Kenyatta University IBP 14/15

ECC 800: RESEARCH

EXPLAIN ANY FIVE COMPONENTS COMMONLY FOUND IN A RESEARCH REPORT

1. ABSTRACT
2. INTRODUCTION
3. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE
4. METHODOLOGY
5. RESULTS & DISCUSSION
6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS
7. REFERENCES
8. APPENDIXES

1. ABSTRACT

It should describe the most important aspects of the study, including the problem investigated, the type of subjects (sample) and data collection method involved, the analytical procedures used, and the major results and conclusions.

2. INTRODUCTION

This section includes discussions concerning the practical and/or theoretical importance of the topic as well as a description of the research problem.

3. REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

The review of the related literature describes and analyzes the published studies that are directly related to, and/or have some relevance to, the topic and research questions at hand.

4. METHODOLOGY

The methodology section includes a description of the research sample (subjects), data collection method, measurement instruments, and data analysis procedures.

5. RESULTS & DISCUSSION.

Presents and discuss the data analysis results. The statistical techniques that were applied to the data must be mentioned and the results of each analysis summarized, tabulated, and then discussed.

6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS.

It summarizes the study's findings in an easy to understand manner. It also explains the practical implications of those findings, and points to recommended directions for future research in that area.

7. REFERENCES

he references section, or bibliography, lists all the sources, that were directly used in writing the report. Every source cited in the paper must be included in the references, and every entry listed in the references must appear in the paper.

8. APPENDIXES

Appendixes include information and data pertinent to the study that either are not important enough to be included in the main body of the report or are too lengthy. Appendixes contain such entries as materials especially developed for the study

ECC 800: RESEARCH

The importance of ethical considerations in a research

1. Promote authentic, original and true knowledge by avoiding error.

2. To promote values of collaborative work.

3. Public accountability.

4. Maintenance of quality & integrity along with moral and social values

ECC 800: RESEARCH

DESCRIBE FIVE SIGNIFICANCE OF LOGISTICAL AND ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN RESEARCH

It is vital that a researcher must observe appropriate values at all these stages while conducting research

ETHICAL ISSUES

1. Academic freedom

Academicians are expected to be open minded and share their information and ideas freely without fear or intimidation yet observing the need to protect intellectual property

2. Fabrication and Falsification or fraud

Fabrication involves creating, inventing or faking data or results which are then recorded or reported while, falsification or fraud is the manipulation of materials, equipment, processes, by changing results or omitting some data or findings so that the research does not seem to have been well represented or recorded

3. Financial issues and sponsorship

Research findings could be compromised by the funding organization which does not fully support the research financially and instead strives to save money thus impacting on the quality of the study

4. Plagiarism

The issue of plagiarism is an important topic in academic institutions of higher learning. This is the practice where an author or researcher has to ensure that any work which is written should be original and be devoid of some texts, results or even expressions which are borrowed, manipulated or used such as ideas, processes, results or even words of the author or publication without acknowledging where the information has been obtained from

5. Anonymity, confidentiality and privacy

Anonymity refers to keeping secret by not identifying the ethnic or cultural background of respondents, refrain from referring to them by their names or divulging any other sensitive information about a participant

6. Beneficence

It is the role of a researcher who has direct contact with a participant to explain the purpose of the study and the benefits that will accrue from it

7. Deception

When conducting research, participants should be told the truth. But, if they are told only part of it or if the truth is completely denied or compromised this could lead to deception. Such a situation occurs if the researcher is biased when conducting a survey or conducts a research just to protect the sponsor of the research project

8. Non-maleficence

Beneficence asserts the usefulness of the study while, non- maleficence expresses the potential risks of participation. It emphasizes on what constitutes harm which could be physiological, emotional, social or even economic in nature

9. Voluntary and informed consent

This is one of the major ethical issues in conducting research which implies the fact that “a person knowingly, voluntarily, intelligently, and in a clear and manifest way, give their consent

10. Vulnerable groups/ special populations

While conducting research, it is possible to involve populations which are disadvantaged or vulnerable such as children, poor or sick people. If this is done, then the researcher must obtain due consent from their parents or guardians so as to involve them in the investigations

ECC 800 RESEARCH

DESCRIBE THE SWOC ANALYSIS TOOL

Strengths: Those things that have worked or things that one is proud of telling about the project, situation or activities.
Weaknesses: Those things that have not worked so well or times when things could have gone better.

Opportunities: Ideas on how to overcome weaknesses and build on strengths.

Constraints: The constraints that exist which reduce the range of opportunities for change.

ECC 800 RESEARCH
EXPLAIN ANY FOUR COMPONENTS OF A RESEARCH PROPOSAL

1. An introduction section which includes the background to the problem, the statement of the problem, the purpose, objectives and justification of the study.

2. A literature review section where the researcher reviews literature related to the topic under investigation.

3. A methodology section which includes the description of the research design, population, sample and sampling techniques, data collection procedures and methods of analysis.

4. A time schedule in which the researcher explains the time period needed to carry out the research.

5. A budget.

ECC 800 RESEARCH

WHY IS A RESEARCH PROPOSAL IN SNE DIFFERENT FROM A PROJECT PROPOSAL?

The differences between a project proposal and a research proposal focus on-expected outcome and the implementation process.

In a project proposal, a specific problem will have been solved. For example, some training will have been offered, a resource provision like water, will have been provided.

In a research project, the outcome will be data which can be used as a basis of proposing a project or data which will contribute to knowledge and forms the basis for recommendations and action.

In a research proposal, data collection and analysis is carried out and a research report is written. In a project proposal, proposed strategies and activities are implemented and eventually evaluation will be conducted to ensure that the project's objectives were met.

ECC 800 RESEARCH
WHAT ARE ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS IN RESEARCH?

± Principles and guidelines that help us to uphold the things we value…
± Moral principles…
± Confidentiality /anonymity of informants ….
± Code of conduct…
± Guidelines for responsible conduct by researchers…
± Concern the rights, dignity and safety of research subjects…

ECC 800 RESEARCH
IDENTIFY THE DISADVANTAGES OF THE FOLLOWING DATA COLLECTION TECHNIQUES

Questionnaires
FGDs
Observation
Interviews
Checlists

QUESTIONNAIRES
 Consume a lot of time in construction
 Unclear items can make respondents leave blanks
 Return rate in mailed questionnaires may be low
 Cannot be used with illiterate populations
 Hidden information that can be obtained by observing facial expressions can’t be collected through questionnaires
 Response rates can be quite low.
 There is no direct contact so the researcher cannot deal with any misunderstanding.
 There is no opportunity to ask for further information related to answer given.
 No clear reason can be given for incomplete responses.
 Respondent’s motivation is difficult to assess, affecting the validity of response.

INTERVIEWS
♯ They are time consuming since a respondent can dwell on one issue.
♯ They are not systematic as a respondent can comment on issues in a haphazard way. A respondent can comment on issues already discussed.
♯ If the researcher is not careful, it can get out of control, with the respondent getting too emotional or personal.
♯ Irrelevances can be displayed by the respondent.
♯ Since there is no set format for conducting these interviews, it is difficult to systematize and analyze data.

FOCUSED GROUP DISCUSSION
 Time consuming…
 Not systematic…
 Limited control…
 Prone to irrelevancies…
 Loose format…
 Prone to biases…
 Over domineering respondents…

ECC 800 RESEARCH
DESCRIBE THE ADVANTAGES OF THE FOLLOWING
Questionnaires
Interviews
Checklists
Observation
FGDs

ADVANTAGES OF QUESTIONNAIRES
 Economical to administer/reach a large number of respondents
 Researcher does not have to be physically present/can mail the questionnaires
 Flexibility/respondents can answer the questions at their own time
 Easier for respondents to give responses to embarrassing questions especially if they don’t have to disclose their identity
 Information can be collected from a large sample and diverse regions.
 Confidentiality is upheld.
 Respondents can complete the questionnaire at a time and place that suits them.
 Data analysis of closed questions is relatively simple and questions can be coded quickly.

ADVANTAGES OF STRUCTURED INTERVIEWS
± The reliability of the information gathered is high. This is because each informant is subjected to similar questions with the others.
± It gives in-depth information about particular cases of interest to the researcher. This is because the researcher seeks information on specific issues.
± It is systematic. Researchers intensively investigate a particular issue before moving to the next.
± It is time-saving since the respondents simply answer what has been asked by the researcher.
± The researcher gets a complete and detailed understanding of the issue from the respondent.
± It is comprehensive and systematic since questions are formulated before the interview.
± The data collected is quantifiable.

ADVANTAGES OF UNSTRUCTURED INTERVIEWS
♫ They are flexible. This is because are no pre-defined questions. This allows the respondents to freely respond to an issue. The researcher can therefore gather a lot of information.
♫ The respondent feels part of the team since no rigidity to display. He/she can therefore freely participate in the research.
♫ Since it is a free response in a relaxed atmosphere situation, the answers given are more reliable.
♫ It allows the interviewer to be responsive to individual difference and situational characteristics.
♫ This instrument is useful for studying sensitive topics such as sexuality and abortion.

ADVANTAGES OF FOCUSED GROUP DISCUSSION
 Allow flexibility
 Broader view/perspective
 Sense of ownership
 Freedom of expression…
 Opportunity to probe…
 Allow interaction…
 Ideal for social research….
 Editing of responses…

ADVANTAGES OF OBSERVATION
 Immersion and prolonged involvement in a setting can lead to the development of rapport and foster free and open speaking with members.
 Observation fosters an in depth and rich understanding of a phenomenon, situation and/or setting and the behaviour of the participants in that setting.
 Observation is an essential part of gaining an understanding of naturalistic settings and its members' ways of seeing.
 Observation can provide the foundation for theory and hypothesis development.

ECC 800 RESEARCH
WHY IS IT IMPORTANT FOR AN EDUCATIONAL RESEARCHER TO CONDUCT A PILOT STUDY?

PILOT STUDY
 A pilot study, pilot project or pilot experiment is a small scale preliminary study conducted in order to evaluate feasibility, time, cost, adverse events, and effect size (statistical variability) in an attempt to predict an appropriate sample size and improve upon the study design prior to performance of a full-scale research

IMPORTANCE OF PILOT STUDY
± To assess the adequacy of research instruments.
± To identifying logistical problems which might occur during the main study
± Determining what resources will be needed in the main study
± Assessing the appropriateness of proposed data analysis techniques
± Developing a research question and research plan
± To gain some experience in using the instruments i.e. training in collecting required data
± To determine the effectiveness and efficiency of the instruments
± To give the researcher a rough idea of the time and effort required to carry out the study
± Provide an idea to the researcher of any difficulties/challenges he/she may face when carrying out the study
± To determine which resources will be needed in the main study
± To gain experience in using the instruments