RUPP, IFL Department of English RM 302, 2013-2014

1. RUPP, IFL Department of EnglishRM 302, 2013-2014 Chapter 4: Formulating a Research Problem Summary of: Kumar, Ranjit. (2005). Research methodology: A step-by-step guide for beginners (2nd ed.). London, England: Sage Publications. Summarized by Roger Nault (REN)

2. Chapter 4: Formulating a Research Problem • The research problem • The importance of formulating a research problem • Sources of research problems • Considerations in selecting a research problem • Steps in the formulation of a research problem • The formulation of objectives • Establishing operational definitions

3. The Research Problem: Decide what it is you want to learn about, and from whom you want to learn it. • Provides a roadmap • Further decisions such as study design (study population, sampling methods etc…) are determined by the problem.

4. The importance of a research problem: “If one wants to solve a problem, one must generally know what the problem is.” -- Kerlinger (1986) • Clear idea of what it is you want to find out about, and not what you think you must find.

5. The importance of a research problem: ? ? ? ? ? Confusion Open, fair, challenging group discussion Clarity

6. Sources of research problems: • You may select a group of individuals (people), either to examine the existence of certain issues or problems relating to their lives, • to ascertain attitude of a group of people towards an issue (problem), • to establish existence of a regularity (phenomenon), or • to evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention (program).

7. Sources of research problems: p. 42

8. Sources of research problems: p. 42

9. Considerations in selecting a research problem: • Interest – of all group members • Magnitude – requires focus • Measurement (& definition) of concepts – effectiveness: tie to literature review • Level of expertise – group members and advisor • Relevance • Availability of data – “top 10 student” studies • Ethics

10. Steps in formulating a research problem: p 44-49 • Identify a broad field or subject area of interest to your group • Dissect the broad area into sub-areas • Select what is of most interest to you • Raise possible research questions • Formulate objectives • Assess your objectives • Double-check

11. Steps in formulating a research problem: p 44-49 • As you go through the steps – narrowing your research problem your study population should become obvious.

12. Formulating Objectives: • Objectives set out the goals of your study • They are essentially a transformation of your questions made as statements i.e.: • To find out … • To determine … • To examine … • To better understand … • To identify …

13. Formulating Objectives: • How we state our objectives are worded also determines how our research will be classified, i.e.: • Descriptive • Correlational or experimental

14. Formulating Objectives: • Examples of descriptive objectives: To describe the types of treatment program provided by [name of org.] to alcoholics in PP To find out student opinions of English language training services at IFL. Note how wording drives peculiarity and thus limits the generalisability of your study.

15. Formulating Objectives: • If correlational, objective needs variables being correlated. i.e.: To ascertain the impact of migration on family roles. Compare the effectiveness of different teaching methods on the comprehension of students.

16. Formulating Objectives: • If testing a hypothesis, objective needs to indicate the direction of the relationship between the variables being correlated. i.e: To ascertain if an increase in youth unemployment will increase the incidence of street crime.

17. Establishing Operational Objectives: • Define key terms used in your research question, and • Provide indicators in order to clearly establish the meaning of such words or concepts. • How do you define & how will you measure key terms / concepts? i.e.: • “Effectiveness” of teaching • “High performing students”

18. Establishing Operational Objectives: • In defining the key terms, it is said that there are no rules, BUT remember you must justify others of the choice of your definition and indicators. • Literature review should be a key source.

19. Problem Statement: Problem statement needs to address: • The topic • The research problem • Importance of the problem / need for research • Deficiencies in existing knowledge about the problem • Identify audience that will benefit from the learning

20. Problem Statement: • The topic – requires a narrative “hook” • Statistical data • Use of provocative question • Establish clear need for research • State the intent of the study

21. Problem Statement: • The research problem • Simple statement including main subject area and target population.

22. Problem Statement: • Importance of the problem / need for research. Cite: • personal experiences • experiences of others • evidence from other researchers

23. Problem Statement: • Deficiencies in existing knowledge about the problem: • To fill gaps • To advance knowledge • To update knowledge • To make knowledge more specific

24. Problem Statement: • Identify audience that will benefit from the learning: • “Know your audience” • Assists greatly throughout process and sets voice for research direction and final report writing. Problem Statement: Source Creswell, John W. (2005). Educational research: Planning, conducting, and evaluating quantitative and qualitative research (2nd ed.). NJ: Pearson Education.