Research Methods Used in Research Papers
Which scientific research method should I choose for my research paper? This question is more common than you might think, typically because choosing the research method is not a trivial task. This task becomes more difficult because there is no single source of information that brings together all the benefits, characteristics, and challenges of each one. When writing research papers, students usually find it difficult to make a choice of a research method. Our article provides you with all you need to about various research methods used.
Types of research methods
It is important to keep in mind that the most appropriate research method for your study will depend on the purpose of the research and the types of questions you intend to answer. Below are some of the most used methods:
Literature review (or literature search)
A literature review is a method widely used to gather existing information on a given topic. This review can be structured in two ways, depending on its objective, which are:
- Ad-hoc review, are made freely without the use of any guideline and
- (ii) Systematic review, carried out in a systematic way, respecting a set of steps that should describe from the phase of a collection of the studies to the analysis of them.
Controlled Experiment
It consists of investigating a hypothesis where one or more independent variables are manipulated to measure their effect on one or more dependent variables.
This allows us to determine precisely how the variables are related and whether there are a cause and effect relationship between them.
Each combination of values of independent variables we call treatment. In a simple experiment, we have two treatments representing two levels of an independent variable (eg, using a tool and not using it).
Most experiments require the human (subject) to do some kind of task. In this way, we measure the effect of each treatment on “subjects”. See what to consider in each section:
Quasi-Experiment
Often used when it is not possible to randomly select which subject (human being) will experience which treatment.
Case study
The case study research method is used when we are analyzing a certain phenomenon in its natural environment, for example, when we want to analyze the productivity gain we use software, process, or methodology within the company.
Exploratory Case Study
An exploratory case study differs from the case study where we have a proposal that will be used in a given context. The exploratory case study is characterized by the lack of preliminary research, the lack of a formulated hypothesis, and /or a specific research environment that limits the choice of the methodology to be used.
It is used as a preliminary step in exploratory and casual research to explore new fields of research in which research questions have not yet been identified and defined.
Experience Report
Experience report is usually written by a person who participated in a project at a company. This work should have a practical objective, for example, identification and analysis of a given problem, search for solutions or implementation of solutions in practice, or even, identification and analysis of the results of the implementation of a given solution.
Works done with the pure research objective do not fit into this type of study. In addition, unlike the case study, the active participation of people (subjects) in the projects is a necessary requirement for this type of study.
Meta-analysis
Studies that integrate the results of two or more independent studies, on a given research question, combining the result of such studies.
Survey/Interview
Survey/interview is a common research method used to describe, compare, or explain attitudes and behaviors. It is not just a questionnaire or checklist to gather information.
There are two types of surveys: supervised or unsupervised.
- A supervised survey requires that we have a researcher for each respondent, to ensure that the respondent understands all questions and provides the answers (eg, telephone interviews).
- In the unsupervised, the researcher simply sends the questionnaire and waits for the final answer, without any type of interference.
Conclusion
The use of a research method makes the results reported in your work more credible, in addition to allowing future extensions and updates of your work.
In addition, it is strongly recommended to use guidelines and procedures already established in the academic community to apply each of these research methods. Failure to follow these guidelines can lead to misleading results and make it impossible to reproduce your search results.
However, if you have any problems in choosing your research methods or writing your research paper, you need not worry. That is because at Graduateassignmentshelp.com all you need is a request for online writing help. Here, you will meet an experienced researcher who can write a winning research paper, thesis, or dissertation for you.