Chapter 4: Research Design and Purposes

Introductory Considerations: The Trade-off in Research

• Any research conducted involves a fundamental trade-off between the cost of doing it and the value of the information obtained.

• This perspective contrasts with a simplified view of readily available research resources, as real-world research faces significant financial restrictions.

• The cost of obtaining information varies considerably across different research methodologies.

  • Telephone Surveys:

    • Historically inexpensive.

    • Rising costs of late due to decreased response rates; more calls are required to reach willing participants. People often screen calls, refuse to answer unknown numbers, or are unwilling to be interrupted.

  • Mail Surveys:

    • Often discarded as "junk mail" by recipients, reducing effectiveness and response rates.

• Every research type possesses inherent advantages and disadvantages (pluses and minuses) and carries a variable cost.

• The underlying objective is to acquire the best information for the lowest cost, a concept that underpins much of research planning.

Understanding Research Design

• Chapter 4 focuses on Research Design, which encompasses the decisions made to achieve specific research objectives.

• It emphasizes the importance of understanding the terminology and verbiage used in this type of research.

• Crucially, every chosen research design will have both inherent limitations and distinct strengths (advantages and disadvantages).

Purposes of Research

• Research typically serves one, or sometimes two, primary purposes.

• 1. Exploration:

  • The vast majority of research, especially at undergraduate and graduate levels, aims to explore a topic.

  • Despite its name, it is not necessarily the easiest form of research.

  • Exploratory studies often address questions like what is happening, where it is happening, when it is happening, and how it is happening.

• 2. Description:

  • Involves the systematic or scientific description of a phenomenon, population, or situation.

  • Preeminent example: The US Census, which describes the demographic characteristics of the U.S. population at a specific point in time.

  • Like exploratory studies, descriptive studies also focus on what, where, when, and how.

• 3. Explanation:

  • Aims to answer the fundamental question of "why" a phenomenon occurs.

  • This is generally the most challenging purpose due to the lack of simple, single answers for most complex events.

  • Example: Lung Cancer

    • The question "Why does lung cancer happen?" reveals its complexity.

    • A common, highly prevalent explanation is smoking (often the first inquiry by doctors).

    • However, other contributing factors include: exposure to asbestos, environmental contamination, and genetic predispositions.

    • Research over time has helped identify these multifactorial explanations.

    • Explanations are often partial "whys", meaning they can account for a significant percentage of cases by identifying several key factors (e.g., smoking, asbestos, chemical contamination).

    • However, a universal explanation for everyone affected by a phenomenon like lung cancer is rarely achievable, making explanatory studies inherently problematic due to this complexity.

Types of Explanations

• These types define the goal or depth of understanding sought in explanatory research.

• Ideographic Explanation:

  • The goal is to achieve an exhaustive understanding of all the causes producing a specific, unique instance.

  • For example, understanding all the factors that led to one particular individual's lung cancer. The speaker concludes this point by saying, "All of".