Research Design

UNIT II

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 Decisions regarding what, where, when,
how much

A research design
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.

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 Research Design
A research design is:
a framework for the research plan of action.

a master plan that specifies the methods

and procedures for collecting and
analyzing the needed information

a strategy for how the data will be

collected.

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 The designing decisions happen to be in respect
of:
(i) What is the study about?
(ii) Why is the study being made?
(iii) Where will the study be carried out?
(iv) What type of data is required?
(v) Where can the required data be found?
(vi) What periods of time will the study include?
(vii) What will be the sample design?
(viii) What techniques of data collection will be used?
(ix) How will the data be analyzed?
(x) In what style will the report be prepared?
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 Split the overall research design into the following parts:
(a) sampling design
the method of selecting items to be observed;
(b) observational design
the conditions under which the observations are to be
made;
(c) statistical design
the question of how many items are to be observed and
how the information and data gathered are to be
analysed;
(d) operational design
the techniques by which the procedures specified in the
sampling, statistical and observational designs can be
carried out.
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 The important features of a research
design
(i) a plan
specifies the sources & types of information
relevant to the research problem
(ii) a strategy
which approach will be used for gathering and
analyzing the data.
(iii) the time and cost budgets
most studies are done under these two constraints

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 Research design must, at least, contain

(a) a clear statement of the research
problem;
(b) procedures and techniques to be
used for gathering information;
(c) the population to be studied;
(d) methods to be used in processing
and analyzing data
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 Features of a good research
design
A research design appropriate for a particular research
problem, usually involves the following features.
The mean of obtaining information.
The availability and skills of the researcher and his staff,
if any.
The objective of the problem to be studied.
The nature of the problem to be studied .
The availability of time and money for the research work.

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 The various concepts relating to designs
Dependent and independent variables
A concept which can take on different
quantitative values (a variable)
Qualitative phenomena (or the attributes) are
also quantified
If one variable depends upon or is a
consequence of the other variable --- a
dependent variable,
the variable that is antecedent to the dependent
variable --- an independent variable.

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 Extraneous variable:
Independent variables that are not related to the purpose of the study, but
may affect the dependent variable
the researcher wants to test the hypothesis: a relationship between
childrens gains in social studies achievement and their self-concepts
self-concept is an independent variable, social studies achievement
is a dependent variable.
Intelligence may as well affect the social studies achievement, but
since it is not related to the purpose of the study undertaken by the
researcher, it will be termed as an extraneous variable.
Whatever effect is noticed on dependent variable as a result of extraneous
variable(s) is technically described as an experimental error.
EXAMPLE
Suppose a researcher want to test the hypothesis that there is a
relationship between children gains in social studies achievement and their
self concept.
In this case self-concept =independent variable
Social studies achievement =dependent variable
Intelligence may as well affect on the social achievement.
But it is not related to the study undertaken by the researcher so it is a Extraneous
variable
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 Control
One important characteristic of a good research design is to minimize the
influence or effect of extraneous variable(s).
Casual relationships
To understand which variables are the cause(independent variables)and which
variables are the effect(dependent variables) of a phenomenon.
To determine the nature of the relationship between the casual variables and the
effect to be predicted.
It requires the planned and structured design
Concomitant Variable
It is not uncommon in designing research for an investigator to collect an array of
variables representing characteristics on each observational unit. Some of these
variables are central to the investigation, whereas others reflect preexisting
differences in observational units and are not of interest per se. The latter are called
concomitant variables , also referred to as covariates. Frequently in practice, these
incidental variables represent undesired sources of variation influencing the
dependent variable and are extraneous to the effects of manipulated (independent)
variables, which are of primary interest. For designed experiments in which
observational units are randomized to treatment conditions, failure to account for
concomitant variables can exert a systematic influence (or bias) on the different
treatment conditions. Alternatively, concomitant variables can increase the error
variance, thereby reducing the likelihood of detecting real differences among the
groups.
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 Experimental and control groups
An experimental hypothesis-testing research when
a group is exposed to usual conditions, it is termed
a control group, but when the group is exposed to
some novel or special condition, it is termed an
experimental group.
Treatments
The two treatments are the usual studies
programme and the special studies programme
For example, if we want to determine through an
experiment the comparative impact of three varieties of
fertilizers on the yield of wheat, in that case the three
varieties of fertilizers will be treated as three treatments.

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 DIFFERENT
RESEARCH
DESIGNS
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 Exploratory Research
Exploratory research is a type of research conducted for a problem that
has not been clearly defined. Exploratory research helps determine the
best research design, data collection method and selection of subjects.

The results of exploratory research are not usually useful for decision-
making by themselves, but they can provide significant insight into a given
situation

Exploratory research is not typically generalizable to the population at large.

Exploratory research can be quite informal, relying on secondary

research such as reviewing available literature and/or data, or qualitative
approaches such as informal discussions with consumers, employees,
management or competitors, and more formal approaches through in-depth
interviews, focus groups, projective methods, case studies or pilot studies.

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 Exploratory research studies
also termed as formulative research studies, is
conducted with the purpose of gaining a better insight
into a problem.

The main purpose/ Use

formulating a problem for more precise investigation
of developing the working hypotheses from an operational
point of view
The major emphasis is on the discovery of ideas and insights
Evaluate the feasibility of a research project
Provide alternative option/ approaches to a problem
Establish priorities or possibilities for further research

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 Types
Secondary Data Analysis: refers to literature, published or unpublished, available
as a result of studies made by others for their own purpose. The source of data can
be bibliographies available on the topic, journals, magazines, newspapers, reports
and books, special catalogues and subject guides. These days lot of data is available
on internet, or in digital libraries and e-databases maintained by various
organizations.
Expert Surveys: often called as experience surveys, these involve an interaction with
people who are experts in the area under study. Some people by virtue of their
placement as an individual, official, social worker come across situations which make
their experience in black and white, hence meeting these people, interacting with
them will help a researcher in understanding his problem clearly. E.g. a teacher
teaching children at primary level may be a good source of information about the
group behavior of children. A supervisor may provide relevant information on ethics
among workers.
Since a researcher is looking for new ideas and useful insights, he must choose the
experts carefully. It should be his endeavor that the chosen group of experts fully
represents varied range of experience. The more are the variations in experience, the
better the chances of researcher in getting provocative ideas.
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Case- Studies : Also referred to as insight stimulating examples these involve a
study of all the cases which are relevant to the area of the study. This method is
particularly suited in situations where the researcher is working on relatively
unformulated or uncharted problems and there is little experience to serve as a guide.
In such a situation, only that case would attract the attention of the researcher which
has a high stimulating power.
The success of this method depends on three factor:
1) Attitude of the investigator
2) Intensity of case studies
3) Integrative powers of an investigator

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 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH

Descriptive research refers to research that provides an accurate

portrayal of characteristics of a particular individual, situation, or
group. Descriptive research, also known as statistical research.

These studies are a means of discovering new meaning, describing

what exists, determining the frequency with which something
occurs, and categorizing information.
In short descriptive research deals with everything that can be
counted and studied, which has an impact of the lives of the
people it deals with.

For example,
finding the most frequent disease that affects the children of a town.
The reader of the research will know what to do to prevent that
disease thus, more people will live a healthy life.

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 DESCRIPTIVE RESEARCH

Advantages:

The people individual studied are unaware so they act naturally or as they
usually do in everyday situation;
It is less expensive and time consuming than quantitative experiments;
Collects a large amount of notes for detailed studying;
As it is used to describe and not make any conclusions it is to start the
research with it;

Disadvantages

Descriptive research requires more skills.

Does not identify cause behind a phenomenon
Response rate is low in this research.
Results of this research can change over the period of time.
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 Uses
It is used to describe the characteristics of relevant
group like a tribal community, consumers etc.
To study or estimate the proportion of people in a
particular population who hold certain specific
attitudes, opinions etc. e.g. the number of people
who are in favor of reservation for women.
To make predictions related to a particular
phenomena e.g. what will be the growth of retail
sector in the suburbs of a metropolitan city.

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 Classifications of Descriptive
research studies...

cross-sectional survey
survey
involves collecting data from
selected individuals in a single
time period however long it
takes to collect data from
participants

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 self-report survey
survey
requires individuals to respond to a
series of statements or questions
about themselves

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 observation study
study
the researcher obtains data by watching
participants in a situation
With the observational method (sometimes referred to as field observation)
animal and human behavior is closely observed. There are two main
categories of the observational method naturalistic observation and
laboratory observation.
The biggest advantage of the naturalistic method of research is that
researchers view participants in their natural environments. This leads
to greater ecological validity than laboratory observation, proponents
say.
Ecological validity refers to the extent to which research can be used in
real-life situations.
Proponents of laboratory observation often suggest that due to more
control in the laboratory, the results found when using laboratory
observation are more meaningful than those obtained with naturalistic
observation.
Laboratory observations are usually less time-consuming and cheaper than
naturalistic observations. Of course, both naturalistic and laboratory
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knowledge.
 longitudinal survey
survey
involves collecting data at two or more
instances in order to measure changes
over time

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 Types of longitudinal surveys...

trend survey
cohort survey
panel survey
follow-up survey

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 trend survey
a study where a sample is taken
from the general population in order
to collect data over time
involves different groups and
different samples over time

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 cohort survey
a study where a specific population
is examined by sampling different
groups within the population over
time

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 panel survey
a study where the same group and
the same sample are examined over
time

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 follow-up survey
a study undertaken after a panel
survey and seeks to examine
subsequent development or change

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 3. Hypothesis-testing Research Studies
known as experimental studies or design
of experiments
tests the hypotheses of causal
relationships between variables
Usually experiments meet this
requirement
Three basic principles of experimental
designs
(1) the Principle of Replication;
(2) the Principle of Randomization;

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 The Principle of Replication
The second principle of an experimental design is replication; which is a
repetition of the basic experiment. In other words, it is a complete run for all
the treatments to be tested in the experiment. In all experiments, some
variation is introduced because of the fact that the experimental units such as
individuals or plots of land in agricultural experiments cannot
be physically identical. This type of variation can be removed by using a
number of experimental units. We therefore perform the experiment more than
once, i.e., we repeat the basic experiment. An individual repetition is called a
replicate. The number, the shape and the size of replicates depend upon the
nature of the experimental material. A replication is used
(i) to secure more accurate estimate of the experimental error, a term which
represents the differences that would be observed if the same treatments were
applied several times to the same experimental units;
(ii) to decrease the experimental error and thereby to increase precision, which
is a measure of the variability of the experimental error; and
(iii) to obtain more precise estimate of the mean effect of a treatment, since ,
where denotes the number of replications.

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 The Principle of Randomization
The first principle of an experimental design is randomization, which
is a random process of assigning treatments to the experimental
units. The random process implies that every possible allotment of
treatments has the same probability. An experimental unit is the
smallest division of the experimental material and a treatment means
an experimental condition whose effect is to be measured and
compared. The purpose of randomization is to remove bias and other
sources of extraneous variation, which are not controllable.
Another advantage of randomization (accompanied by replication) is
that it forms the basis of any valid statistical test. Hence the
treatments must be assigned at random to the experimental units.
Randomization is usually done by drawing numbered cards from a
well-shuffled pack of cards, or by drawing numbered balls from a
well-shaken container or by using tables of random numbers .

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 The Principle of Local Control
It has been observed that all extraneous sources of variation are not
removed by randomization and replication. This necessitates a refinement in
the experimental technique. In other words, we need to choose a design in
such a manner that all extraneous sources of variation
are brought under control. For this purpose, we make use of local control, a
term referring to the amount of balancing, blocking and grouping of the
experimental units.
Balancing means that the treatments should he assigned to the
experimental units in such a way that the result is a balanced
arrangement of the treatments.
Blocking means that like experimental units should be collected together to
form a relatively homogeneous group. A block is also a replicate.
The main purpose of the principle of local control is to increase the
efficiency of an experimental design by decreasing the experimental error.
The point to remember here is that the term local control should not be
confused with the word control. The word control in experimental design is
used for a treatment. Which does not receive any treatment but we need to
find out the effectiveness of other treatments through comparison.
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 Important experiment designs
(a) Informal experimental designs
(i) Before-and-after without control design.
(ii) After-only with control design.
(iii) Before-and-after with control design.
(b) Formal experimental designs
(i) Completely randomized design (C.R. Design).
(ii) Randomized block design (R.B. Design).
(iii) Latin square design (L.S. Design).
(iv) Factorial designs.

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 1. Before-and-after without control
design
A single test group or area is selected, and
the dependent variable is measured
The treatment is then introduced and then the
dependent variable is measured again
The effect of the treatment
the level of the phenomenon after the treatment -
the level of the phenomenon before the treatment

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 The design can be represented thus:

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 2. After-only with control design
Two groups or areas (test area and control area) are
selected and the treatment is introduced into the test
area only

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 3. Before-and-after with control design

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 4. Completely randomized design (C.R.
design)
(i) Two-group simple randomized design

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 (ii) Random replications design

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 5. Randomized block design (R.B. design)

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 6. Latin square design (L.S. design)
An experimental design very frequently used
in agricultural research

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 7. Factorial designs
where the effects of varying more than one
factor are to be determined.
important in several economic and social
phenomena
Factorial designs can be of two types:
(i) simple factorial designs
(ii) complex factorial designs

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 Illustration 1: (2 2 simple factorial design). A
2 2 simple factorial design can graphically be
depicted as follows:

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The graph relating to Study I indicates that there is an interaction between the
treatment and the level which, in other words, means that the treatment and the
level are not independent of each other.
The graph relating to Study II shows that there is no interaction effect which
means that treatment and level in this study are relatively independent of each
other.
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 Factorial designs are used mainly
because of the two advantages
(i) provide equivalent accuracy
determine the main effects of two (in simple
factorial design) or more (in case of complex
factorial design) factors (or variables) in one single
experiment.
(ii) permit various other comparisons of
interest

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