Table of Contents:-
- Research Design Meaning
- What is Research Design?
- Need of Research Design
- Features of a Good Research Design
Research Design Meaning
The research follows a clear pattern or plan of action from problem identification through report preparation and presentation. The term “research design” refers to a well-defined pattern or plan of action employed in conducting research. It serves as an important tool for researchers, it provides guidance in the collection and analysis of data. In simpler terms, it serves as a blueprint that guides the entire research process. For example, a building cannot constructed without the knowledge of its structure. A builder cannot order raw materials or set dates till he knows the structure of this building, such as an office building, school, home, etc.
According to Kerlinger, “Research design is the plan, structure, and strategy of investigation conceived to obtain answers to research questions and to control variance“.
As per William Zikmund, “Research design is defined as a master plan specifying the methods and procedures for collection and analysing the needed information.”
What is Research Design?
According to Selltiz et al., “A research design is the arrangement of conditions for collection and analysis of data in a manner that aims to combine relevance to the research purpose with economy in procedure”.
According to Green and Tull, “A research design is the specification of methods and procedures for acquiring the information needed. It is the overall operational pattern or framework of the project that stipulates what information is to be collected from which sources by what procedures”.
A research approach serves as both a strategic blueprint and a means to determine the necessary data for addressing a research problem. It ensures that the data analysis and the conclusions lead to answering the initial questions of the researcher simply. Therefore, a research method provides the structure of research in such a way that it provides relevant outcomes economically.
Need of Research Design
Research design becomes necessary for the following purposes:
1) Facilitates Smooth Scaling: To perform the process of scaling smoothly, an efficient research approach is of utmost importance. It makes the research process effective enough to give maximum relevant outcomes easily.
2) Helps in Relevant Data Collection and Analysis: Research design helps the researchers in planning the methods of data collection and analysis as per the objective of the research. It is also responsible for reliable research work as it is the foundation for the entire research. Insufficient attention given to the preparation of a research method can have detrimental effects on the entire research endeavour.
3) Assists in the Smooth Flow of Research Operations: Research design is necessary to give a better and more effective structure to the research. By making all decisions in advance, the research approach ensures a seamless flow of research operations and reduces potential challenges for researchers.
4) Helps in Getting Reviews from Experts: Research design helps in developing an overview of the whole research process and thus assists in getting responses and reviews from different experts in that field.
5) Provides a Direction to Executives: The method of research directs the researcher as well as the executives involved in the research to give their relevant assistance.
6) Reduces Cost: Research design is essential because it helps to plan the research work and thereby reduces excessive costs in terms of time, money, and effort.
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Features of a Good Research Design
A key goal in the research approach is to achieve reduced bias and heightened data reliability during both data collection and analysis. A good design of study should provide the opportunity as per the various aspects of the research problem. It should minimise the experimental error and should maximize the amount of information obtained. Therefore, we can conclude that the choice of research design depends on both the research problem and the research’s nature. The following are the major features of a good design of study:
The key Features of a Good Research Design are as follows:
- Objectivity
- Reliability
- Validity Generalisability
- Sufficient Information
- Other Features
1) Reliability
Another essential feature of well-designed research is the reliability of responses. The instruments used in research should be able to provide similar responses to a question asked by a respondent. When the response varies, we classify the instrument as unreliable. In other words, researchers measure the reliability of the research method by assessing the consistency in responses.
2) Objectivity
Objectivity refers to the ability of the research instruments to give conclusions that are free from the observer’s personal biases. A well-crafted research approach should have the ability to carefully choose instruments that provide unbiased and objective conclusions. People commonly believe that maintaining objectivity is easy, but it often proves challenging during research and data analysis.
3) Generalisability
Researchers consider a research design as achieving generalizability when its outcomes are relevant to a larger population, beyond the sample used. To make a research approach generalizable, researchers should define the population accurately, carefully select the sample, appropriately analyze the statistical data, and methodically prepare it. Therefore, the more the outcomes are generalisable. more efficient is the design of the study.
4) Validity
An important characteristic of a well-crafted research design is its ability to effectively answer the questions in the way it was intended to. It should focus on the objective of the research and make specific arrangements or plans for achieving that objective. For example, when research is conducted to measure the effects of advertisements on viewers, it should be able to answer this and not the sale of a particular product.
5) Other Features
Along with the above, some other features make a research design good. These are adaptability, flexibility, efficiency, etc. A good experimental technique should be able to minimise the errors and maximise the accuracy.
6) Sufficient Information
Any research is conducted to gain insight into the hidden facts, figures and information. The research approach should be able to provide sufficient information to the researcher so that he can analyse the research problem from a broad perspective. The research method should be able to identify the problem and objective of the research.