Research Methods

Most people first encounter research as part of a school or college course.

A piece of research is usually included in any advanced degree course, and may also be integral to undergraduate degrees. Basic research, such as issuing questionnaires, may be undertaken in social science classes at school.

But there are many more applications for quality research.

Introducing Research Methods
Your research method depends on the question that you wish to answer and the philosophy that underpins your view of research.

The best place to start is our page An Introduction to Research Methods. This sets out the basic principles of research design and the role of the researcher.

Our page on Designing Research explains how to approach research, and what to think about in designing your research. It sets out some possible research approaches, including experimental and quasi-experimental designs, survey research, and ethnography.

Finally, you need to make a decision about whether your research will be Qualitative or Quantitative, or even mixed.

Qualitative Research Designs
Qualitative research is concerned with human behavior, and why people act the way that they do.

Common methods used for qualitative research include Interviews and Focus Groups and Group Interviews. Both these methods allow researchers to explore a topic in depth with one or two people at a time, or within a small group. You can also collect Qualitative Data from Interactions, in research that recognises that the researcher is a key part of the situation, rather than an outside observer.

Quantitative Research Designs
Quantitative research always collects numerical data.

If you are not collecting numbers, then your research is qualitative, not quantitative. Quantitative research is usually used to get views from large numbers of people.

The first step in quantitative research is to determine your Sampling and Sample Design. You then need to gather data. Suitable methods include surveys (and our page on Surveys and Survey Design explains more about this surprisingly complex subject).

Other sources of data include Observational and Secondary Data.

Analysing Research Data
Your choice of analysis method will depend heavily on your choice of research method.

For example, for qualitative research, you may need an approach like content analysis, because you will have generated large amounts of data, often narrative in form. Our page on Analysing Qualitative Data explains more.

Quantitative data is often analysed using statistical methods, which may be both simple and more complex, depending on the question you are trying to answer. Our page on Simple Statistical Analysis suggests some suitable starting points, with more information available on Identifying Patterns and Multivariate Analysis.