INTRODUCTION, DEFINITION & VALUE OF RESEARCH

SCIENTIFIC METHOD OF RESEARCH & ITS SPECIAL FEATURES >>

Research Methods STA630

Lesson 1

INTRODUCTION, DEFINITION & VALUE OF RESEARCH

Whether we are aware of it or not, we are surrounded by research. Educators, administrators,

government officials, business leaders, human service providers, health care professionals, regularly use

social research findings in their jobs. Social research can be used to raise children, reduce crime,

improve public health, sell products, improve workers' efficiency, or just understand one's life.

Assume for the moment that you are the Manager of a restaurant. You are experiencing a significant

turn over in your waiter/waitress pool, and long-time customers have been commenting that the friendly

atmosphere that has historically drawn them to your door is changing. What will you do? Where will

you try to solve this problem? The problem of high turn over and decline in the friendly atmosphere at

the restaurant has to be researched.

The study of research methods provides you with the knowledge and skills you need to solve the

problem and meet the challenges of a fast-paced decision-making environment. A systematic inquiry

whose objective is to provide information to the problems (be they managerial as in our example) is one

way to explain research.

What is Research?

General image of the research is that it has something to do with the laboratory where scientists are

supposedly doing some experiments. Somebody who is interviewing consumers to find out their

opinion about the new packaging of milk is also doing research. Research is simply the process of

finding solutions to a problem after through study and analysis of the situational factors. It is gathering

information needed to answer a question, and thereby help in solving a problem. We do not do study in

any haphazard manner. Instead we try to follow a system or a procedure in an organized manner. It is

all the more necessary in case we want to repeat the study, or somebody else wants to verify our

findings. In the latter case the other person has to follow the same procedure that we followed. Hence

not only we have to do the study in a systematic manner but also that system should be known to others.

What is the value of Research?

The nature of research problems could vary. Problems may refer to some undesirable situation or these

may refer to simply a curiosity of the researcher that may be agitating his or her mind. For example, in a

recent BA/BS examination of the Punjab University 67 percent of the students failed. That is a colossal

wastage of the resources, hence an undesirable situation that needs research to find a solution. The

researcher may come up with a variety of reasons that may relate with the students, the teachers, the

curricula, the availability of books, the examination system, the family environment of the student, and

many more. So a study may be carried out diagnose the situation, and the recommendations to be

applied to overcome the undesirable situation of mass failure of students.

In the same examination result one finds that girls have captured a good number of top positions; and

that is happening for the last couple of years. One gets curious and tries to do research for finding out

the reasons. This is an academic problem but certainly a research problem. Conducting such research

offers the pleasure of solving a puzzle. Why the girls are catching most of the top positions in

different examination? This might be a puzzle that the research may like to explain. Such findings

make a good contribution to the body of knowledge i.e. making some good discoveries as part of the

basic research. Finding answer to any enigma is self satisfying.

The researchers try to make use of their findings for generating theories and models that could be used

for understanding human behavior and the functioning of different structures both at the micro

(organizational) and macro (societal) level.

Research Methods STA630

Therefore, research may be considered as an organized, systematic, data based, critical, objective,

scientific inquiry or investigation into a specific problem, undertaken with the purpose of finding

answers or solutions to it. In this way research provides the needed information that guides the planners

to make informed decisions to successfully deal with the problems. The information provided could be

the result of a careful analysis of data gathered firsthand or of the data that are already available with an

organization. .

The value of research for policy makers, planners, business managers, and other stakeholders is that it

reduces uncertainty by providing information that improves the decision-making process. The decision

making process associated with the development and implementation of a strategy involves four

interrelated stages:

Identifying problems or opportunities;

Diagnosing and assessing problems or opportunities;

Selecting and implementing a course of action; and

Evaluating thee course of action.

Identifying problems and solutions to the same problems is in fact applying the research findings to

overcome an undesirable situation. Initially a problem may appear to be simply a `tip of the iceberg' but

the study by a professional might help locating the magnitude of the issue as well as its solutions. Such

research is usually referred to as applied research, which shall be discussed in detail in the coming

lectures.

Research helps in developing methodologies

By now we know that the researchers have to develop methodologies for carrying out the research.

These methodologies are for the collection of data, data processing and data analysis. For the new

researchers these methodologies are already available, most of the researchers just use these.

Nevertheless, there is always a scope for improvement and certainly new methodologies are developed.

Also we try to borrow methodologies from sister subjects.

Managers and administrators with knowledge of research have an advantage over those who are

without. Though a manager/administrator him/herself may not be doing any major research yet he/she

will have to understand, predict, and control events that are dysfunctional to the organization. For

example, a new product developed may not be "taking off," or a financial investment may not be

"paying off" as anticipated. Such disturbing phenomena have to be understood and explained. Unless

this is done, it will not be possible to predict the future of that product or the prospects of that

investment, and how future catastrophic outcomes can be controlled. A grasp of research methods will

enable managers/administrators to understand, predict, and control their environment.

Managers may not be doing the research themselves, in fact they could hire the services of

professionals, and still they should be well conversant with research methodologies. The manager who

is knowledgeable about research can interact effectively with outside researchers or consultants.

Knowledge about research processes, design, and interpretation of data also helps managers to become

discriminating recipients of the research findings presented, and to determine whether or not the

recommended solution are appropriate for implementation.

We are surrounded by research

For the understanding of the professional works, incorporation of the new findings in the practical

situations, and for the implementation of the recommendations in policy/planning, the managers have to

be well conversant with researchers. Many of you may be preparing yourselves for such managerial

positions, I am sure training in research methodology will certainly be helpful in your career.

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