCathain, Murphy, & Nicholl,
2007). Both methods could help to explain certain situations in a clearer picture, looking into
different perspectives and may provide solutions to a certain phenomenon more desirably.

In a study titled The Strengths and Weaknesses of Research Methodology: Comparison and
Complimentary between Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches, the researcher reviewed

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existing secondary data from recent studies and concluded that there is no best approach
between both methodologies, and defined cases have proven that complementary between
both qualitative and quantitative research methodologies could provide better solutions (Choy,
2014). However, the researchers must be able to present the logics in employing both methods
and must be prepared mentally and physically since the research will involve two different
phases.

In conclusion, in choosing which method to be used, there are several factors to be considered
carefully by the researcher. It is not an easy task to decide which method should be employed.
Extensive literature review will help the researcher to familiarize with the different methods that
feasible in the field. Reviewing what other researchers have done in previous study might give
more insights on how certain phenomenon is better studied. It is also a good move to discuss
with colleagues or people that have experience in the same field to gain more ideas and help to
decide which method is better.

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REFERENCES

Bhattacherjee, A. (2012). Social Science Research: Principles, Methods, and Practices (Second
Edi). Creative Commons Attribution - NonCommercial - ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

Carvalho, C. (2010). Christiaan Snouck Hurgronje: biography and perception. Universiteit van
Amsterdam. Retrieved from http://dare.uva.nl/cgi/arno/show.cgi?fid=168795

Choy, L. T. (2014). The Strengths and Weaknesses of Research Methodology: Comparison and
Complimentary between Qualitative and Quantitative Approaches. Journal Of Humanities
And Social Science, 19(4), 99104. http://doi.org/10.9790/0837-194399104

Dane, F. C. (2010). Evaluating Research: Methodology for People Who Need to Read
Research. Sage Publications, Inc. Retrieved from https://books.google.com/books?
id=kxYxzrzgGwAC&pgis=1

Denzin, Norman K., & Lincoln, Yvonna S. (2000). Introduction: The discipline and practice of
qualitative research. In Norman K. Denzin & Yvonna S. Lincoln (Eds.), Handbook of
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(2005). The Use of Qualitative Content Analysis in Case Study Research [89 paragraphs].
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http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs0601211.

Hanson, W. E., Creswell, J. W., Clark, V. L. P., Petska, K. S., & Creswell, J. D. (2005). Mixed
methods research designs in counseling psychology. Journal of Counseling Psychology,
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Jones, M., & Alony, I. (2011). Guiding the use of grounded theory in doctoral studies - An
example from the australian film industry. International Journal of Doctoral Studies, 6, 95
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Kothari, C. R. (2004). Research Methodology: Methods and Techniques. New Age International
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OCathain, A., Murphy, E., & Nicholl, J. (2007). Why, and how, mixed methods research is
undertaken in health services research in England: a mixed methods study. BMC Health

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 Services Research, 7(1), 85. http://doi.org/10.1186/1472-6963-7-85

Walliman, N. (2011). Research Methods: The Basic. London and New York: Routledge.
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