PRACTICAL RESEARCH 2

THIS COURSE DEVELOPS CRITICAL THINKING AND PROBLEM-SOLVING SKILLS

THROUGH QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH.
At the end of the lesson you will be able to:

 describecharacteristics, strengths, weaknesses,

and kinds of quantitative research.
 Write YES or NO
1. Research must be hurriedly conducted.
2. There should be enough data before conducting research.
3. Research must observe a step-by-step process.
4. The researcher must have the final say in his or her findings.
5. A person’s opinion is acceptable and considered as an answer to the questions asked by the
researcher.
6. Any concern or issue confronted by the students is researchable.
7. The causes why students fail in quizzes are worth researching.
8. The student-researcher must read literature related to the problem he or she is studying.
9. The researcher must avoid listening to another researcher to have an objective view of his or her
study.
10. The steps in conducting research are patterned.
List down the words that are related to the
definition of research.
investigation intuition
system discovery
opinions instrument
interview literature
subjective guessing
phenomena dreams
experiences productivity
teleserye theories
biases factual
validate data
 Form a group and formulate your
own definition of research based on
the correct answers in the previous
activities. Present your output to the
class.
 Definition of Research

1. Research follows a step-by-step process of investigation that uses standardized approach in

answering questions or solving problems (Polit & Beck, 2004).
2. Research plays an important role in tertiary education. Though there are many problems
confronted by higher education, developments are realized through research. After all, its main
purpose is to answer a question or to solve an issue (Palispis, 2004).
3. Research is a continuous undertaking of making known the unknown (Sanchez, 2002).
4. Research is an investigation following ordered steps leading to a discovery of new information
or concepts (Sanchez, 1999).
5. Research is a very careful investigation of something that purports the contribution of additional
or new knowledge and wisdom (Bassey, as cited by Coleman & Briggs, 2002).
6. Research is a tested approach of thinking and employing validated instruments and steps in
order to obtain a more adequate solution to a problem that is otherwise impossible to address
under ordinary means (Crawford, as cited by Alcantara & Espina, 1995).
Characteristics of Research

1. The research should be systematic.

2. The research should be objective.
3. The research should be feasible.
4. The research should be empirical.
5. The research should be clear.
Plagiarism constitutes claiming
another person’s idea or
intellectual property as one’s
own.
Roles of the Researcher

 According to Nieswiadomy (2005), the researcher serves different roles in a study.

These are as follows:
1. As principal investigator
2. As member of a research team
3. As identifier of researchable problems
4. As evaluator of research findings
5. As user of research findings
6. As patient or client advocate during study
7. As subject/respondent/participant
 IMPORTANCE OF RESEARCH

 Research provides a scientific basis for any practice or methodology in any field or
discipline.
 Research is undertaken for the continuous development and further productivity in
any field.
 Research helps develop tools for assessing effectiveness of any practice and
operation.
 Research provides solutions to problems concerning almost all issues encountered
in the different areas of work.
 Research impacts decision-making.
 Research develops and evaluates alternative approaches to the educational
aspects of discipline.
 GOALS FOR CONDUCTING RESEARCH

1. To produce evidence-based practice.

2. To establish credibility in the profession.
3. To observe accountability for the profession.
4. To
promote cost-effectiveness through
documentation.
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH VS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

 Quantitative Research according to Aliaga and Gunderson (2000) is

explaining phenomena by collecting numerical data that are analysed
using mathematically based methods (in particular statistics). This type
of research utilizes numbers and statistical analysis. It is ideal in studying
phenomenon which must contend with the problems of measurement.
 Qualitative Research is defined as the “naturalistic method of inquiry of
research which deals with the issue of human complexity by exploring
it directly,” (Polit and Beck, 2008).
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH VS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH
There is one concrete reality that is
governed by unchanging natural laws
that can explain any given phenomenon.
There is one true reality regardless of
context.
A phenomenon can be understood by
studying its component parts.
The researcher is an objective observer.
Conditions must be carefully controlled to
prevent unwanted influence.
QUALITATIVE RESEARCH
Reality is socially and experientially
constructed, resulting in multiple realities
of a phenomenon.
Reality is context specific.
A phenomenon can be understood only
when studied as a whole.
The researcher is part of the context and
intrinsically linked to the findings.
Concerns of bias are not part because
the researcher is transparent about this.
 QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH VS QUALITATIVE RESEARCH

CATEGORY QUANTITATIVE QUALITATIVE

Question Who, what, when, where How, what, why
Common Sample Size 50 to 200+ 1 to 15
Contact Time 10 to 20 minutes 45 to 240 minutes each
Validity Must be true of most of the data or Must be true of each case or
nomothetic (law-oriented) ideographic (case-oriented)
Variables Defines relationships and establish Describes relationships and establishes
general case meaning structures and contexts
Outliers Unique positions lost to the weight of Valuable descriptive cases with
the average unique access to average cases
Examples Surveys, numerical counts, statistical Interviews, literature content reviews,
analyses, mathematical modelling real world observations, case studies,
ethnographies
CHARACTERISTICS OF QUANTITATIVE RESEARCH

1. It is reliable and objective.

2. It uses statistics to generalize a finding.
3. It reduces and restructures a complex problem to a limited number of variables.
4. It looks at the connections between variables and establishes cause and effect
relationships in highly controlled circumstances.
5. It tests theories or hypotheses.
6. It assumes that the sample is representative of the population.
7. The subjectivity of its methodology is a secondary concern.
8. It deals with the details of the subject.
 ADVANTAGES OF QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH
1. It allows the researcher to measure and analyse the data to arrive at an
objective answer to the problem posed or stated.
2. The result is reliable since the study uses a big sample of the population.
3. Standards are usually used in choosing the instruments, in sampling
procedures, and in choosing the most appropriate statistical treatment, thus
making the research replicable.
4. Personal biases can be avoided since personal interaction is not part of the
research process.
5. Processes involved are simplified since the steps in doing quantitative
research are made easy and systematic.
6. Results can be reduced through statistical treatments and interpreted in a
few statements.
 DISADVANTAGES OF QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH
1. The context of the study or the experiment is ignored in such a way that it does not consider the
natural setting where the study is conducted.
2. Having a large study sample requires researcher to spend more resources.
3. Results are limited since they are usually based on the analysis of numbers and are not obtained
from detailed narratives.
4. It provides less elaborate accounts of human perceptions.
5. In experimental research, the level of control might not be normally placed in the real world
because it is usually done in a laboratory.
6. Preset or fixed alternative answers may not necessarily reflect the true answers of the
participants.
7. Findings can be influenced by the researcher’s perspective since most of the time, the
participants are unknown to him/her.
 IMPORTANCE OF QUANTITATIVE
RESEARCH IN DIFFERENT FIELDS

1. Education – can be used in measuring the level of performance of students as

well as teachers, and in assessing the effectiveness of the methods and the
different programs conducted.
2. Business – it can improve the over-all marketing strategy, help the company
make informed decisions on how to be best and move forward with a
particular product or services, and solicit consumer’s opinions for productivity.
3. Medical and Health Allied Services – it yields statistics that can help improve
the rate of recovery of patients with illnesses and sicknesses, and the efficacy
of medicines and drugs, among others.
4. Science and Technology – it can lead to a more responsible and
accountable operation of the different components of technology.